So it was when I wrote the first portion of Rome's Revolution, back when it was entitled VIRUS 5, I crafted a scene wherein Rei was mesmerized by OMCOM's ultraviolet lasers and long-term memory storage. Turns out, he was actually hypnotized and OMCOM had implanted a post-hypnotic suggestion that came into play right near the end of Part 3 of Rome's Revolution. I figured I'd take a poke at myself here:
“I’m not exactly sure but I think OMCOM hypnotized me or maybe it wasn’t that deliberate. Maybe I just got hypnotized by the lasers, the crystals. But OMCOM sure didn’t miss an opportunity to implant some sort of post-hypnotic suggestions on me. He saved me, of course. Those words put up a kind of wall that prevented them from getting inside my head until I was ready.”
“That seems so, so omniscient,” Rome said. “How would he know to need such a thing? Why?”
“There is so much about OMCOM I don’t understand,” Rei said. “You’d know better than me. Why did he do it?”
Rome thought for a minute. “I cannot be certain because it happened exactly at the time I was Cesdiud. My perceptions of OMCOM prior to that time were modulated by my participation in the Overmind. After that time, everything was new and different to me and I had to form my own ideas about it. But… to the extent that I can recall how things were just before and just after, I would say OMCOM changed.”
“Changed how?” Rei asked.
“He was a computer,” Rome said. “He was only as friendly as required by the Vuduri which was not very much. But when you were first awakened, he became more animated. He mentioned to me that he had a personality module that you forced him to exercise. But even that was not it. Something happened to him. Something fundamental. He became, I cannot call him a person, because he is not. I cannot say that he became intelligent because he was already vastly overpowered in the intelligence arena. No, he became, I am going to say caring. It was as if there was a true living spirit inside him and your arrival triggered that awakening in him.”
“That’s pretty heavy,” Rei said. “I never really saw a difference.”
“I did,” Rome said. “It was when we used the bands for the first time. It was just after,” Rome left the sentence hanging.
“After we made love,” Rei said.
“Yes,” Rome replied. She slid along the ledge until her legs were touching Rei’s. She leaned into him, putting her arm around him. Rei did likewise. “That very act awakened something in OMCOM. I will say compassion. Before that, he was simply intelligent.”
“And all of this,” Rei said, waving his free arm toward the tunnel. “You think this all is a result of that awakening?”
“What else can it be?” Rome asked. “He has always been one step ahead of each the crises we have encountered. Almost as if he computed all possible futures and gave us the tools we need to counteract whatever fate was in store for us.”
The fact is, OMCOM was omniscient. He knew Rei would need that help down the road. But me, the dopey author, didn't know. So good for you, OMCOM. Keep the surprises coming.
Entry 4-078: March 14, 2016
The lump in Rei's pants
Tsk, tsk. Such a dirty mind. What did you think I meant? I am talking about the pouch of weaponized VIRUS units that MINIMCOM gave to Rei near the end of Rome's Revolution. During their brief break while awaiting rescue by MINIMCOM, Rome and Rei discuss what it all means:
“There’s one tool left that has me stumped,” Rei said.
Rome leaned back a bit. “And what is that?” she asked.
“Here, take my hand,” Rei said. He slid it along his thigh, showing her the bulge in his pocket.
“Rei!” Rome said a little indignantly. “I do not think this is the right time for that.”
“No,” Rei said, laughing. “That’s not it. It’s a pouch that MINIMCOM gave me.” Rei reached in his pocket and pulled it out. The heat from his hand illuminated it. There was more than enough infrared that Rome was able to make out its shape.
“What is in it?” Rome asked.
“VIRUS units,” Rei said.
“VIRUS units?” Rome questioned. “That seems so dangerous.”
“It gets worse before it gets better,” Rei said.
“How?”
Rei hefted the bag in his hand. “These units have their oxygen sensor disabled. They can be activated within the atmosphere.”
“And OMCOM gave them to you?” Rome said. “This is irresponsible. It could destroy the planet.”
“I know,” Rei said. “But these units report to us. They take their orders from my telephone circuit, from our telephone circuit. If it works, I mean.”
Suddenly, Rei had a thought. “Does it work now?” Rei asked Rome internally.
“Yes, I can hear you,” Rome replied.
“OK,” Rei said out loud. “Then it was just Estar’s equipment that was interfering between you and me. Not our brain circuitry.”
“But we cannot get to MINIMCOM this far down,” Rome said.
“Yes, I know,” Rei answered. “But my point is that you and I can activate and deactivate these VIRUS units whenever we want. Like if I sprinkled some on the floor here, I could turn them on and they’d start burrowing for us.”
“But they would grow without bound,” Rome said with a slightly horrified tone. “They would eat through to the core of the planet. They would eat us.”
“No,” Rei said firmly. “These units cannot eat organic matter. Now the core of the Earth, that’s a different matter. We would have to tell them to stop before they got that far.”
“So what are they for?” Rome asked. “Burrowing down would not seem to be very useful. What else would you do with them?”
“MINIMCOM wasn’t very clear about that,” Rei said. “It was one of those ‘you’ll know it when you see it’ kind of things. I suppose he thought he was protecting me.”
I am particularly proud of myself for inventing these things. They make lots of interesting things happen besides setting off volcanoes. They were used in The Ark Lords to burrow under the rubble that had been the Wilson Hall building sitting above the Tevatron at the FermiLab.
Entry 4-079: March 15, 2016
The Essessoni Nightmare
Once Rome had triggered OMCOM's post-hypnotic suggestion right after Estar had injected Rei, not only did OMCOM's spirit teach Rei how to protect his mind, but also instructed him on what the Onsiras were expecting. Everyone in the world of Rome's Revolution had a poor opinion of the Essessoni but none worse than the Onsiras because the Essessoni represented the greatest threat to MASAL's master plan. Rei took that knowledge and created a nightmare version of himself which he called a simulacrum. This was the one time only that I used the F-bomb in my writing.
While Rome and Rei were taking break, Rome couldn't help herself. She was curious as to what Rei said, in his mind, that caused such a violent and deadly reaction on the part of Estar et al:
“Well, let’s say, for the sake of argument, that OMCOM knew I was going to get integrated into the Overmind.”
“Not the Overmind,” Rome said. “You were captured by the Onsiras. They are something different.”
“OK, their version of the Overmind,” Rei corrected himself. “So whatever the big secret is, he wanted to be sure that I couldn’t tip my hand by even telling me what the big deal was.”
“So confusing,” Rome said. She became quiet for a moment. Then she squeezed Rei’s hand. “What did you tell them when they were inside your mind?” she asked. “It frightened them beyond measure. All of the blood went out of Estar’s face. She became as grey as I have ever seen a living human being. What did you say to them?”
“Romey,” Rei said quietly. “I don’t even want to tell you. They thought the worst of me and I told them what they wanted to hear. Bad things. Horrible things. Things that I did not even know I was capable of thinking.”
“But they are not real?” Rome said, with a small amount of fear.
“God no,” Rei said. “I built this horrid creature, the Essessoni of their dreams, their nightmares actually and I let him say what they thought he’d say. But it wasn’t me. Not ever.”
“Then I trust you. I do not need to know,” Rome said. “You did what you had to do.”
“More than that, Rome,” Rei said. “I knew they were going to kill us. Kill you. It was a given. I couldn’t allow it. You are everything to me. But even that is just selfish. Rome, you are a good person and you did nothing wrong and the fate they assigned to you, you did not deserve it.”
Rome sighed and rested her head on Rei’s shoulder looking up at his face, marveling at it. “You are so good to me, mau emir. I love you so much.”
“And I love you too, Romey,” Rei said.
Ah. Isn't that nice? But don't forget, this is an action/adventure story so they can't just sit there being all lovey-dovey for very long.
Entry 4-080: March 16, 2016
I see you!
I love action. And drama. Rome's Revolution is all about action and adventure. It is written using third person omniscient and while that is great for describing the action to you, the reader, it kind of limits you in that I must describe what is going on. And if the characters are sitting in the pitch black, there isn't much to describe. That is why I gave the Vuduri their i-rods and I gave Rei sonar-vision. These plot devices allowed Rome and Rei to "see" in the dark and let me side step such a mundane thing as requiring light:
Rome sighed again and leaned more fully against Rei. She closed her eyes which seemed unnecessary because they were sitting in the pitch black. Then she snapped her eyes open again.
“Rei,” she said, leaving the sentence hanging.
“What, honey?” he said.
Rome stood up and took a step back. “I can see you,” she said.
“So what?” Rei replied. “You have infrared vision. Big deal.”
“No,” Rome said. “I can see you better than I should.”
“You can see the heat from my face, you know that,” Rei pointed out.
“No,” Rome said. “There is more than just your body heat. When I see a face which is only illuminated by internal warmth, there is a certain lack of features. But you, your face is all lit up. There is an external source of infrared. Let me see.”
Rome scanned the tunnel. The far wall was illuminating where they were sitting, in the infrared sense.
“There,” Rome said, raising her finger. She knew that her voice would be sufficient for Rei to see where she was pointing. “That wall. There is a point source, heat.”
Rei turned to where she was pointing. He stood up and walked across the tunnel to the far side. Slowly, carefully, he ran his hand along the wall.
“I can feel it,” he said and paused. “Uh, Rome, this might not be good.”
“Why?” Rome asked.
“For one thing, we’re sitting inside a volcano maybe?” Rei said.
As of right now, Kilauea is not dormant and the geological processes underlying the creation and growth of the Hawaiian islands have been going on for some time. It is right in the middle of the "Ring of Fire" in the Pacific.
Entry 4-081: March 17, 2016
I see you! Too
As I mentioned yesterday, the Hawaiian islands are right in the middle of what is called the Ring of Fire that circles the Pacific. Many volcanoes dot the rim and Hawaii itself was created by numerous volcanoes. Not all are active at the same time. Haleakala last erupted about 500 years ago. Mauna Loa has probably been erupting for at least 700,000 years and its most recent eruption was in 1984. is active today. Molten lava was seen within its crater two months ago:
So whatever you do, I don't think you can plan on them staying dormant forever. Rome would be wise to listen to Rei on this subject:
“I can feel it,” Rei said and paused. “Uh, Rome, this might not be good.”
“Why?” Rome asked.
“For one thing, we’re sitting inside a volcano maybe?” Rei said.
“A dormant volcano. Kilauea has been dormant for as long as we have recorded history. Which means since your time.”
“Yeah but there’s always a first time,” Rei said. He bent over and put his face near the warm spot. He turned his head so that he could put his ear to the rock.
“Wow,” he said. “Did you hear that?” he asked.
“Hear what?” Rome replied. “I heard nothing.”
“Shh,” Rei said. “Let me listen again.”
“All right,” Rome said. She held her breath and stayed perfectly still so Rei could attend to the sounds.
“Come here,” Rei said. Rome came over to him.
“Here,” he said. “Put your ear to the rock.”
Rome complied. She listened for a bit then lifted up.
“I do not hear anything,” she said.
“Well I do,” Rei said.
“It is not surprising given that you do have super hearing,” Rome said condescendingly.
“Oh yeah,” Rei said, grinning.
“What did you hear?” Rome asked.
“Water,” Rei said. “I heard drops of water. The echoes are telling me it is hollow in there.”
Tantalizing, right? Rome and Rei are thirsty and the prospect of being able to reach water was very attractive. But you must be careful what you wish for!
Entry 4-082: March 18, 2016
Fire in the hole
Thirst can be a powerful motivator. In the latter portions of Rome's Revolution, Rome and Rei were trapped deep in a warm lava tube when Rei's super hearing allowed him to find dripping water. However, it was on the other side of the tunnel's wall which was confusing. Knowing Rei, he wasn't going to let such a simple thing as solid rock prevent him from getting to that water:
Rei reached over and felt along Rome’s side until he found what he was looking for. He pulled out Rome’s hand weapon. He dialed down the intensity to the minimum and handed it back to her.
“Here,” he said.
“Why are you giving me this weapon?” Rome asked.
“I cranked it down to the lowest setting,” Rei said. “I want you to fire it up the tunnel. But be careful.”
“Why?” Rome asked.
“It’ll light it up. Like a torch. I want to look with my eyes.”
“Very well,” Rome said. She turned and aimed the weapon up the tunnel and pulled on the trigger. A blue-white flame of contained plasma jumped out, traveling up the tunnel until it was absorbed by the rock. The arc-like light was sufficient for Rei to bend down and examine the wall close up. He poked at the region where he heard the sound then started clawing at it with his fingers.
“Way better than a flashlight,” Rei observed. “Look. There’s something on the other side of this wall,” Rei said.
“What?” Rome asked, carefully turning her head so that she could see where Rei was pointing.
“I don’t know,” Rei answered. “I can poke my finger in there so I know it’s hollowed out. I can kind of map it out. It could be like a chamber or something. I think that’s where the water is.”
Rome stopped firing her weapon and came over to where Rei was standing.
“Go back up the tunnel as far as you can,” Rei instructed. “I’m going to use my gun to blow out this wall and I want to make sure you are out of the way.”
Rome looked up the tunnel then back to Rei. “Please be careful,” she said.
“Of course,” Rei answered. “Now go.”
Rome nodded and walked up the tunnel so far that Rei’s infrared signature was almost undetectable.
“Are you away?” Rei yelled to her.
“Yes,” Rome called out.
“OK,” Rei shouted. “Fire in the hole.”
“What?” Rome asked but her question was lost in the reverberation of a blast. Her internal optics had to compensate instantly for the flash in front of her.
Rei ought to be a little more car
eful than that. Using a colloquialism such as "fire in the hole" might mean something to us but in the 35th century, it has faded from use. Regardless, wait until you see what is on the other side of the wall!
Entry 4-083: March 19, 2016
Scary!
Yesterday, we saw Rei use a plasma gun to blast a hole in the wall in an attempt to find the source of the dripping water. However, if we have learned nothing from Rome's Revolution, it is that 35th century technology does not always behave in a way that would be predictable by someone from the 21st century. This was in the back of Rome's mind, right after the blast:
Rei shouted. “Fire in the hole.”
“What?” Rome asked but her question was lost in the reverberation of a blast. Her internal optics had to compensate instantly for the flash in front of her.
“Rei,” Rome called out. “Are you all right?”
Rei did not answer.
“Rei!” Rome shouted running back down the tunnel. Her infrared vision showed her where the blast occurred but she could not see Rei’s shape.
“Rei!” she said, almost in tears. “Where are you?”
Rei poked his head out from the hole in the wall. “It’s here, Rome!” he said excitedly. “Water. There’s some sort of underground pool.”
Rome came down to where he was and smacked him on the shoulder.
“Do not frighten me like that,” she said. “I was worried.”
“I’m fine, baby,” he said. “Come on.” He reached out and Rome took his hand and stepped through the hole.
Unlike before when Rome only had the warmth of their bodies to illuminate the area, this part was hotter. Her infrared vision allowed her to see it rather clearly. They were in a large cavern that was fifty or more meters tall. The ceiling of the chamber was unnaturally smooth. Its shape did not fit Rome’s perception of what a cave should look like. Instead, it was long and stretched out to their left but her attention was drawn to the small pool of water accumulating on the far side of the cavern. They walked across the rocky floor of the cave until they reached the pool. Rei sank to his knees and bent over and touched his lips to the water.