Spheria

  The five-legged Polyans were stationary and appeared to be watching what the others were doing. “Why are those guys standing there?” asked Graham.

  “Those are the Soldiers; basically guards. They make sure everyone is doing their jobs. They also hunt to get food crystals from other creatures. So their responsibility isn't without significant risk. Polyans have different roles depending on their number of legs. As a whole, everyone is essential to keep the Colony functioning as a unified community.”

  “How do they get designated as guards?”

  “Well, it turns out there is a direct correlation between the number of legs and deadliness or fighting ability. So the rankings just kind of worked themselves out. Also, it takes greater energy and more coordination to produce Polyans with more limbs. So the more they have, the fewer of them there are.”

  “I wonder if this classification by body structure has any resemblance to actual creatures here on Earth?”

  “Not that we have found. But it’s something we’re looking into. We’re trying to relate these behaviors to the real world as a means to help explain natural phenomena.”

  “What’s that?” Graham pointed to a large structure rising above the other hives, sloped on three sides like an ancient flat pyramid with steps on each side. On the top stood a perimeter of columns supporting horizontal rocks, like a triangular Stonehenge.

  “That’s the Council Chamber. The Polyans with six legs have taken on the role of the government. They meet on the top of that structure and discuss what to do as a collective, when to hunt, or when to relocate. There are only eight of them, so that adds to their prestige.”

  “So they’ve self-organized this way?”

  “Yes, they have.”

  “This is fascinating. What a fantastic opportunity this experiment is. The results so far have surpassed my expectations. I mean, I was optimistic that with your technology we’d do something brand new. But I didn’t know you'd pull it off so well.”

  “Hey!” Max frowned at Graham. “I only do things first-rate.”

  “I see that. Keep up the good work.”

  Graham turned silent for a bit. He continued to walk around the room, studying the behaviors of the Polyans. Max let him take it all in. He took the opportunity to check the email on his phone, since he’d not had a chance to do so since arriving. As Graham watched, one four-legged Polyan walked up to them and stopped. It stood there as if it was studying them. Slowly it began to circle them, all the while looking directly at them.

  “Hey,” commented Graham. Max looked up. “Can this one see us?”

  “No, they can’t see us.” Max followed Graham’s gaze and watched the strange movement of Sa∙ma circling their position. “What the hell?” he asked himself out loud. “Take us to the ‘Knoll View’ preset. It’s near the top of the list.”

  Graham brought up the menu and picked “!Colony Knoll View.” Immediately their viewpoint changed to an area close to, but outside, the mass of buildings. They must’ve been perched on a hill, judging by the name of the location. That and the fact that the view seemed to be overlooking the Colony. From this perspective, all the hives could be seen. There was definitely some kind of organizational logic to the layout of the Colony. Graham loved this. He sat on a stool across from Max and just stared at the hives.

  “So what do they do at night?” he asked.

  “Oh, I almost forgot,” said Max. “We don’t use this often so it’s easy to overlook. It’s just become a pool bumper to me.” He stood and went over to the door, and on a switch panel he pressed some buttons. The recessed ceiling lights went off and a dome projector rose from the center of the table. It lit up the sky, which also showed the other side of the world above them, projected onto the ceiling.

  “Stone the crows!” exclaimed Graham.

  “If you say so. We built this because we thought it’d be necessary to see a complete domed view of the environment. In reality, it’s not very useful because seeing what’s above isn't important, at least not until the Polyans develop flight.” Max grinned at his own joke. Seeing that Graham either didn’t find it funny or thought he was serious, Max ended with, “Damn impressive, though.”

  “That’s an understatement.” Graham leaned back against the table, rolling his head from side to side, taking in the vast expanse of the entire world. Since they were inside a sphere, the entire landscape was visible aside from the patch of ground this room was perched on. Had the floor been able to replicate the actual ground, it would be as seamless as if they were there. Directly above them, obscuring part of the other side, was a bright spot glowing green.

  “That’s The Source?” Graham asked.

  “Yes, it is. The Source of light, life, gravity, everything.”

  “Gravity?”

  “Yes. Making the world inside a sphere allowed us to get creative with some laws of physics. It works like the opposite of our universe. The ground we’re on isn't creating the gravity, not pulling us down, like the Earth does. Instead, The Source creates a ‘push force,’ which increases the closer you get to it. At ground level where we are, it's exerting one unit of push. As you approach the Source, the push gets exponentially stronger, becoming infinity at the center. So nothing would ever be able to contact it directly. Not that we expect anything to actually fly, but the higher something goes, the harder it gets to go higher until it becomes impossible. The Polyans think The Source is the dwelling place of the gods, so the fact that it's unreachable might someday reinforce that mystique.”

  “Interesting. Why is it green?”

  “Look over there at the Rift.” Max pointed to the left side of the room. From the Rift, very slowly, a shimmering violet bubble was emerging. “Those bubbles rise out of the Rift and, since they’re not affected by gravity, will eventually contact The Source. When they do, it’ll change to match that color. This is analogous to seasons. The color of The Source governs the behavior of the creatures inhabiting Spheria. The current color, green, is a growth color, so the vegetation is able to grow new branches. When The Source turns violet, the breeding color, any creatures capable of reproduction will begin to procreate. We control what color rises and when. Recently a large group of three-legged Drones foraging for buried crystals was killed, so we want to replenish them. The slow rising of the bubble gives everyone a small warning for what’s going to happen; hence, they can prepare.”

  “Different. Alien in fact. But smart.”

  “Yes. We didn’t want to just re-create Earth or the rules of our universe. We wanted something foreign, yet understandable. This lets us correlate developmental differences, if any, with actual differences in the environment.”

  “So what other colors are there?” asked Graham.

  “Some of the others are rarer and cause the environment to change. Blue causes the mountains to rise and spread. Everywhere there is an open blue polyhedron face, a blue tetrahedron will sprout. Red has a similar effect on the rivers, causing them to widen. We don’t deploy blue and red often because the world would just become mountains and rivers. Also, to the inhabitants, these are equivalent to natural disasters, so we get to see how they react. And since the Polyans see it coming, in the form of a rising bubble, we get to see how they prepare for the calamity.”

  “This just keeps getting better and better.”

  “Yeah, there is a bunch of stuff. I could go on and on but it’d take days to cover everything.”

  “Good, because I’ll be here for a few weeks. I want to see everything. I couldn’t…”

  Just then, a thudding sound filled the room and the viewpoint actually shuttered.

  “What was that?” asked Graham.

  Max looked around in confusion. “I’m not sure. That’s never happened before. Maybe some kind of glitch.”

  Bam. Shake, shake, shake.

  Max caught some motion out of the corner of his eye and spun around toward the Colony. Standing just before them was Sa∙ma. And he was hitting the virtual camer
a with one of his legs.

  “Not only can he see us,” commented Graham, “but he can touch us also!”

  “This isn't possible,” said Max, shaking his head. “The camera is invisible. There’s nothing to see, let alone touch.”

  Bam, bam, bam. The camera spun and slid down the hill. Sa∙ma followed.

  “Can we talk to him?” asked Graham.

  “We could, but it’s highly discouraged. Dana is anal about us not interfering inside their world.”

  “Well Dana reports to me, doesn’t she? How can we talk to him?”

  “Are you sure you want to do that?”

  “Yes. Let’s find out how this is possible since you say it’s not.”

  “I agree this is puzzling, but it must be some kind of software glitch. We can troubleshoot it offline.”

  “No, I want to do this. Patch me in.”

  “Alright, fine. To do so, we need to manifest as a seven-legged Polyan, which will appear to this one as a god.”

  “Great. I can fulfill my delusions of godhood. Do it.”

  “Give me the controller,” said Max. Graham handed it to him. Max brought up the menu and navigated a series of panels, bringing up a list of odd names. “Which god do you want to be?”

  “Not sure. What’re the options?”

  “Well, there is one for each color.”

  “Give me… blue then.”

  “Done.” Max picked “Ju∙ro,” entered a passcode, and the room darkened. The view lifted up slightly and was perched atop a blue crystalline core, with seven legs protruding in various directions. Sa∙ma jumped back, startled by the sudden appearance of the god. Then he bowed low before Max and Graham appearing as Ju∙ro, god of the mountains.

  “On the count of three,” said Max, “he’ll be able to hear you. 1..2..3!”

  Graham cleared his throat. Sa∙ma cocked his head at the odd sound. Then Graham said, “Rise.” Sa∙ma did so. “What is your name?”

  “Blessed Ju∙ro, I am your humble servant, Sa∙ma.”

  “How did you find me here?”

  “I sensed a disturbance like one that I've felt before and followed it. I wasn't sure what was here but didn’t think it was a god. My apologies for hitting you. I was just trying to figure out what you were, as I couldn’t see anything with my eye sensors.”

  “I forgive you,” said Graham as Ju∙ro. “Tell me, how do you have the ability to sense me?”

  Max started to fidget in his seat, but Graham was too focused on the screen to notice.

  “It was a gift from your sister, Pi∙ro,” said Sa∙ma. “She gave me a sensor that allows me to feel that which cannot be seen.”

  Graham mimed cutting his throat with his hand, and Max muted the conversation.

  “What the hell, Max? Who controls Pi∙ro and how did this level of interference happen? You said interference was prohibited.”

  Max swallowed and a bead of sweat formed on his forehead. “I don’t know. We can appear as any of the gods. They don’t actually belong to any one person, so there is no way to tell unless it was recorded. But I doubt what he says is true. It must be a software glitch of some kind. I’ll have Tim look into it immediately. Somehow this Polyan must have a connection to the glitch and thinks that a god gave it to him. We’ll fix this.”

  “I hope so. Otherwise, I’ll have to take back what I said about this project being perfect.”

  “Murphy’s law,” said Max.

  “Just fix it.”

  Max nodded.

  Sa∙ma said, “Please, my lord. May I ask a question?”

  Graham flicked his head at Max. Max un-muted the microphone.

  “What is it?” said Graham.

  “Ju∙ro, please tell me if there is a way to prevent the red rivers from growing toward our Colony?”

  Graham pointed at Max, indicating that he should take over. Then he nodded as if to say, “Answer him.”

  Max said, “Sa∙ma, you have long been a valuable member of your Colony. Trusted by all, even by gods. I will answer you this one question: A single blue polyhedron will not grow when under a blue Source. Place two close together but not touching. The red rivers may only approach them but not grow between or through them. But, touch the two blue together, and you will have the makings of a new mountain. Continue the pattern, and you may create a barrier of any desired length.”

  Sa∙ma understood. In fact, now it was obvious to him. He realized there was still a lot his Colony didn’t understand, that Le∙ma was right. He vowed to experiment more as part of her training. “Thank you, my lord. I am forever in your debt.” Sa∙ma bowed.

  Max pressed a button and the monitor turned off.

  “What happened?” asked Graham.

  “I shut off the camera. We, I mean Ju∙ro, has vanished from Sa∙ma.”

  “Fix the glitch, and don’t tell Dana what we did. This is between you and me. What kind of effect will it have?”

  “As far as I see it, best case, no effect. Worst case, it allows the Colony to remain where it is when the red river encroaches on their hives. Not necessarily a bad thing.”

  “Maybe we should play god more often.”

  “I’m on the fence on that one.”

  “Keep me informed on what develops.”

  “Will do.”

  Chapter 20 - Running Out

  “Obviously any group that has to have funding also needs to get attention to their issues.” - Bjorn Lomborg

  There was no elevator to the roof. Dana and Max had to figure out which stairway led beyond the seventh floor. The security officer who gave them the key merely said, “Use the emergency exit.” After a couple of dead-end stairwells, they found it, although the ‘Exit’ sign above was unlit. The sterile white metal ladder led to a locked door. The key worked, and they stepped onto the roof of the Health Center. The view was impressive. The entire Farmington Valley unfolded before them.

  But even more amazing than the view was the hulking form above them. The yellow airship overwhelmed all other visual stimuli. It sat silently before them, like an 8th floor of the building. Emblazoned across the bow in red script lettering were the words ‘Buruwa Gunya.’

  “Unbelievable!” said Max.

  “Truly,” responded Dana.

  “I thought it looked large from the ground. But it's enormous up close.”

  A slanted gangway led up to a side plug entrance, and a guard stood there keeping watch. He nodded at them with recognition and opened the hatch. As they approached, he said, “Please walk up the steps and one of the staff will assist you.”

  “Thank you,” said Dana.

  They entered the hatch and walked up five shiny wood-grained steps. These led to the platform of the suspended gondola. The interior was massive, just smaller than the entire dimensions of the ship. It had an open floor plan, with slanted windows wrapping almost all the way around. The exception being toward the rear, which was walled off, probably containing private rooms. Flanking the entrance was a set of sunken booths, three on each side. These consisted of bench seats with tables suspended from the ceiling by thick cables. To their left was the kitchen, with an assortment of stainless steel appliances, countertops, and bar stools. To their right was another sunken area with sectional couches, coffee tables, and a panoramic view out the windows. The decor was all stainless steel and white acrylic with nautical wood accents. It looked ultra-modern but inviting.

  “How in the world can this fly?” asked Dana.

  “No idea,” said Max. “But imagine being in it while it was?”

  “I think I'd get vertigo.”

  “You’re probably right.”

  “I don’t even like looking out the small windows on airplanes. When I have a window seat I always close the shades.”

  “Well, it’s a good thing you can see the building roof, otherwise it wouldn’t be much different.”

  A stunningly attractive woman appeared from the kitchen and approached them. “Hello,” she said, “is Graham
expecting you?”

  “Not exactly,” said Dana, “but he said we could stop up anytime we wanted. Is this a bad time?”

  “He’s about to start his daily exercise program. Please take a seat in the living area,” she motioned to their right, “and you can watch. Would you like anything to drink?”

  “Sure,” said Max, “what have you got?”

  “This layout was built for entertaining. We have a full kitchen and bar. So almost anything.”

  “Could I have an iced tea, then?”

  “Yes, sweetened or unsweetened?”

  “Unsweetened please?”

  “Of course.” Turning to Dana, “and you?”

  “Tea does sound good.” Dana looked toward the windows and shivered. “Do you have hot tea?”

  “Of course. How would you like it?”

  “Just plain is fine.”

  The woman nodded and walked back toward the kitchen. She could easily be a supermodel

  “Tell me that isn’t a Bond girl,” whispered Max.

  “I’ve worked with Graham a long time. He always has one or two of them around. Kind of degrading if you ask me, like his personal sex slaves.”

  “Looks like they’ve got much better perks than a typical slave would have.”

  “I suppose there are a few. And he’s not such a bad-looking guy either.”

  “Playboy of the year, right?”

  “So said GQ Magazine.”

  Max and Dana descended the three steps to the leisure platform and took a seat on the couches. It was hard not to stare out at the expansive view. They heard voices from the back of the ship. Graham emerged from a hallway accompanied by two scantily clad supermodels. They were all wearing padded headgear and carrying long black poles.