Michael Brachman's Blog: Tales of the Vuduri, page 182
March 3, 2013
More on missing Winfall
In a previous post, I discussed why the Vuduri missed the disappearance of Winfall since it was the crucial plot element that launched the entire book series.
Well, I was thinking about it the other day and came up with a thought experiment that might explain it better.
Say that you had nearly omnipotent powers and could somehow arrange stars into the equivalent of a cosmic digital clock. Say you started the clock on January 1, 2000 at 12 midnight. If you were one light year away, you would not see the clock starting for a year. If you were 100 light-years away, you wouldn't see it start for 100 years.
So Winfall disappeared on a certain date and time according to the observers on Earth. They flew to Tabit, at 100x the speed of light, before the electromagnetic wavefront got there. The gigantic digital clock would be farther back in time because the light rays displaying it didn't get there yet.
But what the Vuduri didn't understand was that time flows at a constant speed. If you fly away from "time" faster than the speed of light, your now relative to where you came from, goes into the past by the amount of time you flew FTL. So they actually flew into the past. If this gigantic digital clock had been visible, they would not have seen the time and date they expected but rather many weeks earlier.
While the Vuduri are not impatient, the amount of error in their calculations was so great, that even they gave up and packed up just before the electromagnetic wavefront arrived. Too bad for them, great for us because it launched Rome's Revolution.
Well, I was thinking about it the other day and came up with a thought experiment that might explain it better.
Say that you had nearly omnipotent powers and could somehow arrange stars into the equivalent of a cosmic digital clock. Say you started the clock on January 1, 2000 at 12 midnight. If you were one light year away, you would not see the clock starting for a year. If you were 100 light-years away, you wouldn't see it start for 100 years.
So Winfall disappeared on a certain date and time according to the observers on Earth. They flew to Tabit, at 100x the speed of light, before the electromagnetic wavefront got there. The gigantic digital clock would be farther back in time because the light rays displaying it didn't get there yet.
But what the Vuduri didn't understand was that time flows at a constant speed. If you fly away from "time" faster than the speed of light, your now relative to where you came from, goes into the past by the amount of time you flew FTL. So they actually flew into the past. If this gigantic digital clock had been visible, they would not have seen the time and date they expected but rather many weeks earlier.
While the Vuduri are not impatient, the amount of error in their calculations was so great, that even they gave up and packed up just before the electromagnetic wavefront arrived. Too bad for them, great for us because it launched Rome's Revolution.
March 2, 2013
Lies, Part 2
Rome does know how to lie. She learned how from Rei. She lied to the Overmind of Deucado about the destruction of the Ark II. The Overmind assumed she was telling the truth because she was Vuduri and he was in her brain. It is a novel skill that Rome developed.
There are other examples, too. When Rei was first captured by the Ibbrassati, he told them about the Stareaters. They did not believe him. As mandasurte, they were familiar with the concept of lying. They assumed he was lying and threw him in jail even though he was telling the truth.
On the other hand, Rei has told some whoppers and gotten away with it because the Vuduri have no clue. For example, he told Virga he used a code-phrase that was about to instigate an interstellar war. She believed him. He also told MASAL's samanda that his son was dead and he put the body in the disposal unit. MASAL believed him because he was in Rei's mind but did not believe Rome when she told him that Aason was still alive. MASAL got both wrong.
Even OMCOM has been known to stretch the truth a bit. When he first contacted Rei and Rome after the Stareater was destroyed but that there were mutations. He preempted the discussion by saying, “There were some, perhaps you would say unforeseen, circumstances.” Note that he qualified the statement by saying "you would say unforeseen" - that didn't mean he didn't foresee it.
And even MINIMCOM gets into the act as they were trying to escape Helome. He announced to the Vuduri, “The cannons you see extended from the front of my fuselage are wide-angle, multi-phase PPT throwers. They are capable of leveling a square kilometer in less than one second.” Not exactly the truth. Call it a stretch?
So, in the end, both Rei and Rome have lied, MINIMCOM and OMCOM have stretched the truth, but it was always to accomplish their goals which are almost invariably noble.
There are other examples, too. When Rei was first captured by the Ibbrassati, he told them about the Stareaters. They did not believe him. As mandasurte, they were familiar with the concept of lying. They assumed he was lying and threw him in jail even though he was telling the truth.
On the other hand, Rei has told some whoppers and gotten away with it because the Vuduri have no clue. For example, he told Virga he used a code-phrase that was about to instigate an interstellar war. She believed him. He also told MASAL's samanda that his son was dead and he put the body in the disposal unit. MASAL believed him because he was in Rei's mind but did not believe Rome when she told him that Aason was still alive. MASAL got both wrong.
Even OMCOM has been known to stretch the truth a bit. When he first contacted Rei and Rome after the Stareater was destroyed but that there were mutations. He preempted the discussion by saying, “There were some, perhaps you would say unforeseen, circumstances.” Note that he qualified the statement by saying "you would say unforeseen" - that didn't mean he didn't foresee it.
And even MINIMCOM gets into the act as they were trying to escape Helome. He announced to the Vuduri, “The cannons you see extended from the front of my fuselage are wide-angle, multi-phase PPT throwers. They are capable of leveling a square kilometer in less than one second.” Not exactly the truth. Call it a stretch?
So, in the end, both Rei and Rome have lied, MINIMCOM and OMCOM have stretched the truth, but it was always to accomplish their goals which are almost invariably noble.
March 1, 2013
Lies, Part 1
Because the Overmind is always looking inside your head, as a good Vuduri, you would never master the concept of telling a lie. You might be able to keep a secret but you could never tell an untruth. Only mandasurte (mind-deaf) can lie.
Our people, the Essessoni from the 21st century, have completely mastered the art of lying. As a culture, this makes the Vuduri virtually incapable of discerning if the Essessoni are telling the truth or not.
Here are some examples:
1. Rome and Estar, just before Estar injects Rei with the prosthetic PPT transducers:
2. Rome tells Captain Keller the truth about the Virus 5 vessel being fake.
Tomorrow, some more lies or least stretching of the truth.
Our people, the Essessoni from the 21st century, have completely mastered the art of lying. As a culture, this makes the Vuduri virtually incapable of discerning if the Essessoni are telling the truth or not.
Here are some examples:
1. Rome and Estar, just before Estar injects Rei with the prosthetic PPT transducers:
“All right,” Rome said, resignedly. "Here is the truth. We actually did make it to Deucado but crash-landed. VIRUS units got loose and caused our tug MINIMCOM to evolve into an invisible spaceship that can travel at 1000 times the speed of light. He transported us here in eight days. MINIMCOM was the one who crippled the engines to make it look like it took longer.”Bottom line: Rome was telling the truth.
“Eight days?” Estar said, incredulously. “And then crippled your ship? Why would he do that?”
“To hide the fact that I had the baby and he is still alive.”
“This baby of yours,” Estar said with disgust. “Where is it?”
“He is invisible, too,” Rome replied. “He is wearing a cloak given to us by the Erklirte who have been living on Deucado for the last five hundred years.”
“You are not a very good liar,” Estar spat. “Your story is beyond ridiculous. It is preposterous. That or being mandasurte has driven you insane.”
2. Rome tells Captain Keller the truth about the Virus 5 vessel being fake.
“Captain Keller, there’s no need for weapons,” Rei said.Bottom line: once again, Rome was telling the truth.
“The vessel is not real,” Rome interjected. “It is merely a replica. There is no virus within. You are wasting your time.”
Keller laughed. “Right. How stupid do you think I am? You’re telling me that you flew to Earth, dug under the Tevatron only to find a fake canister? So where’s the real one?”
“MINIMCOM flew it into the sun,” Rome said. “It is gone.”
Keller looked around. “I don’t see him around here.”
“She just told you,” Rei said. “He flew it into the sun. He burned up.”
“What? He committed suicide? You’re both a bunch of goddamned liars,” Keller said.
Tomorrow, some more lies or least stretching of the truth.
February 28, 2013
How the Overmind shaped Vuduri society
Once I had to postulate the existence of PPT transceivers and the Overmind, I had to reinvent the entire Vuduri culture. I thought long and hard about what a society would look like if there were constantly people inside your head.
The whole concept of privacy was out the window. If you had a wrong, or worse, an impure thought, everyone would know. Thus the Vuduri became very clean of thought and in many ways naive. Also, the concept of lying went out the window. Who was there to lie to when everyone knew the truth?
The inability to lie and quite frankly not fully grasping the concept was a flaw that the Essessoni used to manipulate the Vuduri throughout all the books. This will be discussed tomorrow.
Another implication of having someone inside your head is the desire to create and have original thoughts is mostly drained from you. By the time you thought of anything, everyone already knew it. So the Vuduri just gave up on creativity. This includes interest in the arts, reading and even interpersonal relationships.
In an earlier incarnation of a book (since discarded), I even had the concept of "mind court" where Vuduri battled it out to prove ownership of original thoughts.
However, there is a difference between thoughts, emotions and sensations. Rome discovered that sensation was something that she could keep to herself. Others could try and leach it from her but it had no meaning. It was something she experienced for herself and it was irrelevant if others tried to grab it.
This led to her (from the Vuduri perspective) irrational attachment to her half-mountain lion, half-tabby cat named Skodla. Sadly, to cut the size of the books down, Skodla had to go but he is not forgotten. I'll pull out some of the stories about him in a future post.
The whole concept of privacy was out the window. If you had a wrong, or worse, an impure thought, everyone would know. Thus the Vuduri became very clean of thought and in many ways naive. Also, the concept of lying went out the window. Who was there to lie to when everyone knew the truth?
The inability to lie and quite frankly not fully grasping the concept was a flaw that the Essessoni used to manipulate the Vuduri throughout all the books. This will be discussed tomorrow.
Another implication of having someone inside your head is the desire to create and have original thoughts is mostly drained from you. By the time you thought of anything, everyone already knew it. So the Vuduri just gave up on creativity. This includes interest in the arts, reading and even interpersonal relationships.
In an earlier incarnation of a book (since discarded), I even had the concept of "mind court" where Vuduri battled it out to prove ownership of original thoughts.
However, there is a difference between thoughts, emotions and sensations. Rome discovered that sensation was something that she could keep to herself. Others could try and leach it from her but it had no meaning. It was something she experienced for herself and it was irrelevant if others tried to grab it.
This led to her (from the Vuduri perspective) irrational attachment to her half-mountain lion, half-tabby cat named Skodla. Sadly, to cut the size of the books down, Skodla had to go but he is not forgotten. I'll pull out some of the stories about him in a future post.
February 27, 2013
How the Overmind came about
When I first started Rome's Revolution in 1973, I had no idea of what things were going to be like technologically in 2013. But I did know that Rei and Rome were fated to be together.
Part 1, which used be known as Book 1, Asdrale Cimatir, needed a climax. I decided that leaving Rei behind on Dara while Rome flies the Algol off to safety would be a heart-breaking conclusion. That is until we discovered that Rome, in fact, had not left.
But then I got stuck. If Rome stayed behind, why wouldn't she just radio Rei and tell him she stayed behind? I guess I could have said the radio malfunctioned but I took it one step further. I postulated that the spacesuits didn't have radios.
But why? Why wouldn't they? I then said, OK, the Vuduri are from the future, maybe they are mind-connected. From there, it was a simple leap to create the Overmind.
At that point, I had to go back to the beginning and create an entirely new culture, centered around the Overmind. More on that profound change tomorrow.
But all of this because I wanted Rei to run up a ramp...
Part 1, which used be known as Book 1, Asdrale Cimatir, needed a climax. I decided that leaving Rei behind on Dara while Rome flies the Algol off to safety would be a heart-breaking conclusion. That is until we discovered that Rome, in fact, had not left.
But then I got stuck. If Rome stayed behind, why wouldn't she just radio Rei and tell him she stayed behind? I guess I could have said the radio malfunctioned but I took it one step further. I postulated that the spacesuits didn't have radios.
But why? Why wouldn't they? I then said, OK, the Vuduri are from the future, maybe they are mind-connected. From there, it was a simple leap to create the Overmind.
At that point, I had to go back to the beginning and create an entirely new culture, centered around the Overmind. More on that profound change tomorrow.
But all of this because I wanted Rei to run up a ramp...
February 26, 2013
More on Vuduri Technology
Part of the appeal of Rome's Revolution was the culture clash between Rei and Rome.
While the most obvious difference between the Essessoni culture and the Vuduri culture is the Overmind, I'll cover that in more detail tomorrow. Today's entry is centered around the differences in technology.
In 14 centuries, if technology continued at the pace it does today, their society would probably be unrecognizable. That wouldn't make for a good story. I introduced The Great Dying to set society back to the Stone Age. This way, it would take the nearly 14 centuries just to get back to where we are today. To add a little whiz-bang element, I let them go just a little ahead of us.
The most obvious and important advance was the discovery and exploitation of the Casimir Pump described yesterday. Other hallmarks of classic scifi future societies are FTL spaceships (got 'em), rayguns (got 'em), robots (had 'em) and super-genius computers (got 'em in spades). I even threw in a few aliens (Stareater, falling blankets) but the traditional green aliens will come in 2014 in The Milk Run.
I wanted the reader to feel comfortable that this was a "classic" futuristic society. Then there is the twist. Lots of science fiction movies like to show future music, art, dancing, drugs, all sorts of things that are extrapolations from today. Well, since the Vuduri society is founded on the principle that they would never do things like us, all those went away.
In fact, their future is boring. Their clothing is boring, their study of science is pragmatic. They have all this wonderful technology but as a people, they never take the time to "look up" and see what they have done.
That is what makes the merging of Rome and Rei so awesome. Rei comes from a world where we can appreciate what Rome's people have achieved, far more than they do themselves. Once Rome is cast out and is forced to think for herself, she, too, learns to appreciate the wondrous world of the 35th century.
You will note that once these two have joined forces, the pace of scientific discovery (through their agent MINIMCOM and to a lesser extent OMCOM) picks up significantly through The Ark Lords and will continue with Rome's Evolution.
While the most obvious difference between the Essessoni culture and the Vuduri culture is the Overmind, I'll cover that in more detail tomorrow. Today's entry is centered around the differences in technology.
In 14 centuries, if technology continued at the pace it does today, their society would probably be unrecognizable. That wouldn't make for a good story. I introduced The Great Dying to set society back to the Stone Age. This way, it would take the nearly 14 centuries just to get back to where we are today. To add a little whiz-bang element, I let them go just a little ahead of us.
The most obvious and important advance was the discovery and exploitation of the Casimir Pump described yesterday. Other hallmarks of classic scifi future societies are FTL spaceships (got 'em), rayguns (got 'em), robots (had 'em) and super-genius computers (got 'em in spades). I even threw in a few aliens (Stareater, falling blankets) but the traditional green aliens will come in 2014 in The Milk Run.
I wanted the reader to feel comfortable that this was a "classic" futuristic society. Then there is the twist. Lots of science fiction movies like to show future music, art, dancing, drugs, all sorts of things that are extrapolations from today. Well, since the Vuduri society is founded on the principle that they would never do things like us, all those went away.
In fact, their future is boring. Their clothing is boring, their study of science is pragmatic. They have all this wonderful technology but as a people, they never take the time to "look up" and see what they have done.
That is what makes the merging of Rome and Rei so awesome. Rei comes from a world where we can appreciate what Rome's people have achieved, far more than they do themselves. Once Rome is cast out and is forced to think for herself, she, too, learns to appreciate the wondrous world of the 35th century.
You will note that once these two have joined forces, the pace of scientific discovery (through their agent MINIMCOM and to a lesser extent OMCOM) picks up significantly through The Ark Lords and will continue with Rome's Evolution.
February 25, 2013
The Casimir Pump
The Casimir Pump revolutionized Vuduri society.
The next use of the Casimir Pump was the PPT transceivers that are built into the Vuduri because of the 24th chromosome. These tiny devices use gravitic modulation to allow the Vuduri to communicate mind-to-mind and was responsible for the creation of The Overmind.
Another use of the Casimir Pump was the PPT Thrower. These are tiny tunnels which allow you separate matter at the atomic matter. In other words, they are the world's sharpest blade.
If you are collecting all this negative energy, what do you do with the byproduct, positive energy? An amazing concept: unlimited, positive, free energy. Think about how that one single element would transform society.
More tomorrow.
Hendrik Casimir was a Dutch physicist. His 1948 experiment proved that when two uncharged plates are placed very close to one another, there is an attractive force between them where there should be none. Casimir theorized that neutral space, with zero energy, has quantum fluctuations which spontaneously split into regions of positive and negative energy then recombine going back to a zero energy state. The experiment has been replicated several times. When the distance between the plates is very small (sub-micron), the force is very strong.Nobody knows what would happen if you could actually collect negative energy. The first thing I came up with in Rome's Revolution was the PPT drive which allows you to go much faster than light. The FTL drive postulated assumes that you can collect enough negative energy to "punch through" the fabric of space. Since there is no space where there is no energy, it takes zero time to go from point A to point C thus allowing you to go (mathematically) faster than the speed of light without violating relativity.
The next use of the Casimir Pump was the PPT transceivers that are built into the Vuduri because of the 24th chromosome. These tiny devices use gravitic modulation to allow the Vuduri to communicate mind-to-mind and was responsible for the creation of The Overmind.
Another use of the Casimir Pump was the PPT Thrower. These are tiny tunnels which allow you separate matter at the atomic matter. In other words, they are the world's sharpest blade.
If you are collecting all this negative energy, what do you do with the byproduct, positive energy? An amazing concept: unlimited, positive, free energy. Think about how that one single element would transform society.
More tomorrow.
February 24, 2013
Why did Rei recognize Rome?
In the first scene in Rome's Revolution, Rei awakens and sees Rome for the first time. Here is the exact paragraph:
Up until last week, my operating theory was always that I have been working on these books for so long (coming on 40 years) that the characters, in my mind, have been together so long that when they finally got to see each (in print), it was a reunion of sorts.
Of course, that makes no sense from a literary standpoint. Well, last week, as I was writing Rome's Evolution, I finally found out the answer. From the Overmind of Earth, no less.
It turns out, as the Vuduri scientists were researching the genetic tree of the Vuduri as part of project Slayer, they were able to trace most Vuduri back to one or two or three of what we would call the "Genetic Eve." This is because mitochondrial DNA is passed directly from mother to child unchanged through the mitochondria of the oocyte, the egg.
And as it turns out, Rome's great, great, great, great grandmother was none other than Sally Reynolds, the great love of Rei's life who he left behind to travel to the stars. Of course Rome's bloodlines had been mixed in with other Vuduri (Hanry Ta Jihn included) and her father was of Polynesian descent. So Rome was both familiar and exotic.
Wow.
He took a deep breath. Looking up, he was startled to see a face staring back at him. He jumped back and once again, pain shot through his spine. The face on the other side of the porthole was female with long dark hair. She looked familiar and exotic at the same time and if he didn’t know better, he’d swear her eyes were glowing.I just wrote the words. Sometimes I write things because I need to. Other times, I write them and I don't know why. So why did Rome look familiar to Rei? It is a question that has haunted me for 7 years.
Up until last week, my operating theory was always that I have been working on these books for so long (coming on 40 years) that the characters, in my mind, have been together so long that when they finally got to see each (in print), it was a reunion of sorts.
Of course, that makes no sense from a literary standpoint. Well, last week, as I was writing Rome's Evolution, I finally found out the answer. From the Overmind of Earth, no less.
It turns out, as the Vuduri scientists were researching the genetic tree of the Vuduri as part of project Slayer, they were able to trace most Vuduri back to one or two or three of what we would call the "Genetic Eve." This is because mitochondrial DNA is passed directly from mother to child unchanged through the mitochondria of the oocyte, the egg.
And as it turns out, Rome's great, great, great, great grandmother was none other than Sally Reynolds, the great love of Rei's life who he left behind to travel to the stars. Of course Rome's bloodlines had been mixed in with other Vuduri (Hanry Ta Jihn included) and her father was of Polynesian descent. So Rome was both familiar and exotic.
Wow.
February 23, 2013
Rei's Magic Pill
As a by-product of the 14 centuries in cryo-hibernation, Rei's back suffered from fissured disks and caused him a lot of pain. This condition affected many of the would-be colonists but Rei was the first awakened.
OMCOM decided to cure his condition by creating a 25th chromosome, gene therapy, to reverse the trend. While he was at it, he decided to make a few "enhancements" to Rei without Rei's knowledge or permission. The pill fixed Rei's back and gave him remarkable healing capabilities.
OMCOM started with the 24th chromosome as a base. He was able to modify the gene responsible for the Vuduri's bloco (tablet) and stilo (stylus) which they used to communicate electronically. This was altered to create Rei's (and eventually Rome's) "cell phone" in the head.
OMCOM also took Rei's auditory cortex and added a neural net which mapped the spatial cues to Rei's visual cortex. He also improved the range and sensitivity of Rei's hearing. It is only activated when Rei shuts his eyes. The net result is a sonar-vision which allows Rei to see in pitch black using only his hearing. But in order for Rei to sleep, OMCOM built in a level detector so that the sonar-vision (or bat-vision as Rei likes to call it) only works when Rei's head is vertical. You saw Rei discover this in Part 2 of Rome's Revolution.
Other, lesser effects include slowed growth of facial hair (the Vuduri have none), improved immune system, continuous self-repair to Rei's back.
There was one other side effect that I'm not even sure OMCOM was aware of, but knowing him, it was probably on purpose. Anybody having the 25th chromosome (or even the top portion) would be immune to conversion to the Onsira phenotype and the ability to resist being absorbed into MASAL's samanda even via prosthetic PPT transceivers.
The 25th chromosome is actually a triple helix with a protein interlace making more like PNA rather than just DNA. It reproduces using mitosis rather than meiosis so all of Rei's descendents will have it even if their mating partner did not. That is why Aason has this gene. Lupe will have two! Heaven help us all.
If this gene were spread to every human being on all worlds, it would mean the end of the Onsira phenotype forever. Perhaps that would make them unhappy to know this.
OMCOM decided to cure his condition by creating a 25th chromosome, gene therapy, to reverse the trend. While he was at it, he decided to make a few "enhancements" to Rei without Rei's knowledge or permission. The pill fixed Rei's back and gave him remarkable healing capabilities.
OMCOM started with the 24th chromosome as a base. He was able to modify the gene responsible for the Vuduri's bloco (tablet) and stilo (stylus) which they used to communicate electronically. This was altered to create Rei's (and eventually Rome's) "cell phone" in the head.
OMCOM also took Rei's auditory cortex and added a neural net which mapped the spatial cues to Rei's visual cortex. He also improved the range and sensitivity of Rei's hearing. It is only activated when Rei shuts his eyes. The net result is a sonar-vision which allows Rei to see in pitch black using only his hearing. But in order for Rei to sleep, OMCOM built in a level detector so that the sonar-vision (or bat-vision as Rei likes to call it) only works when Rei's head is vertical. You saw Rei discover this in Part 2 of Rome's Revolution.
Other, lesser effects include slowed growth of facial hair (the Vuduri have none), improved immune system, continuous self-repair to Rei's back.
There was one other side effect that I'm not even sure OMCOM was aware of, but knowing him, it was probably on purpose. Anybody having the 25th chromosome (or even the top portion) would be immune to conversion to the Onsira phenotype and the ability to resist being absorbed into MASAL's samanda even via prosthetic PPT transceivers.
The 25th chromosome is actually a triple helix with a protein interlace making more like PNA rather than just DNA. It reproduces using mitosis rather than meiosis so all of Rei's descendents will have it even if their mating partner did not. That is why Aason has this gene. Lupe will have two! Heaven help us all.
If this gene were spread to every human being on all worlds, it would mean the end of the Onsira phenotype forever. Perhaps that would make them unhappy to know this.
February 22, 2013
Rome's Nightmare
I wrote this back in June of 2007. I didn't know what it meant at the time. It was just important that Rome have a nightmare when she first arrived at Deucado, before Aason was born. Now I'm writing Rome's Evolution and I'm choreographing the action in the climax and it turns out, it is nearly Rome's nightmare. But back in 2007, I had no clue I would be writing this new book. The whole thing sort of creeps me out. It's like these stories really are true! (But just haven't happened yet).
Anyway, here is Rome's Nightmare from Part 2 of Rome's Revolution:
Rome tossed and turned, vaguely discomfited. She was dreaming that she could see Rei running in a thick forest, lost. She called out to him but he could not hear her. He was running away from something. Rome tried desperately to get to him but she could not. A stranger was blocking her way. He wore black clothing and a hood that hid his face. He radiated malice. Standing by her side was a beautiful child, dressed all in white. It was Aason. He held his little hand up to her and she took it in hers. She marveled at how tiny it was.
A noise drew her attention away. Rome looked back at the black-clad stranger. He tilted his head back and shouted. He shook himself and began to grow. Larger and larger he grew until he filled the sky.
“Ta-ma sue croence,” he said with a voice that caused the earth to tremble.
“Never,” Rome shouted in English.
“Mea, au essusdetis,” said Aason who tried to crowd behind her.
The stranger made a guttural chant and lifted his arms to the heavens then drew them down so quickly that he made a wind of titanic force. The gale knocked Rome over but her child remained standing, unprotected before the thing.
“Fica taoxe sau sizonhi,” Aason said. Aason held his little hand up and the stranger evaporated.
“Ossi da pim, baby,” Rome said, raising herself up. She bent over to caress her son’s head. Aason turned to her but he had no face. Where his eyes, nose and mouth should have been, there were only slits.
Rome screamed. She sat bolt upright in bed, totally awake. She was shaking. She looked down at her abdomen and could see it was still fully distended. Hesitantly, she probed and found Aason there, resting quietly.
“Mother?” Aason asked from within her womb. “What is it?”
“It is nothing, baby. I just had a bad dream,” Rome said reassuringly.
“What is a dream?” Aason inquired.
“It is a picture in your mind. It is not real.”
“What was your bad dream about, Mother?” Aason asked her.
“I was trying to get to your father. And someone came along who wanted to take you from me,” Rome said, shivering at the remembrance.
“That is a very bad dream. I want to be with you, always,” said her fetus.
“You will be, little Aason. We share a bond like no other. You will always know where I am and I will always know where you are.”
Vuduri phrases:
1. Ta-ma sue croence [Give me your child]
2. Mea, au essusdetis [Mother, I am frightened]
3. Fica taoxe sau sizonhi [You leave her alone]
4. Ossi da pim, baby [That was good, baby]
What does it all mean? Now you and I will both find out!
Anyway, here is Rome's Nightmare from Part 2 of Rome's Revolution:
Rome tossed and turned, vaguely discomfited. She was dreaming that she could see Rei running in a thick forest, lost. She called out to him but he could not hear her. He was running away from something. Rome tried desperately to get to him but she could not. A stranger was blocking her way. He wore black clothing and a hood that hid his face. He radiated malice. Standing by her side was a beautiful child, dressed all in white. It was Aason. He held his little hand up to her and she took it in hers. She marveled at how tiny it was.
A noise drew her attention away. Rome looked back at the black-clad stranger. He tilted his head back and shouted. He shook himself and began to grow. Larger and larger he grew until he filled the sky.
“Ta-ma sue croence,” he said with a voice that caused the earth to tremble.
“Never,” Rome shouted in English.
“Mea, au essusdetis,” said Aason who tried to crowd behind her.
The stranger made a guttural chant and lifted his arms to the heavens then drew them down so quickly that he made a wind of titanic force. The gale knocked Rome over but her child remained standing, unprotected before the thing.
“Fica taoxe sau sizonhi,” Aason said. Aason held his little hand up and the stranger evaporated.
“Ossi da pim, baby,” Rome said, raising herself up. She bent over to caress her son’s head. Aason turned to her but he had no face. Where his eyes, nose and mouth should have been, there were only slits.
Rome screamed. She sat bolt upright in bed, totally awake. She was shaking. She looked down at her abdomen and could see it was still fully distended. Hesitantly, she probed and found Aason there, resting quietly.
“Mother?” Aason asked from within her womb. “What is it?”
“It is nothing, baby. I just had a bad dream,” Rome said reassuringly.
“What is a dream?” Aason inquired.
“It is a picture in your mind. It is not real.”
“What was your bad dream about, Mother?” Aason asked her.
“I was trying to get to your father. And someone came along who wanted to take you from me,” Rome said, shivering at the remembrance.
“That is a very bad dream. I want to be with you, always,” said her fetus.
“You will be, little Aason. We share a bond like no other. You will always know where I am and I will always know where you are.”
Vuduri phrases:
1. Ta-ma sue croence [Give me your child]
2. Mea, au essusdetis [Mother, I am frightened]
3. Fica taoxe sau sizonhi [You leave her alone]
4. Ossi da pim, baby [That was good, baby]
What does it all mean? Now you and I will both find out!
Tales of the Vuduri
Tidbits and insights into the 35th century world of the Vuduri.
- Michael Brachman's profile
- 21 followers
