Tales of the Vuduri: Year Three

by Michael Brachman

  The new web site is kind of neat because you can compare Bruce's beautiful covers for Year One and Year Two and see how the city of I-cimaci is growing. Anyway, click on the image to take a peek. There are samples of each book and also all the buy links although buying for free is kind of an oxymoron.

  Entry 3-038: February 2, 2015

 

  Why do we... call someone a dead ringer?

  In the world of Rome's Revolution, Rei is always saying or doing something that Rome has no clue what he means. Many of our colloquial expressions and actions require a cultural context to make any sense at all.

  When Rei says to Rome, so-and-so is a dead ringer for somebody, what does Rei mean?

  We've all heard the stories that in the old days, people were occasionally buried alive. Just before the turn of the 20th century, a measurable percentage actually were. So we all assume the phrase has something to do with tying a string to the finger of the recently deceased and if they should wake up in their coffin, the bell would ring.

  But think about it. We all use the phrase dead ringer to mean a person or thing that is a virtual duplicate of the original, nearly indistinguishable. The phrase originally started with cheating in horse racing when people would substitute a faster (or slower) horse without telling anybody. So what's that got to do with dead people?

  The answer is, it doesn't Most of us know a ringer is someone who is substituted (usually in sports) who doesn't belong because their talent level is way above or way below their replacement. Like a professional baseball player showing up on a beer-league softball team. And we all use the word dead to mean exact like your aim was dead on.

  So the phrase is just that, an exact duplicate. No dead bodies involved!

  Entry 3-039: February 3, 2015

 

  Why do we... call a pre-funeral a wake?

  In the world of Rome's Revolution, Rei is always saying or doing something that Rome has no clue what he means. Many of our colloquial expressions and actions require a cultural context to make any sense at all.

  So when somebody dies, why do certain groups celebrate the death of the loved one with a ceremony called a wake? Normally, the body is supposed to be present. Yuck. It is like a viewing except it is done in somebody's home.

  Everybody thinks this phrase originated because the supposedly deceased person might have been so drunk that if you waited long enough, they might have awakened from their stupor. For some reason, the term is often associated with Irish people but it doesn't have to be. Anyway, it is an entertaining idea but wrong.

  The reality is, the family and friends of the loved one were supposed to stay awake, guarding over the body until it was buried. Guarding it from what? I don't know. But the word should be thought of as synonymous with vigil rather than intoxication.

  Entry 3-040: February 4, 2015

 

  Why do we... mind our Ps and Qs?

  In the world of Rome's Revolution, Rei is always saying or doing something that Rome has no clue what he means. Many of our colloquial expressions and actions require a cultural context to make any sense at all.

  When Rei tells Rome to mind her Ps and Qs, what the heck does he mean?

  The typical modern meaning is to mind your words or language. The origin is thought to have arisen from English pubs when the bartenders had to remind their patrons to mind their pints and quarts so they didn't get too drunk or dispute the bar bill when it came time to settle up.

  Another possible explanation, somewhat simplistic, would be advice from master printers to their apprentice to make sure they put in the proper letter when typesetting. After all, a p and a q are exactly the same, just mirror images of each other. The same could be said to children learning how to print.

  Yet another alternate explanation seems most likely. In the 1800s, when children were being taught how to be polite, parents would remind them to always say please and thank you. So the "P" for please is easy and if you say thank you out loud enough times, you realize it could be pronounced Than Q. An alternate phrase worthy of reminding would be to say excuse me or Ex Q sme. So minding your Ps and Qs could simply be a reminder to be polite.

  I kind of like that explanation the best.

  Entry 3-041: February 5, 2015

 

  Why do we... call someone a scapegoat?

  In the world of Rome's Revolution, Rei is always saying or doing something that Rome has no clue what he means. Many of our colloquial expressions and actions require a cultural context to make any sense at all.

  When Rei told Rome that she was the scapegoat when Ursay gave her permission to release the VIRUS units, what did he mean?

  This one is easy. Everybody knows back in biblical times, you had to prepare goats for sacrifice. One was roasted as an offering to the gods and the other was booted out carrying the sins of the people on its back symbolically.

  However, according to Wordorigins.org, the whole thing was due to a mistranslation:

  This term, for one who is punished for the misdeeds of others, is the result of a mistranslation. The term was coined in 1530 by William Tyndale, who misread the Hebrew word ‘azazel, the proper name of Canaanite demon, as ‘ez ozel, literally the goat that departs. In Leviticus 16:8, the scriptures describe how two goats should be prepared for an offering, lots should be drawn, and one should be sacrificed to the Lord as a sin-offering, and the other given to Azazel and set free in the wilderness bearing the sins of the people.

  Had Inigo Montoya been around, he would have said, "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." Regardless, it doesn't change the modern usage. The term means anyone who is blamed (usually wrongly) and punished for the sins of others. But it did give goats a poor name.

  Entry 3-042: February 6, 2015

 

  Second class citizenry

  In the middle part of the original long-form version of Rome's Revolution, Rome had overwhelmed the Overmind of Deucado with information that it needed to process. Luckily for her, it did have some intelligence and did not reject her advice out of hand.

  While it was contemplating her claim that it was an abomination, Rome decide to hit it with the big gun. She wanted the Overmind to free the mandasurte. Essentially, she was telling it to withdraw from its only reason for existence.

  Her argument was compelling. In fact it was irrefutable. Here is part 1:

  “I thought you wanted to rest,” it asked.

  “I did but it is this second piece that is the most important.”

  “Piece of what?” asked the Overmind.

  “My statement that within you now lies the seeds of your destruction.”

  “And what is that piece?” asked the Overmind. “The second one.”

  “You must free the mandasurte,” Rome replied. ”Without them, mankind is doomed.”

  “That is ridiculous. How do you arrive at that conclusion?”

  “Let us start with the Stareaters. Do you accept their existence?”

  “As improbable as it may seem, I cannot deny it. The evidence is overwhelming. So the answer is yes.”

  “Do you know how to defeat them?” Rome asked.

  “Yes, I have seen it. Your research and development of a detection system and a weapon to stop them seems adequate. After we get the situation under control here, we will begin deployment.”

  “We have no delivery system yet. We had to destroy the world upon which we were standing just to stop the one coming after us. And the entire solar system was a casualty. I would not called that an unqualified success,” Rome observed.

  “Nonetheless, we will come up with a method of deployment. Of that you can be sure.”

  “We will deem that a given, said Rome. “But even so. Consider their distribution. Why are they headed for Earth? Earth is nothing special. The Sun is nothing special. Why there? Do you think it is a coincidence? You are the great and powerful Overmind. Answer that question,” Rome fired back.

 
; The Overmind pondered this for a moment. “Well, assuming that the Stareaters are alive, they would behave in a matter which was best suited for their health and well-being. They would seek out that which nourishes them.”

  “And that which poses a danger?” asked Rome.

  “They would seek to stop whatever is the source of the danger,” answered the Overmind.

  “Have we not proven that we have the power to kill them?”

  “Yes. If they were alive and aware of our existence, they would make it a priority to seek us out and destroy us first,” said the Overmind.

  “So how do they know where we are?”

  Tomorrow, Rome delivers the hammer blow.

  Entry 3-043: February 7, 2015

 

  Beacon in the night

  Yesterday, we saw that Rome was preparing to drop a bombshell on the Overmind of Deucado in the middle part of Rome's Revolution. Her assertion was that segregating the mandasurte was wrong and the Overmind had to free them. Initially the Overmind resisted the idea but here is where Rome shows it that it has no choice:

  “Yes. If the Stareaters were alive and aware of our existence, they would make it a priority to seek us out and destroy us first,” said the Overmind.

  “So how do they know where we are?”

  “What do you mean?” asked the Overmind.

  “I am neither a physicist nor a psychologist,” answered Rome. “But I can tell you this, whether they are machines or creatures, they know what they are doing. It is not random chance.”

  “I can see from your analysis and experience that they are capable of generating tremendous PPT tunnels and PPT modulation. It is possible that they can detect it as well. It has always been postulated that with our particular mode of communication, there must be some immeasurably small temporal effects. Perhaps leakage might be a good word.”

  “So wherever there are Vuduri, there is leakage. Where would that leakage be the greatest?” Rome asked.

  “Wherever there is the greatest concentration of transceivers.”

  “Which would be?”

  The Overmind did not answer right away even though it was obvious. Rome could feel its fear for the first time.

  “We, the Overmind,” it said. “We are their homing signal. The Asdrale Cimatir is coming for us.”

  “And Earth?” Rome offered even though it made her sick to her stomach.

  “Earth is their beacon in the night.”

  After allowing the Overmind a few moments to mull this over, Rome said, “Nowhere is safe, for the Vuduri or for you.”

  “Yes. Wherever the Vuduri go, the Stareaters will follow,” replied the Overmind tonelessly.

  “That is why it is imperative that you must begin preparing your defense, our defense. We cannot run. We cannot hide. We must make our stand. And that is why we will need the mandasurte.”

  “Why?” asked the Overmind.

  “Because they are the only ones who can reliably deliver the VIRUS units. You have seen my history. You know full well that the Vuduri become incapacitated whenever they get near a Stareater. The Asdrale Cimatiras generate so much gravitic energy that they swamp a connected Vuduri’s mind. Rei and I hooked up an EEG to Commander Ursay when the Stareater was still half a light year out. His brain waves were flat. It was as if he had no mind at all. From your position, it is very simple, without Vuduri minds, there is no Overmind. Asdrale Cimatir renders the Vuduri mind lifeless. Therefore, the Stareaters represent your death on a scale both large and small.”

  Pretty eloquent words from a woman who just a year before came from a culture that did not speak and was strongly encouraged to not think for themselves!

  Entry 3-044: February 8, 2015

 

  Tsk, tsk, selfish

  Yesterday, we saw Rome put the Overmind of Deucado in its place in the middle of Rome's Revolution. Because the Stareaters were coming, the mandasurte were the only people who could reliably deliver a weapon to destroy these titanic creatures. However, the Overmind's fear of the mandasurte ran deeper than that.

  “The mandasurte are uncontrolled,” the Overmind said. “They do things just for the sake of doing them. They are a drain on our resources. With their art and their music, they contribute nothing to the advancement of the human endeavor.”

  “My Rei, is he Vuduri?” Rome asked.

  “Of course not,” replied the Overmind.

  “And it is your contention that the mandasurte have nothing to contribute?”

  “Yes, the mandasurte contribute nothing. It is the Vuduri and the Overmind that move society forward,” said the Overmind.

  “If that is true, then how was it that a mandasurte was able to figure out how to defend against the Stareater when the Overmind on Skyler Base could not?”

  “That was not a mandasurte. That was an Essessoni. The mandasurte have no skills. They are not good at anything important.”

  “You are wrong. The mandasurte are good at many things. What they are mostly good at is thinking for themselves,” thought Rome.

  “You have missed my earlier point. The mandasurte are too dangerous to allow around Vuduri.”

  “Why?” Rome asked.

  “Because their way of life is too seductive. They have too much joy. They feel too much.”

  “What is the problem with that?” Rome asked.

  “The mandasurte, their lives fascinate the Vuduri, they draw them in.”

       “So what?”

  “You of all people should know. We cannot have the Vuduri and mandasurte consort with one another. It would lead to the decay of the Vuduri.”

  “How?” Rome asked.

  “It is obvious,” the Overmind said. “Too much interaction would cause a degradation of my connection or taking it to its logical conclusion, the extinction of the Overmind.”

  “Ah…” Rome thought. “Just as I suspected. You are not worried about the Vuduri. You are worried about yourself. Your fear of the mandasurte is simply about self-preservation. Your self-preservation. You are selfish. Admit it.”

  “No!” protested the Overmind.

  Even though the Overmind protests, Rome already trapped it. Tomorrow, I will show you Rome educating the Overmind as to the meaning of life. Joy is an emotion that is foreign to the Overmind but it is one that it must grasp on to if it wants to survive long term.

  Entry 3-045: February 9, 2015

 

  Joy

  Yesterday, we saw Rome set the table so that the Overmind could start to learn the meaning of life. This little vignette takes place in the middle of Rome's Revolution. Rome had explained that because the Stareaters were coming, the mandasurte were the only people who could reliably deliver a weapon to destroy these titanic creatures. Yesterday, the Overmind expressed its fear. Rome now has to show it that its fear is not justified

  “Ah…” Rome thought. “Just as I suspected. You are not worried about the Vuduri. You are worried about yourself. Your fear of the mandasurte is simply about self-preservation. Your self-preservation. You are selfish. Admit it.”

  “No!” protested the Overmind. “It is not just that. They think for themselves. If we allow them free rein, they will cause chaos. In that way, they are much like Garecei Ti Essessoni. And like the Essessoni, if left unchecked, they will cause much death some day.”

  “So you are condemning all the mandasurte for a crime which they did not yet commit. That is preposterous. You cannot know this. Look at me. Look at what I have learned by being mandasurte. I will not cause death. I only want what is good,” thought Rome.

  “But the mandasurte, they are too unconstrained,” the Overmind complained. “They cause the Vuduri to lose focus. They are not disciplined in their thinking. Bad things can happen around them.”

  “You do realize you are starting to repeat yourself,” said Rome. “Know this: they are not too unconstrained. Some might be. Others are not. My Rei is good and kind and caring. He only wants to preserve life, not take it.�
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  “Yes, Rei,” the Overmind repeated. Then it asked a very odd thing. “What is love like?”

  Within her mind, an overwhelming gladness and, simultaneously, an overwhelming sadness washed over her. “Love is life. It is what life is all about. The very things you fear are the very reasons to live. What is joy other than the delight in things or feelings. Love completes us. It gives us our future.”

  “Feelings,” thought the Overmind. “There is no place for them in our world. Nothing good comes of them,” it said half-heartedly.

  “Everything good comes of them,” Rome thought. “They make life worth living. Without them, you are simply going through the motions of life. Without feelings, there is no joy. Without joy, there is no point in living.”

  Although the Overmind was not quite ready to admit it, eventually it came around to Rome's style of thinking. Joy was the one thing that Rome never knew she missed until she met Rei. She knew she was missing something but it took a man from the 21st century to put it into words for her.

  Entry 3-046: February 10, 2015

 

  Feelings - part 1

  Yesterday, we saw that Rome was systematically breaking down the Overmind's belief system. In the middle of Rome's Revolution, she made it her mission to show that joy was not the only emotion worth pursuing.

  “Feelings,” thought the Overmind. “There is no place for them in our world. Nothing good comes of them,” it said half-heartedly.

  “Everything good comes of them,” Rome thought. “They make life worth living. Without them, you are simply going through the motions of life. Without feelings, there is no joy. Without joy, there is no point in living.”

  “But society flows so much better without them, without emotions” protested the Overmind weakly. “Look at Earth. Look at what we have done for the people there, their health and well-being.”