The will of the Vuduri

Yesterday, I presented to you the first part of Rome's questioning of the Overmind of Deucado from Part 2 of Rome's Revolution. She asked the Overmind about its purpose in life. It claimed it derived its purpose by its mission, mainly, keeping the mandasurte trapped on Deucado.

Rome wasn't having any part of it. Rome asked the Overmind flat out, how do you feel about it? The Overmind had no choice but to respond:

     “If Earth assigned this to me, it must be the right thing to do,” answered the Overmind.
     “Are you absolutely certain of this? What if I told you that your progenitor, which we assume to be the Overmind of Earth, that it is diseased? That your mission was assigned to you by a being that has grown out of touch with what is right and what is real, that it is ossified and incapable of clear thought?”
     “This is not possible. The Overmind on Earth is in charge of all things. Its edicts are the correct course of action, by definition.”
     “Says who?” Rome asked.
     “What do you mean?” asked the Overmind.
     “Who put the Overmind of Earth in charge?”
     “No one put it in charge. It just is,” answered the Overmind.
     “What kind of answer is that?” Rome challenged with a savage edge to her thoughts. “Now I ask you again, who put the Overmind in charge?”
     “There is no other way to be. It represents the combined thoughts of all of the communicants. It represents consensus. Therefore it is not in charge as much as simply the combined will of the Vuduri.”
     “If that is the case, then you represent the combined will of the Vuduri here on Deucado?”
     “Yes, of course,” replied the Overmind.
     “Do you ever ask them their opinion on anything?” Rome asked.
     “I do not need to,” the Overmind replied. “I already know what they want.”
     “Do you represent the will of the mandasurte?” Rome asked.
     “Of course not, only of the Vuduri,” replied the Overmind haughtily.
     “And this is what the Vuduri want? To be isolated from the mandasurte? To lock them in prison?”
     “It is for their own good,” the Overmind protested. “The Vuduri are damaged whenever they come in contact with the mandasurte.”
     “How?” Rome asked.
     “Because the mandasurte cannot be controlled. They are too spontaneous. They follow their own path, not the one we lay out.”
     “By we, you mean the Overminds, correct?”
     “This is a trap,” said the Overmind. “I see what you are doing. You are making it seem like I make decisions based upon what I need. But this is not selfish. I need to control the mandasurte to protect the Vuduri.”

Ah. It's too late. Even though the Overmind recognizes the trap, it has already been sprung. Tomorrow, Rome teaches the Overmind that monolithic is unnatural and that duality is the way of the world.