Seren- Legends of the Galaxy

by P H Campbell

  "It's possible," Dr. Treah allowed. "The Methonians often startle the locals, and those who don't travel off-world. But mostly, any prejudice arises from unfamiliarity, rather than actual bias. There are no reports of violence toward non-Humans based on prejudice alone going back several thousand years. What few reports of violence we know of seem to be based on the actions of a non-Human individual rather than because of what the individual is.

  "We don't expect that you will encounter any issues of that nature at all," she added.

  The group took her at her word for that.

  "We've provided transportation and local guides should you wish to travel a wider path," Dr. Treah continued. "The guides aren't strictly necessary, as the customs here are much like they are on your world. That, too, is typical of most UGW worlds. We offer the guides for information rather than as overseers, and won't interfere with what you want to do, unless it's actually dangerous to you or others. Given the vast differences in common technology between your world and this one, much like Gateway, you may need someone to show you how to make things work properly.

  "We've also made a comprehensive list of places there that are typical of life on an average UGW member planet. That will be uploaded to your pads momentarily. We don't expect you'll go to all of them. They're just a courtesy so you don't have to find them yourselves. You can also choose to go elsewhere if you wish. We will provide you with credits and access typical of the average resident here, along with communications devices that can maintain contact between us, and among each of you."

  Their hosts followed this information with an instructional period which taught them how to use the devices their hosts had given them. It didn't take much to master the basics.

  By common consent, the group refrained from discussing "World politics" or their personal decisions regarding which side to join while in the presence of others who weren't Worlders.

  New Haven wasn't a highly developed planet, which came as a surprise to Seren. She expected to see high-tech gadgetry everywhere. What little high-tech there appeared to act like magic to her.

  The ground vehicles were mostly autonomous, which profoundly disturbed everyone in the delegation. The delegation found the lack of a driver unnerving. Other than that, the gadgets they encountered were like the Electrian gadgets they all knew how to use – at least in function, if not by specific means. The gadget in which they rode seemed to run on some kind of power source that was quiet and efficient. Gliff and Ronik were both thrilled by the tech, even if the lack of someone operating it didn't thrill them.

  Once at the central city, the delegation split up into groups of two or three, consulted with each other about where they'd go from the list so that no two groups went to the same places. They also provided guides to help them with the technology.

  Markov and Koreen both took off to see the cities. Morlendrus, Majel and Walentia formed an unlikely group and went to see how the UGW handled their agriculture. Gliff and Ronik inspected what little industry the planet offered. Seren and Sasha were to go to places that made guides uncomfortable, which were not necessarily on the list – assuming such places existed.

  The UGW assigned Seren and Sasha with an attractive woman who looked to be older than the two were to be their guide and source of information. Her name was Roshonda. She looked like a capable and fit person and appeared to be in good health. Her demeanor was one of eagerness to please, but muted in a way that made her seem like she was perpetually on the edge of nervousness.

  It was telling to both Seren and Sasha that while the people of the UGW all appeared to be healthy and whole, they also appeared to have less passion for life than the typical Worlder.

  "Very nice to meet you, Roshonda, I'm Seren," Seren introduced herself.

  "Then you must be Sasha," Roshonda grinned, holding out her hand.

  "That's me," Sasha smiled back, shaking the offered hand. "Nice to meet you."

  Roshonda eyed Seren's staff and asked, "Is that for walking or for fighting?"

  "I've used it for both," Seren admitted. "It's mostly a ceremonial symbol now. I think of it as my security blanket. I feel naked without it."

  "It looks ancient," Roshonda remarked, noting the wear on it from twelve thousand years of lying around, and over four hundred years of use as a walking stick.

  "It is," Seren agreed with a grin.

  "So where would you like to go, Seren?" Roshonda asked, poised to tell the car to go to a location.

  "To the places you think I shouldn't ever see," Seren winked.

  "That'd be my home," Roshonda laughed. "It's a mess right now."

  Seren and Sasha exchanged a glance. Roshonda noticed the exchange and looked startled.

  "Wait, you really want me to take you there?" she asked.

  "If it's not too much bother," Seren nodded. "We've never seen how a normal UGW citizen lives. And I promise you, nothing you show us is going to shock us."

  "But, you're like heads of state and stuff," Roshonda remarked. "Are you sure?"

  "We're sure," Sasha smiled reassuringly. "Knowing how normal people in the UGW live is what we're here to find out. The others are looking at society. We want to see the people."

  "Okay, but pardon the mess," Roshonda sighed and directed the vehicle to take them to her home.

  "Why do you look so comfortable?" Seren asked Sasha, then dredged up her memories and realized the answer as Sasha answered.

  "Autonomous vehicles were common when I left on the Wethersfield," Sasha replied. "This is the first time you've been in one, huh?"

  "As long as I think Roshonda's driving, I'll feel better," Seren smirked.

  "This thing's a better driver than I am," Roshonda admitted.

  "So do you folks have vehicles you drive yourselves?" Seren asked.

  That started a conversation which lasted almost an hour as Roshonda "drove" them to a more distant community than the city where the spaceport was. Roshonda told them about what life was like on her world, the conveniences and the inconveniences involved and how she coped with things. Mostly, it sounded like everyday life for most people Seren had met – the threats of dying in rockfalls notwithstanding.

  "Just out of curiosity, how were you picked to be a guide?" Seren asked.

  "I don't know," Roshonda admitted. "A standard week ago I had a visit from planet enforcement telling me they had chosen me to be a guide to some very important people. Then there was the orientation and a wait to see if they called me."

  "How did you know she was picked?" Sasha wondered.

  "Just a hunch," Seren confessed. To Roshonda she asked, "Does the UGW keep information about you somewhere?"

  "Well, sure," Roshonda shrugged.

  "What kind of information?" Seren wondered.

  "Everything, I guess," Roshonda told her. "We all have files telling the UGW where and when we were born, our medical history, our employment history, our aptitudes and psychological profiles… Oh, wait, that's probably how they chose me."

  Because of all the technology they had, Seren knew the UGW could monitor its people in great detail. Roshonda confirmed that they did so.

  "That would be a good guess," Seren nodded. "Didn't this interfere with your job?"

  "That's a kind of long story," Roshonda sighed. "I don't have an occupation right now."

  "Is that common around here?" Seren wondered.

  "Well, yes and no," Roshonda decided. "Occupations are things we want to do. But when there aren't enough openings for the occupations we want to do, then we get assigned to things we don't really want to do, but have an aptitude for. Sometimes jobs're short term. Sometimes not. That way everyone has a job, but not everyone has an occupation."

  "I see the distinction," Seren agreed, wondering why the distinction existed in the first place. "So this guide thing is a job."

  "Yeah, but I don't mind it," Roshonda told her. "It's important to contribute."

  "What occupation are you looking for?" Sasha wondered.

>   "Honestly, I want to be an artist," Roshonda admitted. "But there are only so many openings out there that let you do that, and until one opens up that matches my aptitude and skill history, I'm stuck doing jobs."

  The tension in her voice raised yet another red flag for Seren.

  "How many people have jobs versus occupations?" she asked.

  "I don't know, exactly," Roshonda admitted. "Most people I know have jobs. The people with occupations stick with them unless they're made obsolete or demand drops."

  "So, they employ everyone doing something they can do well, but not everyone is doing what they want to do even if they can do well," Seren concluded.

  "I guess," Roshonda shrugged while the scenery went by. "I mean, we can't all do what we want to do, so we do what we have to do. At least I know I'll be able to do whatever it is I'm told to do."

  "You don't get a choice?" Sasha asked.

  "That's a funny thought," Roshonda laughed. "How would we know if we can do something unless someone has already figured that out?"

  "Uh, by trying," Sasha suggested, taken aback by what appeared to be Roshonda's total lack of interest in finding out what she could do on her own.

  "Oh, then you get disruptions and chaos and disappointment," Roshonda told her. "Everyone has something to do that contributes, and they can do it well. Why mess that up with letting them pick what they want if you're not sure they'd be good at it? They won't do it as well unless they're matched to it."

  "Who does the picking for you?" Seren asked.

  "An AI does it," Roshonda replied. "It's just numbers to it, and it picks the best match for the open jobs."

  "AI?" Seren asked.

  "Artificial Intelligence," Sasha reminded her.

  The concept came flooding back to Seren.

  "Got it," Seren nodded. "So this machine does the picking. Who made the machine?"

  "I don't know, but the UGW installs them when a planet gets advanced enough to have enough people in the system to choose," Roshonda told her. "No one goes hungry, everyone has a job they can do well, and society works really well that way."

  "So you don't mind not being able to be an artist?" Sasha asked her.

  Roshonda's face went blank for a second, surprised that anyone would ask, then said, "No, not really."

  Seren tasted the lie.

  "You mind it a lot, don't you?" she pointed out gently.

  "I'm not supposed to say that," Roshonda told her.

  "But that's what we're here to learn," Seren reminded her. "You're doing your job very, very well by helping us learn about the way people feel. You don't like not being able to do your chosen occupation, but is that how others feel?"

  Roshonda had to think about that. On the one hand, her duties said to do her assigned tasks to the best of her ability. On the other hand, she was explicitly told to not expose the Worlders to anything untoward, unless they pressed her to do so. Roshonda was feeling pressed. That clarified Roshonda's decision.

  "Do you guys like to party?" she asked them.

  Seren and Sasha looked at one another. Seren deadpanned, "That's something we've been known to do" as Sasha dissolved in laughter.

  Given Roshonda's question about partying, it did not surprise Seren or Sasha that the local version of a neighborhood pub knew Roshonda well. A little surreptitious research told Seren that such pubs were exceptionally common. Much like a Borderlandian pub, the entertainment facilities were relatively small, served a short list of foods and a long list of intoxicating beverages. There were rooms rented by the hour in the back by patrons too inebriated to tell a vehicle where to go, or to engage in some fun with a friend or two or three, depending on the mood.

  The main room wasn't very large, which kept crowds low and the conversations more intimate. There was often live entertainment on special nights, but usually it was a quiet place where people could gather in larger numbers, though not riot-sized, to talk and socialize. They varied only by theme. They seemed to have a singular purpose:

  A place for people to go to and work off their frustrations.

  They were ubiquitous because few nights out for individuals or couples didn't include a visit to the local bistro at some point. Sometimes it was before the evening's main entertainment, sometimes during, sometimes after. Most often, though, it seemed to be the main source of entertainment – especially among the singles crowd.

  From her talks with Councilor Thoria, Seren understood why such establishments were so important to a society living in a high-stress environment. It let folks relax and be themselves – as long as they didn't relax too much. The small sizes and more than walking distance between them discouraged large, rowdy crowds. That limited the potential for rioting. Including locations to sleep it off, or sleep with a partner, created a different sensibility to the place that also discouraged violence. The decor, lighting, entertainment, food and other aspects to them also worked toward easing any residual angers someone might have.

  It worked very well for the Borderlandians. They'd never had a riot in all their time as a society once the local pub became an integral part of people's lives during that time in their life when rowdiness was most likely.

  That these same high-stress-reducing hallmarks shouted their purpose out at Seren as she entered the establishment was troublesome to her. It was lively, but not rowdy. It also showed a very strong need for such establishments. Seren wondered why the average denizen of the UGW would need such a comparatively primitive method of blowing off steam.

  "You want to know what people think, here's people," Roshonda gestured toward the small crowd.

  One young man with dark hair and light eyes looked up in surprise.

  "Hey, Roshonda!" he called out. "I thought you were doing your job today."

  "I am Mikhail," Roshonda replied. "This is Seren and Sasha. I'm their guide. They want to talk to people. I figure, we're people."

  "Trent isn't people," Mikhail asserted, nudging his friend next to him who appeared to be drooling at Sasha.

  "I'm not people," Trent agreed. "I'm an unruly assortment of unrequited needs wrapped up in a shell with vague perceptive abilities."

  "I'm a fourteen thousand year old physician from a back-water planet," Sasha grinned and sat next to him.

  "I'm a reincarnated twelve thousand year old legend," Seren added with a grin.

  "The rules are, it has to be truth," Trent asserted.

  "Oh, in that case, I'm a fourteen thousand year old physician from a back-water planet who spent most of that time in stasis," Sasha amended her statement.

  "Unfortunately, I really am a reincarnated twelve thousand year old legend," Seren winked. "My former incarnation was as Miralenda Gravtok, but legend has her known as Humon, the world destroyer who tore a continent in half and banished half of the population to the icy north and raised a mountain range to keep them there."

  "You should be a spiel sayer," Mikhail noted. "You say that so smoothly and well, someone might believe it."

  "We come from The World," Seren added.

  "Well, we all come from… Wait… What world?" Mikhail asked, looking at Roshonda and back at Seren.

  "The World, world, the one in the news," Roshonda told him. "You know, like I told you my task was for?"

  Mikhail looked profoundly worried as he looked at Seren and Sasha with an entirely new perspective.

  "You're from there?" he asked Sasha.

  "Originally, I'm from Earth," Sasha admitted. "Then I went to Mars, got on a colony ship, went into stasis and woke up with someone telling me in some weird language that it was thousands of years later."

  "I'm the one who's from The World," Seren mentioned. "That's an even weirder story, but what I told you is true. It turns out that The World's system is resource-rich, and right on the edge of the UGW and Shade Alliance border. Since we have the right to self determination, both the UGW and the Shade Alliance have agreed to allow us to visit planets of their own choosing in their respective regions that repr
esent the best, worst and average on each side."

  "So, you're researchers or what?" Trent wondered.

  "I'm a physician," Sasha reiterated. "But my knowledge is millennia out of date. They rushed me out of stasis because of the flu epidemic our planet was having."

  "What's a flu?" Mikhail asked.

  "Not something you folks have to worry about," Seren replied. "But we did, and we needed help. Turns out they answered our mayday call, though we didn't expect it to be answered. Both the Shade Alliance and the UGW sent aid."

  "What do you do?" Trent asked Seren.

  "I'm a mediator, I guess," Seren replied. "When the councils get all pissy with each other, I go in, bang my staff and they behave. At least mostly. Then I point out why they're being children and tell them what I think would be best and let them work out how to do that."

  Roshonda was learning how to read between Seren's lines and remarked, "It sounds to me like you run the whole planet."

  "They have accused me of that," Seren admitted. "It's not entirely untrue. But the councils do the running. I mostly suggest."

  "So why are you slumming with us?" Mikhail wondered.

  "Roshonda brought us here to meet regular people," Seren replied. "We want to know what normal people think of living in the UGW."

  "It sucks and blows," Trent replied. Then added thoughtfully, "but so do people when they breathe. And that's the problem."

  "If you're lucky enough to have an occupation, it's pretty nice," Mikhail remarked. "But if you're stuck in the job cycle like we are, it's just existence. It's not rewarding. It's not living. And it's not like there's an alternative."

  "Colonization of another planet takes a decade to get into the program, and then when you get there, it's the same sucking and blowing," Trent added. "There are a thousand planets just like this one all across the UGW, differing only in climate, orbit, daylight and night-sky. All carefully managed. All with people who settle for the status quo because that's all they'll ever get."