Interview with Rome I - Part 9 of 17

As Steve Fisch and I get the scripts ready to sell Rome's Revolution as a streaming series, he asked me for a lot of background information that I did not have. So I took some time out to interview Rome and Rei. Rome was very talkative so I had to break up the interview into two parts. Rei was a bit more concise. So here is the first Rome interview, part 9 of 17.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rome: When Rei was first awakened, having slept for 14 centuries, the first thing he wanted to do was sleep. (Rome shakes her head) The second thing he wanted to do was eat. So I got him some Vuduri food. And he hated it! I told him how good it was for him but he never acquiesced. Later, when he introduced me to Essessoni food… The first thing he gave me was coffee, blessed coffee. (Rome makes an ah sound) Anyway, as I learned about Essessoni food, I came around to his way of thinking. Their food, our food now, is so much better. I put on quite a bit of weight during our time together aboard the Flying House because everything Rei made was so delicious. I couldn’t help myself. It wasn’t until after Aason was born and things settled down that I got serious about my body again and returned to my optimal weight. Rei never judged me but it was important to me to be my best self.
Perry: That sounds like that part of the trip was a fun time.
Rome: It was. Rei is a good cook. The whole process was so unnatural to me that it took me a long time to learn how to cook as well as he can. But we’re past that now. I know there are certain dishes I make that are far better than his rendition. (Rome smiles) Just don’t ask me about bison burgers, though.
(Perry laughs but really doesn’t understand the reference)
Perry: OK. Back to the bands.
Rome: Yes. I had put the Espansor on Rei’s head and after it calibrated, I put on mine. I then put on the T-suppressor and for the first time in I don’t know how long, I was able to relax. The Overmind had been such an overbearing presence for so long, I must have been tense every waking minute of every day. Later, Rei told me that when I relaxed, it was first time that he actually saw me as a woman. I could see that in his mind as I entered it. It was both shocking and wonderful that I realized he was a man and not just a potential Erklirte. And he thought I was pretty. I remember looking at his lips and thinking to myself how soft they appeared. Of course, with the Espansors on, I wasn’t thinking it just to myself. Rei heard me. I didn’t care. I reached over and touched his lips. It was magical. I knew as a mosdurece, I would never be selected for reproduction so I had never really considered sexual relations. I… (Rome shakes her head) That’s a story of another time. Let me just say, in that moment, looking at Rei, for the first time in my life, I understood the concept of attraction and, this is for posterity, right?
(Perry nods)
Rome: I finally understood the concept of Aris.
Perry: What is that?
Rome: The Vuduri have five words for love. Not that the concept would be of any use to a modern Vuduri but the language itself predates the Overmind. The five words are egeba, estirga, volia, aris and emir.
Perry: What do those mean?
Rome: Egeba is the love of essence, an extreme form of liking. Do you like ice cream?
Perry: I love ice cream.
Rome: There you go. That is egeba.
Perry: And the rest?
Rome: Estirga is love of family, children. For example, I’d say to my mother “au da estirga” to tell her I loved her.
Perry: Go on

Tomorrow, part 10