Tales of the Vuduri: Year Three

by Michael Brachman

  Entry 3-335: November 26, 2015

 

  He protests too much 2

  Yesterday, I set up Rei's cross-examination of Ursay to prove that he had explicitly given Rome permission to unleash OMCOM during the trial in Rome's Revolution. The good news is that whenever Rei asks a question, whatever Ursay answers will, of course, be the truth. The Vuduri are utterly incapable of telling an explicit lie. However, they are capable of suppressing certain facts. For example, the very fact that Rome was on trial was hidden from Ursay. During this second portion of the conversation, Rei sets his trap:

  “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.”

  “Thank you,” Oronus said. “Now. Are you satisfied?” Oronus directed to Rei.

  “No!” Rei said, standing up. He walked over to Commander Ursay. “I need to ask him some questions,” he said to Oronus.

  “Very well,” Oronus said. “You may.”

  Rei regarded Ursay. “You remember the events leading up to this so-called crime, right?”

  “Yes, of course,” Ursay replied. “You were there as well.”

  “Right,” Rei said. “I was there. I was there when you told Rome that no Vuduri could ever be part of the unleashing.”

  “Yes,” said the older man. “Rome pointed out that she was Cesdiud and therefore mandasurte so she could do it.”

  “What did you do at that point?” Rei asked.

  “I told her and you to find another way. That there had to be another solution.”

  “And what did we come up with? All of us together?”

  “Nothing, really,” said Ursay. “There did not appear to be another solution at the time.”

  “And what did we come up with? All of us together?”

  “Nothing, really,” said Ursay. “There did not appear to be another solution at the time.”

  “So Rome asked you to let her do it. She said if it bothered you, you could just ignore her. In fact, she said ‘let me do it and you will have no part in this,’ right?”

  “Yes,” Ursay replied.

  “So when she said let me do it…how is that not asking your permission? You had every opportunity to stop her. And you did not.”

  “She would have done it anyway,” Ursay said.

  His reasoning sounds pretty flimsy to me, grasping at straws, really. Rei is going to build a platform demonstrating that the whole thing, in fact, was orchestrated by Ursay and the rest of the Vuduri. In that way, Rei will be able to puncture and deflate the whole excuse.

  More tomorrow.

  Entry 3-336: November 27, 2015

 

  Rome: the weapon 1

  Yesterday, we saw Commander Ursay falling deeper and deeper into the quicksand which was his admission that he knew full well what Rome was going to do. She was going to commit the deadliest crime in the entire world of Rome's Revolution. Rei wasted no time in pointing out to Ursay that he, himself, turned Rome into such a weapon of mass destruction:

  “Nonetheless, she said to you let me do this and you answered what?” Rei shot back.

  Ursay did not speak for a moment. He closed his eyes as if to recall the incident. Suddenly he snapped his eyes open. “I instructed her to do what she must.”

  “And you were the commander of the station,” Rei followed with too much vigor. “She was compelled to follow your orders, even though she was mandasurte. I even called you out on it. This was before Rome did anything. I pointed out to you that you were about to have Rome commit a crime. You!” Rei said, pointing right at Ursay. “I said you. I said that was the same as you giving her the OK. And you said what?”

  “At the time, I told you were correct,” replied Ursay.

  Rei turned to Oronus. “There. He said it. He told her to do it and she was just following orders. If you convict her of this crime, then you have to convict her superiors that gave the order. Which means Ursay and every person that was part of the Overmind of Tabit.”

  “But they are now part of the Overmind of Earth,” Oronus said. “That would be impractical. We would have to indict every Vuduri on Earth.”

  “So let her go,” Binoda said, standing abruptly. “You have your proof. We are all guilty of the same crime. And it is only a crime if our society says it is. Since Rome had permission of every Vuduri on Earth there was no crime.”

  “You are forgetting one thing,” Ursay interrupted.

  Everyone on Earth would be guilty by association? As Oronus said, that would be impractical. Yet Rei is setting them up to admit that Rome could not have done what she did without the active participation of the Overmind to turn her into a living weapon!

  More tomorrow.

  Entry 3-337: November 28, 2015

 

  Rome: the weapon 2

  Yesterday, we saw Commander Ursay falling deeper and deeper into the quicksand which was his admission that he knew full well what Rome was going to do. She was going to commit the deadliest crime in the entire world of Rome's Revolution. Rei wasted no time in pointing out to Ursay that he, himself, turned Rome into such a weapon of mass destruction:

  “You are forgetting one thing,” Ursay interrupted.

  “What is that?” Rei asked.

  “I warned you that your view of this was strictly from your perspective. I told you that no Vuduri, no one connected to the Overmind could take part in that activity. I told you that if Rome performed the act of her own volition, she would be responsible for the consequences, her and her alone. Not us.”

  “Those are just words,” Rei said with disgust. He pointed to Ursay. “I told you before and I’ll tell you again. You people are lunatics and hypocrites.”

  Ursay shrugged this off. “Nonetheless,” he said, “I disavowed any association with the action prior to it being executed.”

  “Did you forbid her then?” Rei asked.

  “Obviously not,” replied Ursay.

  “Yet you said Rome did this of her own volition.”

  “Yes,” Ursay responded.

  “If converting memrons to PPT modulation was so horrible, so wrong,” Rei asked. “Why even have a system that was capable of such action?”

  “There were interlocks that should have prevented it. They needed willful actions to be overridden,” Ursay said. “No Vuduri would ever do that. Therefore there was no need to build in a higher level of protection.”

  “No Vuduri,” Rei answered back. “But an independent mandasurte?”

  “Yes, mandasurte,” Ursay replied. “Her,” he said, pointing to Rome.”

  So finally the truth comes out. Ursay had a direct hand in giving Rome the power to commit her crime. He did not forbid her knowing she was about to commit it. In what universe is Ursay not complicit?

  Tomorrow, summation and final admissions.

  Entry 3-338: November 29, 2015

 

  Rei addresses the jury 1

  Yesterday, Rei exposed the fact that Commander Ursay, and by extension, the Overmind, gave Rome the power to unleash OMCOM. Complicity cannot be denied. Handing someone a gun and then being shocked that they shoot somebody just doesn't cut it. As the "trial" proceeds, Rei is relentless to press that point home:

  “Yes, mandasurte,” Ursay replied. “Her,” he said, pointing to Rome.”

  “How did she get that way? How did she come to be mandasurte, autonomous?”

  “She was Cesdiud,” Ursay replied. “You know this.”

  “Of course I know it,” Rei said. “But why did you do it? Why the Cesdiud?”

  Ursay took a deep breath. He looked legitimately hurt. Finally, he answered. “Because of you,” Ursay said sadly. “We thought her association with you would taint our perspective.”

  “You picked Rome to interact with me because of her heritage. She was disposable right from the start.”


  “Yes, to this I can agree. We knew she could be jettisoned with the least impact on our Overmind.”

  Binoda made a hissing noise but said nothing.

  “Your loss, my gain,” Rei said snidely. “Getting back to her Cesdiud, Who decided she had too much contact with me? Whose brilliant idea was that? Was it the Overmind that figured that out?” Rei asked.

  Ursay thought for a minute. “Actually, it was OMCOM that called it our attention,” Ursay said sheepishly.

  “And you do not think he had his own motives for pointing that out?” Rei asked angrily.

  “I suppose he did but we agreed with his reasoning at the time.”

  While he could not be sure, Ursay's eyes have just been opened. As you can see, like a Matador preparing to slaughter the bull, Rei is getting ready to impale Ursay on his own words. While he isn't really a lawyer, on a world without trials, he is the best.

  Tomorrow, the conclusion!

  Entry 3-339: November 30, 2015

  Rei addresses the jury 2

  Yesterday, Rei got Commander Ursay to admit that he and all the Vuduri on Skyler Base, and by extension, the Overmind, gave Rome the power to unleash OMCOM. It is time to extract the final admission of guilt from Ursay:

  Ursay thought for a minute. “Actually, it was OMCOM that called it our attention,” Ursay said sheepishly.

  “And you do not think he had his own motives for pointing that out?” Rei asked angrily.

  “I suppose he did but we agreed with his reasoning at the time.”

  “I am going to tell you why she was cast out,” Rei spat the words. “She was cast out for the exact reason that she could act autonomously so she could perform the override which was necessary to kill the Stareater. Hell, you sanctified the action. You even sent Signola along to help her. Right?”

  “Yes,” Ursay said quietly. “But Signola did nothing wrong. He never actually performed the override.”

  Rei didn’t answer for a minute. He gazed off into space, replaying the incident in his mind for the fortieth time. Suddenly, he snapped his fingers. “I got it!” he said.

  “Got what?” Oronus asked.

  Rei turned back to Ursay. “I just remembered your exact last words to Rome before she left to do it. Do you?”

  “Yes,” replied Ursay.

  “So tell Oronus what your last three words to her were exactly.”

  Ursay took a deep breath. “My last three words were, ‘You may proceed.’”

  Rei wheeled in place to look right at Oronus. “If that isn’t permission, I don’t know what is.” He looked over at his wife. Strangely, she was smiling. He turned back to Oronus. “Rome was set up. She was selected for this job right from the start. She was cast out so she could perform this action. She was given permission and therefore commanded by the Overmind. The results of her actions are lauded by you and all the Vuduri. There is no crime. SO LET HER GO.”

  He turned back to Ursay and in a lower voice said, “Please.”

  Well, Rei has presented his final arguments. It isn't much of a jury since it is just one man, Oronus, who has heard his arguments. But even so, there was compelling logic behind Rei's pleas and the Vuduri were not used to thinking for themselves.

  Entry 3-340: December 1, 2015

 

  We all must die 1

  Yesterday, we saw Rei prove, categorically, that Rome did not act alone. She was set up to perform the act. She was given permission. Everyone involved was culpable which means every member of the Skyler Base staff. And when they got home, the "infection" of that guilt would then be spread throughout every Vuduri on the planet. Not a very desirable situation. Here is what happened:

  Rei turned back to Ursay and in a lower voice said, “Please.”

  Ursay stood up. He looked over at Rome then back to Oronus.

  “I am changing my testimony,” he said to the judge. “I am going on record as stating that the Overmind of Tabit gave Rome permission, and in fact ordered her to perform her actions. Upon further reflection, I now concur that we are as culpable and therefore as guilty as Rome. If you must convict her of this crime and still choose to execute her, you will have to execute me and by extension every Vuduri on the planet.”

  Oronus glanced over at Grus who had given up and sat completely helpless. Oronus looked up at the quarter sphere in the corner and said, “That is ridiculous. We cannot execute ourselves.” He leaned back in his chair as if to think. He stared down at his lap for the longest time. He shook his head as if he was having an argument with himself.

  Finally, he spoke. “I cannot set aside the verdict. Rome still performed the actions. The crime stands. The only thing I can do is modify the sentence.”

  “To what?” Rei asked.

  “Banishment,” Oronus replied. “Rome must be isolated from all Vuduri and anything resembling synthesizer technology. She must never be allowed to carry out any such acts again.”

  Banishment? That doesn't seem so bad. At least Rome did what she needed to, to save the Earth and all of mankind. Right?

  Wrong. The Vuduri are completely pigheaded when it comes to making logical, rational decisions. Whatever the Overmind mandates, that is what they do. They never question. They just act. Wait till you see their actions!

  Tomorrow.

 

  Entry 3-341: December 2, 2015

 

  We all must die 2

  Yesterday, we saw Ursay admit his guilt and Oronus had no choice but to commute Rome's sentence. As I also mentioned, this was acceptable to Rome and Rei. We had no doubts our heroes would escape at some point. And this was fine because the VIRUS units, Earth's only defense against the Stareaters, had been delivered to Earth. Or was it?

  “Banishment,” Oronus replied. “Rome must be isolated from all Vuduri and anything resembling synthesizer technology. She must never be allowed to carry out any such acts again.”

  “What would the point be?” Rei asked. “You already have the VIRUS units. She would not need to ever do such a thing again. Nobody does.”

  “Incorrect,” said Oronus. “We do not have the VIRUS units.”

  “What do you mean?” Rome asked, rising in her seat.

  “When we arrived on Earth, the Overmind ordered them destroyed,” replied Ursay.

  “You what?!” Rei shouted. “How are you going to stop the Stareater when it gets here?”

  “We do not know,” Oronus said. “Our current plan is to abandon the Earth. We are building some transports, ironically, similar to your Arks, to move a percentage of the population to another planet. Beyond that, we are still working on finding another technology to perform the same function as the VIRUS units but we are not hopeful.”

  “And what if Asdrale Cimatir arrives tomorrow?” Rome asked. “What will you do?”

  “We can only hope that does not occur,” replied Oronus. “Our last projections based upon data returned from Tabit indicate we could have as much as one year left. Currently, we believe we can save as much as ten percent of the population, although that may be optimistic.”

  Can you imagine? An entire race of people just condemned themselves to death. Well, not really. That just isn't practical. And if everyone says something is legal, then it becomes so. Laws are made by man. Laws can be changed by man. It seems to me that Hope is not much of a defensive strategy. But that is the only course of action they bequeathed to themselves. And in so doing, the Vuduri have left the Earth susceptible to an inevitable death by Stareater. Whatever will they do?

 

  Entry 3-342: December 3, 2015

 

  Even the best laid plans 1

  Now that Rome’s sentence was commuted, despite the fact that the Vuduri had destroyed the VIRUS units, our intrepid couple still had to pursue their mission which is the basis of Part 3 of Rome’s Revolution. Remember, Rome's whole strategy of fighting against the Onsiras was to find one pure Vuduri. One that was absolutely, positively guaranteed to not be a secret member of that g
roup. The only person that Rome knew of was her mother. However, as you will see, that plan went up in smoke pretty darned fast:

  Oronus said, “You must retire to a place where there is no molecular synthesis equipment nor any type of fabrication or computing facilities. You must be exiled and kept isolated from all Vuduri and all Vuduri technology.”

  “What about mandasurte?” Binoda asked. “Can she remain among them?”

  “As long as it is a community that has none of the technology mentioned,” Oronus said.

  “I have a place,” Binoda offered.

  “Where?” said Oronus.

  “What about Ylea, on Mowei?” Binoda asked.

  “Mowei…Maui?” asked Rei, “Hawaii?”

  Binoda nodded and continued, “Yes, Havei. That is where Rome’s father was born and raised. It is a mandasurte community. Rome still has family there. It is primitive and has none of the technological components you insist she stay away from.”

  Oronus looked up at the quarter sphere then down at his tablet. “That is acceptable,” Oronus said.

  Binoda looked at Rome. Rome nodded and said, “That is fine.”

  “Then it is agreed,” said Binoda.

  “Uh, what about our flying house?” Rei asked. “Do we get to keep it?”

  “Of course not,” replied Oronus. “It has the very equipment onboard that we are trying to keep Rome away from.”

  Banished to Hawaii? I’ll take that! How bad could it be. Also, it would give Rome the perfect hiding spot to begin executing her plan. Really, all she had to do was get her Mother away from all other Vuduri. Seems easy, right?

  Not! Tomorrow, Binoda foils that plan.

 

  Entry 3-343: December 4, 2015

 

  Even the best laid plans 2

  Yesterday, we saw that Oronus deemed banishment to Hawaii as a perfectly acceptable plan. Also, it would give Rome the perfect hiding spot to begin executing her plan. All she had to do was get her Mother away from all other Vuduri which was the basis of her plan to expose the Onsiras in Part 3 of Rome’s Revolution Time to pursue their mission but it is monkeywrench time: