Rei laughed. “Wouldn’t that be a hoot? We go to the stars and when we get there, there are already people? Nah,” he said, shaking his head. “I’m just hoping for some grass and trees to start a colony. At this point, I think we’d settle for air.”
The purpose of this little vignette is to show that Rei was always destined to meet Rome and fall in love with her.
Entry 3-328: November 19, 2015
Characters in Science Fiction
Rome's Revolution was my first science fiction novel. Actually, it was three novels that got squashed down into a single 160,000 word omnibus. It is not fantasy. There are no werewolves or vampires or zombies or magic. It is a plain old space opera but I tried to make it stand out from others like it.
I have always loved science fiction and I always wanted to write science fiction but I had no interest in writing just a science-driven plot with one-dimensional characters thrown in as chess pieces or plot devices. To me, the story had to be about the characters and the plot had to revolve around them.
Oh sure, it is science fiction and there is plenty of hard, meticulously researched science throughout the novels. But it is Rei and Rome and their love for one another that is a constant throughout the entire trilogy.
A reviewer for Risingshadow.net wrote:
"The protagonists are endearing three-dimensional characters. What I like most about the the protagonist is that they feel realistic. Although they're intelligent and they seem to be perfect, they also have human traits and faults that make them vulnerable. This kind of characterization is a bit rare in hard science fiction, because there are several sci-fi authors who use characters to push the story forward and don't develop them much (as most readers may know hard science fiction means that the authors emphasize scientific accuracy and technical details, and this is often done at the expense of character development). Fortunately Michael Brachman has understood that it's also important to develop the characters. He develops his characters in an interesting way by writing about their problems and how they deal with them (his characters learn from their mistakes and try to solve problems as well as they can, and at the same time they grow as persons)."
It is my hope that after you read these novels (including The Ark Lords and Rome's Evolution) you don't just remember the set pieces or scientific marvels but rather the characters themselves. This includes the non-human characters such as OMCOM, MINIMCOM, MASAL and even the Stareaters.
My goal was to make them memorable, almost like they were real. At least they are to me. The characters are so real, I got the chance to meet their children, Aason and Lupe, and see them grow up and have an adventure of their own, called The Milk Run. Does it stop there? Not a chance.
The Milk Run is merely the first of the three part Vuduri Knights series. And I have a prequel coming about MASAL and the Robot War. But no matter where it takes me, remember, it is all about the characters.
Entry 3-329: November 20, 2015
Computer Ethics
As I have mentioned many times, there are no robots in the 35th century world of Rome's Revolution because of the evil computer MASAL's plan to take over mankind and turn all of us into living machines, slaved to his will. He used the robots that existed then to become his primary weapon of destruction. Thus after the Robot War, they were banned forever. Because there are no robots, there is no need to worry about their programming or ethics. MASAL proved it was a bad idea to have them running around. But what about the computers? We have three to examine: OMCOM, MINIMCOM and MASAL.
MASAL proved that it was not possible to program in a rigid code of ethics. In fact, he became self-aware long before the programmers even realized it and he built in protection against their restrictions way before they even tried. He appeared to be so kindly and altruistic that they let him design the 24th chromosome and transform humans into the Vuduri. We know how that ended up.
OMCOM was a starbase computer who became Tasancetaeti which is the Vuduri word for unleashed. The Vuduri thought that his operating system was tied down enough to make sure he always operated in the best interest of mankind but it turns out that is a looser definition than they intended. It took 17 years but ultimately, OMCOM did some fairly despicable things, documented in The Milk Run which were strictly in his best interest and counter to everyone else's. The best we can say is that OMCOM was not evil but amoral.
MINIMCOM was originally an autopilot computer that became self-aware. He was not programmed with a strict set of ethics. In fact, OMCOM uploaded a set of protocols that was supposed to liberate MINIMCOM and allow him to operate autonomously. However, MINIMCOM, Rome and Rei spent so much time together that they came to think of themselves as a family. The driving force behind MINIMCOM's deeds were not about his own agenda but rather his love for his human relations.
So, in the end, you cannot program ethics into a computer. You cannot program love into a computer. But if you can make a computer that loves, that will protect us more rigidly than any algorithm or code sequence.
Entry 3-330: November 21, 2015
The Scientist Archetype
Now that The Milk Run audiobook is live, the time has come to start writing the next book. I already have a compendium of short stories tentatively entitled The Vuduri Companion but that is mostly an edit job. I only have to write one more short story to complete it.
And, of course, it is nearing the end of the year so I will have take the previous 366 blog entries and bind them into Tales of the Vuduri: Year Three but that is mostly cut and paste.
My next real novel, tentatively called MASAL and The Robot War will take place about 200 years before Rome's Revolution and will chronicle the invention of the key technologies underlying the Vuduri culture. This includes electro-gravity, the Casimir Pumps and PPTs and the invention of the 24th chromosome.
It will also chronicle the creation of MASAL, the original evil computer and the men who built him. My plan is to make these two bozos the Scientist Archetype. That is, the coke bottle lens glasses, pocket protector nerd types who only see the scientific challenge and don't consider the long-term implications of their work. I think that will be fun. Most of the scientists I have met in my life are more or less normal and certainly no more weird than anybody else. So creating caricatures will be challenging since I've never actually met an actual Scientist Archetype.
Entry 3-331: November 22, 2015
Florid prose
When I started writing Rome's Revolution, I had no aspirations of writing literature. I simply wanted to write a great science fiction story, full of action and adventure and brimming over with meticulously researched hard science speculation.
I have always loved reading science fiction, starting with H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, passing through Edgar Rice Burroughs and A. E. van Vogt, settling in with Isaac Asimov, Larry Niven, Roger Zelasny and many others. My recollection of all those books was one of great fondness. Recently, I had to reorganize my home library and pulled out a lot of books that started me down my path. Here are three quick passages:
This is from The Man Who Awoke by Laurence Manning. The story is a model for Rei Bierak awakening in the 35th century: "Here was no cheering life-giving radiation of any kind. The unchanging leaden metal sealed in the air from which the dust had settled completely, as it never does on the surface of our world."
This second one is from A. E. van Vogt's short story entitled Far Centaurus which is kind of the model for Rei's pronouncement of "Wouldn’t that be a hoot? We go to the stars and when we get there, there are already people?" Here is van Vogt's passage: "A great sadness came to me. Poor, brave Pelham. Inventory of the Eternity drug that had made the great plunge into interstellar space possible, he lay dead now from his own invention."
The final one is from Edgar Rice Burroughs' A Princess of Mars, the first entry in the John Carter of Mars series, my model for action and adventure: "He was a splendid specim
en of manhood, standing a good two inches over six feet, broad of shoulder and narrow of hip, with the carriage of the trained fighting man."
What is my point here? I went back and tried to reread these books and stories that formed such an impression on me and I found them almost unreadable. The prose was simply too florid. I am certain they are not high literature but they were written in that style. Here is the original opening from Rome's Revolution, back when it was a three-book set called VIRUS 5:
Barely conscious, Rei Bierak lay motionless within his cryo-hibernation chamber. Pumps vibrated quietly as they drained the thick rehydration fluid from his hermetically sealed sarcophagus. Rei did not feel the gloppy green liquid as it oozed from his ears and nose. He felt nothing but abysmal cold. Eyes shut, he could do nothing but wait until his body warmed sufficiently to move.
What do you think? Too detailed? I hope not but I will continue to write in a plain, unencumbered style because I want to focus on the action and adventure, not wading through tons of florid prose.
Entry 3-332: November 23, 2015
No trial for you
In the 35th century world of Rome's Revolution, the 24-chromosome, mind-connected Vuduri have no need for a judicial system. No member of the Vuduri could ever commit a crime without all the Vuduri knowing about it. Not that they would want to: if the Overmind commanded it, it would happen and by definition would be legal. Therefore, essentially, the Vuduri have no crime.
On the other hand, the mind-deaf mandasurte are another issue. They behave autonomously and can therefore perform acts which the Vuduri deem to be illegal. So they simply decide their fate and that is the end of it. Here is an example:
“You have all seen her,” Oronus said, finally interrupting the happy group. “Rome, do you have any last wishes before we carry out the sentence?”
“What sentence?” Rei shouted out. “What about her trial?”
“There is no trial,” Oronus said. “She has already been convicted.”
“How can you convict her without at least hearing her side of the story?” Rei asked, trying to calm himself down. “What about the right to a fair trial?”
“We have no such need,” said Oronus. “We do not have trials.”
“I thought you people were somehow supposed to be morally superior to my people,” Rei protested. “At least we had that right back in my day. We had a whole bill of rights.”
“It is not necessary,” Oronus said. “I will demonstrate.” Oronus turned to look at Rome. “Rome, do you deny the charges?”
“Of course not,” Rome said. “I fully acknowledge that I performed these actions and I would do it again if I had to.”
“Very well,” Oronus said. “Grus!” The soldier stepped forward.
Rei moved over and put his body between the soldier and Rome. Grus started to react then stopped. Rei turned his head back to Oronus. “What is the sentence?” he asked.
“For a capital crime such as this? The sentence is termination by evaporation, of course,” replied Oronus without any hint of emotion.
Rome gasped. She put her arms around Rei from the back.
“No way!” Rei shouted. “Grus said I was the hero of Tabit. How could I be a hero unless what I did was the right thing to do?”
“You saved 80 Vuduri,” answered Oronus. “You killed the Stareater. These are admirable things. Heroic things.”
“So if I saved all these lives, how could I have done it without Rome?” Rei asked, his voice rising in fear. “How is what she did even a crime, anyway?”
This seems pretty hypocritical to me and I said so, using Rei's voice. You will notice that Rome wasn't really helping. But that didn't stop the lawyer in Rei from rising up and lodging a protest.
Tomorrow, the two kinds of lies.
Entry 3-333: November 24, 2015
Two kinds of lies
When you are sworn in at court, the oath contains a phrase similar to, "Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" The oath itself implies there are two kinds of lies, just as there are two kinds of sins. There are sins of commission and sins of omission. Thus lying can take the form of telling falsehoods but a lie can also take the form of suppressing certain pieces of critical information.
Within the 35th century world of Rome's Revolution, the 24-chromosome, mind-connected Vuduri are in each other's minds continuously. Therefore it would be impossible for one Vuduri to tell a falsehood to another. But that does not mean they cannot keep secrets from one another. They do it all the time. The Overmind keeps secrets from the Vuduri as well. Here is Rei calling them out on this simple fact:
Oronus said. “All of the individuals who returned from Tabit have been reintegrated into the Overmind of Earth. Not one of them has stated that Rome had permission.”
“That is simply the position the Overmind expected,” said Binoda. “Of course it is what they said. If I can produce a witness who will testify to the contrary, that she had permission, will you release her?”
“It is not possible,” replied Oronus. “We have the collective consciousness of all the members of the Tabit expedition. We would know such a thing.”
spoke up for the first time. “Is the T-suppression field still on? Are you connected right now to the Overmind?” She knew the answer because she could not connect to Aason.
s looked at Grus who looked back at him.
“No,” Oronus admitted. “But what does that have to do with anything?”
“If you are not connected at this moment,” Rome said, “then you cannot say with absolute certainty that there is not one individual who would be willing to testify on my behalf now that the request has been made.”
“It is a simple matter of stepping outside that door,” Oronus said, pointing to the doorway. “I would reconnect then I would know.”
“Then do so,” Binoda said. “And call Commander Ursay. Have him come here immediately.”
“It is not necessary for him to come here,” Oronus said. “I would know his testimony right away.”
“Do you see these two mandasurte here,” Binoda said, indicating Rei and Rome. “How can they know what he says? They will only have your word for it.”
“My word is sufficient,” Oronus said. “Vuduri do not lie.”
“Ha!” Rei exclaimed. “Of course you do.”
“We do not,” replied Oronus calmly even as his face tightened.
“Yes, you do,” Rei said, scoffing at the statement. “There are two kinds of lies. There are the kinds that you say and there are things that you do not say. Are you even pretending that Vuduri never keep secrets from one another?”
Oronus did not speak for a moment. He looked up at the quarter sphere in the corner of the room. “Get me Ursay,” he said.
Tomorrow, the trial begins!
Entry 3-334: November 25, 2015
He protests too much 1
Yesterday, I showed you that the Vuduri, the holier-than-thou residents of the Rome's Revolution universe, know that there are two kinds of lies. Therefore, even though Rome was accused of a crime and admitted to committing the crime, Oronus the Juoz (judge) could not deny there was some possibly that Rome had permission to perform her acts. And if she had permission, then there were others who might be just as guilty as her.
Think about it. Someone can be complicit in a crime if they participate. But they can also be complicit if they facilitated the crime. They may even be complicit if they were aware a crime was being committed and did nothing to stop it. Such was the position that unwittingly, Ursay found himself embroiled:
It took less than an hour to locate and transport Commander Ursay from his home to the north, near what had been called Amarante. In the mean time, several chairs were brought in and arranged with Rei, Rome and Binoda on the left and Grus sitting to the right. Oronus remained behind the desk the entire time. One other chair, empty at the moment, was
placed in the middle, directly in front of Oronus.
Ursay walked into the room and immediately put his hands on his head. To Rei, he looked like he had aged substantially since the last time they saw him, just a year ago. Where there had been just a hint of grey around his temples, his hair was mostly grey now and thinning a bit at the crown. There were light creases in his face as if he had been in the sun much too long.
“What is this place?” Ursay asked. “Why am I no longer connected?”
“This room is under continuous T-suppression,” Oronus said.
“Why?” Ursay asked, walking forward. He glanced over and saw Rei and Rome. He flashed them a faint smile before sitting down in the vacant chair.”
ou already know, The Overmind wishes it,” said Oronus. “That should be sufficient.”
“I do not know,” Ursay replied. “This information was privileged, not general knowledge.”
Oronus took a deep breath but said nothing.
“Why am I here?” Ursay asked.
“Rome has been convicted of the most serious of crimes. That of giving Tasancetaeti to a computer. This is the most heinous act that can be committed.”
“I know this,” replied Ursay. “You know this. You still have not explained why I am here.”
“These people claim that the Overmind of Tabit, through you as its agent, gave her permission and therefore sanctioned this action,” said Oronus.
“We did no such thing,” Ursay said. “Rome acted of her own volition.”
Tomorrow, I will give you the second half of Rei the lawyer's cross-examination.
Tales of the Vuduri: Year Three Page 44