Tales of the Vuduri: Year Three

by Michael Brachman

  In the universe of Rome's Revolution, it has been clearly established that the little world of Deucado does not experience much in the way of seasons nor temperature extremes. The reason for this is two-fold.

  First, the planet has next to no axis tilt which means no matter where it is in its orbit around Tau Ceti, both hemispheres are receiving about the same amount of sunlight year round. Second, Deucado's orbit is nearly perfectly circular, again normalizing the amount of sunshine it gets each day. So no variance in the amount of daily sunshine equates to no seasons to speak of. Deucado does have two moons, Mockay and Givvy so it does have tides and thus life was able to flourish.

  Aason Bierak, the hero of the new novel The Milk Run has never experienced very much cold or heat. He did explore the far continent of Sul one time but he never went close to the polar ice cap.

  While it does rain sometimes, I once told you that it's always sunny on Deucado. But this is mostly for dramatic reasons. And while we know it rains in the early morning sometimes, it never snows in the lower latitudes. So in the end, it took a journey of 68 light years to the planet of Hades for Aason to truly experience bone-chilling cold for the first time. It was his first time seeing snow, as well.

  After Aason rescues his sister, I truly believe he will send a squadron back to Hades to make contact with the inhabitants there. I wonder if they will want to stay there or abandon the planet and return to Deucado or Earth, or maybe even Helome. Oh well, that's a story for another day.

  Entry 3-149: May 24, 2015

 

  Catch 22 - Part 1

  In the middle part of Rome's Revolution, right after Rome learned of the impending genocide, she was determined to thwart the plan.

  She beseeched the Overmind to intervene. The Overmind said he could not. She begged him to send someone to Earth to make them aware. The Overmind said he could not. If he sent a member of the Vuduri to Earth, the Onsiras would learn of his turnabout and send a strike force. And they could not send an Ibbrassati because then the Onsiras would know the inmates had gotten loose. Rome was truly painted into a corner.

  While this was sad for Rome, it was great for me as a story-teller. There was only one solution to this Catch-22 which set up the entire third act:

  “I do not care what you call it,” Rome said. “Stop it. Send up some ships. Deflect it. Do not allow this.”

  “This is the problem I do not know how to solve,” said the Overmind. “Even if I stopped the asteroid, it would not matter. Once the Onsiras find out what is happening here, they will send in a strike force and put a halt to it anyway. They will not allow the mandasurte to go free. You are not capable of understanding their resolve.”

  “Then we must send someone to Earth to tell them what is happening here,” said Rome. “The people of Earth must know about the plot to kill the mandasurte. The people of Earth must accept the need for the mandasurte to go free. You must send someone to Earth now to spread this message.”

  “I cannot do that,” said the Overmind.

  “Why not?” Rome asked.

  “If I send Vuduri, as soon as they arrive on Earth, the Onsiras will connect and they will know and dispatch a strike force here. They will not be able to hide this. If I send mandasurte, the Onsiras will know something has happened here and send a strike force. No matter who I send, the secret will get out and the Onsiras will ‘rectify’ the situation.”

  “What would happen if we did nothing?” Rome asked. “What if we just allow the mandasurte to leave and establish a presence elsewhere?”

  “We will not have enough time. Just as you can disconnect at will and I cannot reach you, I am certain that there are spies among us for the Onsiras. After all, I placed spies among the Ibbrassati. It is in our nature. Therefore, we cannot do nothing. The word will get out. Something must be done but I do not know what.”

  Rome became silent. Her heart was broken so many ways, she did not know what to say. The Overmind intruded and interrupted her concentration.

  “You and Rei must go,” said the Overmind. “You must go to Earth.”

  Poor Rome. It really sucks. But tomorrow you will see that the Overmind of Deucado's logic is impeccable.

  Entry 3-150: May 25, 2015

 

  Catch 22 - Part 2

  Yesterday, I presented to you Rome's fundamental dilemma on how to save the mandasurte which comes in the middle part of Rome's Revolution. Today, I will give you the second half of the conversation:

  “You and Rei must go,” said the Overmind. “You must go to Earth.”

  “What?” Rome said. “Why?”

  “Because you can. You are the only Vuduri who can leave here with the ‘secret’ intact. Rei is the only mandasurte who can leave here with good reason. He would be allowed to return to Earth.”

  “But I will know what is going on here. Will not the Onsiras detect this from my mind?”

  “You were able to construct false memories of the disposition of the Ark. You are able to keep me out of any part of your mind that you desire. No, they will not find out from you.”

  “And Rei?”

  “Rei is a hero. He would be allowed to return. There would be no explanation for preventing him.”

  “But we have seen the Ibbrassati. Rei has seen them.”

  “We will have to construct a cover story for you. We will say that the Ark was destroyed along with the Essessoni and you landed here at the enclave. That way, you would be expected to have no knowledge of the true purpose of Deucado.”

  “What about my son? I will be giving birth soon. We cannot go before that,” Rome pointed out.

  “Of course not, you must give birth. You will have that much time.”

  “What about Aason? He will have knowledge of this world, even if he does not understand it,” Rome said.

  “His genetics prevent him from being absorbed into an Overmind. Therefore the only way he could reveal information would be for someone to connect to him directly. He already has your abilities, to keep others out,” replied the Overmind. “He has already demonstrated this. We can teach him the ‘cover story’ or just have him stay disconnected altogether.”

  “This is a lovely plan except for one thing.”

  “And what is that?” asked the Overmind.

  “What do we do when we get there? How will two people stop an entire world from committing suicide?”

  “You will do what you do best. You will talk to them. That will be enough. If you can get enough people to believe you and you expose the Onsiras, they will be defeated. They can only succeed in the darkness. You will bring the light.”

  Rome slumped back on the couch. Once again, the weight of the world, actually all of life itself, was pressed upon her shoulders.

  Poor Rome. It's hard being a hero or in this case a heroine. But she is up to the task, trust me.

  Entry 3-151: May 26, 2015

 

  Transformers

  My children used to play with Transformers when they were young. I think that came to a close right around the Dinobots. We were always careful folding and unfolding them so we wouldn't break them. When the Transformers movies came out, there were a lot more moving parts but the effects were still cool.

  When the time came to write the scene for the unpacking of the Erklirte "weapons" in the middle part of Rome's Revolution, I had the vision of the Transformers in my mind. I had this idea that their vehicles would be compressed into a large yellow block and they would "inflate" when they were powered up. See if my depiction of a Transformer-like unfolding comes to mind here:

  Most of the Essessoni had sore backs so as a matter of practicality, the Ibbrassati were forced to do the heavy lifting. Some were better than others but most were nearly incapacitated in some fashion or another. The Ibbrassati slid the containers down the cargo ramp and dragged them until they were flat on the ground. Two Essessoni limped over and inserted one radioactive rod into the each of the boxes using the cavities made for just fo
r that purpose.

  Like a flower unfolding its petals, the squarish boxes began to unravel in glinting segments. Each arm unlocked, revealing another segment in its place. Underneath, wire wheels emerged and their electrostatic filaments stiffened causing the vehicle to slowly rise up from the ground. When the transformation was complete, the two vehicles resembled large, open cabin trucks with flatbeds and sides made up of shining metal.

  “Ionelli, Greer,” Keller said to two men standing nearby, “Stage Two.” Keller pointed to two cavities now visible near the front of the two vehicles. With some effort, the Essessoni inserted two more rods into each vehicle and they began transforming again. The flatbeds unfolded again and again forming a huge surface. Walls came up along with bars on the sides and another set of wheels descending from their underbelly turning them into giant transports.

  The two men swung up, one each into the cabin and fired up the electric motors. One made a grinding noise but no one seemed to care. The two men pulled the transports around and each pointed their front directly into the belly of the cargo compartment. They turned on huge floodlights and night became day.

  Good? Bad? Oh well, I tried. It'll be cooler when the movies are made.

  Entry 3-152: May 27, 2015

 

  Was Estar right?

  Early on in Part 1 of Rome's Revolution, Rei's encounter with the Vuduri (with the exception of Rome) was invariably unpleasant. Finally, he couldn't stand it. He begged Estar to explain why they all hated him so much. Her response was very short:

  Estar said, “Your goal is to continue your journey. Perhaps to find a way back to Deucado and also find a way to tow your Ark with the Essessoni aboard, correct?”

  “You already know that,” Rei said. “Aren’t you part of the Overmind?”

  “Yes, of course,” she said. “But I need to know your intentions. You are going to thaw out your people when you get wherever you are going, correct?”

  “Well, sure,” Rei said, puzzled. “That’s the whole point of our mission in the first place.”

  “Is it your intent to unload the Erklirte weapons as well?” the woman asked.

  “Weapons?” Rei replied, confused. “What kind of weapons? We’re not carrying any weapons.”

  “Let me rephrase then,” Estar said. “When you arrive at your new home world, you intend to land the cargo portion of your craft and unpack its contents, correct?”

  “Of course,” Rei said. “We’ll need that stuff to get organized, to start our lives there.”

  “Very well,” she said. “That is all I needed to know.”

  Initially, that was not much to go on. Later, Rei asked her again. This time, Estar was more blunt:

  “You are going to die,” said the voice.

  He turned and saw Estar standing at the base of the ramp. She was frowning.

  “What? Why?” he said and walked down the ramp.

  “You will not succeed,” she said. “You will die. I do not care about that. However, you will also kill Rome and many others in the process.”

  “Why do you say that?” Rei asked.

  “Because you and your Erklirte weapons cannot be released in our world. There is no place for them.”

  “I told you before, we have no weapons,” Rei said.

  “You know nothing,” said Estar. “You are just a pawn. There are forces at work here that you cannot fathom.”

  “You make it sound so sinister,” Rei said. “We’re just people from old Earth trying to find a life in your world.”

  “No, you are the Erklirte, returning from the past,” Estar spat out. “You will cause nothing but death and destruction. You will impede the progress of my species.”

  Estar had tried to kill Rei several times. Couched within her cryptic response was her motivation. She really believed that the Rei and the Erklirte, the new Ark Lords would be an impediment to the development of an Onsira species, ruled by MASAL. Of course, Rei did not know it at the time. And further, as a civilian member of the Ark program, he truly thought they were only carrying implements required to build a colony. Tomorrow, his eyes are opened when he realizes that Estar was right.

  Entry 3-153: May 28, 2015

 

  Weapons of War

  Yesterday, I recapped the scenes for you from Rome's Revolution where Estar informed Rei that the Arks contained very powerful Erklirte weapons. As a civilian, Rei was not privvy to the dual purpose of their equipment. And since he was not a member of the Darwin Project, he had no idea of their secret agenda. However, all became clear as they were unloading the "supplies" from the Ark II's cargo compartment. Rei came to realize the sinister nature of the equipment:

  Now that Keller’s men could see, the process went faster. Two more vehicles were removed and “inflated.” Boxes upon boxes were unloaded and staged on the ground. Rei watched in horrified fascination as they inserted power rods into the particle beam drillers and now with the harsh vision of the current situation, he was able to see that, indeed, they were mobile cannons. Other boxes were removed, marked as explosives but also emblazoned with the symbol for radioactivity. Large tanks, containing liquefied fuel that had been frozen solid in space for 13 centuries were also place on the flatbeds.

  Weapons were removed and handed out. The Essessoni started climbing up onto the transports and the Ibbrassati handed them more equipment. To someone who had just arrived, there would be no way to convince them that all that equipment fit within the confines of the cargo section of the ruined Ark.

  “This is unbelievable,” Rei said with disgust. “We really are a small army.”

  “We had to be ready for all eventualities,” Keller said. “No one knew what we’d be facing.”

  “So why the pretense?” Rei asked. “Why didn’t you just tell us we were going to be conquerors instead of colonists?”

  “Because we didn’t know if it had to be this way,” Keller said. “There was always the chance that things would go peacefully.”

  “What about the animal embryos?” Rei asked. “Are they weapons too? Are you going to throw them at the Vuduri and ick them into submission? Are you going to choke them with seeds?”

  “I don’t know what your problem is, Bierak,” Keller said, “but this is the way it is. Get used to it. This is who we are.”

  This is so hard to sort out. I don't blame the mission planners for sending along weapons. After all, nobody had any idea what they were going to encounter on alien worlds. But why the pretense? Well, that was what the Darwin Project was all about, secrecy. By the way, the line highlighted in bold is like one of my most favorite lines in all of the books, "ick them into submission." Pretty funny.

  Entry 3-154: May 29, 2015

 

  Testing, testing, 1...

  You will recall from several several previous articles that the actions of the magic yellow pill, given to Rome and Rei, had numerous effects. In fact, OMCOM's potions are at the core of many of the major developments in the entire Rome's Revolution series as well as The Milk Run. Besides fixing Rei's back pain and giving him sonar-vision, it also took the underlying substrate for the bloco and stilo and converted them from digital to analog transmission thus giving Rei the "cell-phone" in his head.

  But Rome already had a bloco and stilo. The yellow pill was successful in converting the apparatus. But because she took the yellow pill later than Rei, it took her a little longer for the cell-phone to come on line. She had remarked to Rei that her bloco and stilo were malfunctioning when they were crash landing on Deucado. But here is the first time she found out why:

  Rome listened again, more carefully this time. The noise she heard reminded her of that other channel inside of Aason, the one that only showed darkness and sound.

  She pushed toward it and thought tentatively, “Hello?”

  “Hello, Rome,” said a tiny voice.

  “MINIMCOM?” Rome was delighted. “You are alive?”

  “Curious choice of phrasing but yes, I am f
ully functional, thank you.”

  “How are you inside of my head? I have my PPT connection off.”

  “This is not a PPT connection. This is…something else,” replied MINIMCOM.

  “What? How are you doing this?” Rome asked.

  “It is an electromagnetic linkage.”

  “What?” Rome thought to herself. “How?”

  “Do you remember the yellow pill that Rei gave you to fix your back?”

  “Yes. It worked very well. My back is fine.” Rome thought.

  “It did a little more than that,” MINIMCOM offered.

  “Like what?” Rome asked, slightly unnerved.

  “It refined the transmission apparatus already inside your head. It is just now coming online.”

  “Is this why my blece and stilo stopped working?” Rome asked tersely.

  “Yes. This new equipment and the old devices utilize the same elements of your neural circuitry. There was not room in your head for both types of elements,” explained MINIMCOM.

  “Why?” Rome thought. “I did not ask you do this. Why did you do this to me without my consent?”

  Tomorrow, Rome finds out how it happened and who was responsible for the changes in her head.

  Entry 3-155: May 30, 2015

 

  Testing, testing, 1, 2...

  Yesterday, in Part 2 of Rome's Revolution, Rome came to find out from MINIMCOM that there had been some changes made on her physiology and in her brain. As you can imagine, initially, she was not very happy about it. Here is the middle part of that conversation:

  “Why?” Rome thought. “I did not ask you do this. Why did you do this to me without my consent?”

  “I did not.” answered MINIMCOM.

  “Then who did?”

  “OMCOM,” replied MINIMCOM.

  “OMCOM?” Rome asked, confused.

  “Yes, OMCOM. He thought it might come in handy down the road. He especially wanted Rei to have the apparatus.”