“It is in my cargo hold,” MINIMCOM informed Rei mentally. “I will take care of it. Do you need any other assistance? Another livetar?”
Rei thought back, “I’ll let you know.”
I used this second part as a device to bring in MINIMCOM quickly and show you that he can save the day by throwing his cape over a dangerous item. This was because I knew he would repeat this later with the virus container. I needed to establish a pattern that his cargo hold was the staging area for items of questionable safety. I got a good bit of drama out of that later as well.
I also wanted to emphasize the fact that MINIMCOM had become a full-fledged autonomous citizen of Deucado. albeit one who happened to be a starship and former computer. Thus Rei could not command him to do anything. But he could ask. The dialog looks like Rei was giving him a command but only in same sense that you would call out to any family member in an emergency. Note that Rei was merely taking MINIMCOM up on his offer to assist.
Even in this little scene, we can see that MINIMCOM is always nearby, always helpful and heroic in his own right. This will become important later as the plot develops.
Entry 4-185: June 29, 2016
Informal English
For a long time now, my claim was that Rome mastered formal English very quickly. Mastering informal English, using colloquialisms and contractions, took much longer. However, master it she did. But whenever Rome became stressed out or didn't know what to say, she would revert to a more formal form of English. It was my intent in the beginning of The Ark Lords, to illustrate that this trend continued and you could utilize Rome's use of contractions to read into her mental state.
For example, consider this scene that occurred right after the grease fire at the beginning of the book:
Rome held her arm out, palm up. “I burned my hand,” she said with a brave face, even though tears were running down her cheeks.
“Let me look,” Rei said as he gently took her hand in his, examining her palm. He could see a red patch the exact size and shape of the pan’s handle but it didn’t look too bad. Rei guided her to the sink and ran cold water over the burn.
“Keep it under the cool water until it stops hurting,” Rei said as he opened the back door to let some of the smoke out of the room.
It took a little while but eventually Rome said, “It’s OK now.”
Rei came over, shut the water off and led Rome out of the kitchen while it was clearing of smoke. He took her through the dining room into the living area. Rei noted as they passed that the dining table was set so carefully. There was also a centerpiece with local flowers. It was clear Rome had put a lot of thought into the arrangement. In the living area, Rei “spoke” to MINIMCOM again.
“Everything is under control here.” Rei thought in his head. “Thanks, buddy.”
“No problem,” MINIMCOM replied. “Always glad to help.”
Rei settled Rome onto the sofa then knelt on the floor so he could look up into her dark, glowing eyes. The eyes of all the Vuduri had a Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope built into their optics and the reflective tapetum of their retina served as the back mirror. Their eyes always appeared to glow even in the dimmest light.
“What happened?” he asked, searching her face. “What were you doing?”
“I was trying to surprise you,” Rome said plaintively. “The bison herd has finally hit critical mass. They slaughtered their first bull and the meat was a gift from my mother. She brought me a package this afternoon. I was making you hamburgers.” Rome looked down at her lap and shook her head.
“That is so sweet,” Rei said. He got up and sat down next to her. “Listen,” he said, “throwing water on a grease fire is the worst thing you can do. It literally causes the grease to explode.”
“I saw,” Rome said. She put her hands up to her eyes and started sobbing again.
Rei gathered her in his arms and stroked her head. “It’s OK, sweetheart, we’re OK,” he said lovingly.
“No, it isn’t OK,” Rome said between sobs. “Sometimes, I feel like I don’t know how to do anything.”
The interesting thing here is that even though you'd expect Rome to be stressed out, she was not. She was able to use contractions quite normally. That told me that she had a firm grasp of the situation and while she was not happy with it, she acknowledged it and intended on dealing with it.
That's how the whole thing started. More tomorrow.
Entry 4-186: June 30, 2016
Beautiful Rome
Look, I'm a man. I admit it. I had no desire to make my heroine, Rome, be unattractive. I wanted Rei to want her emotionally but also physically. So while she was short, I gave her a lot of characteristics that I find attractive in a woman. I needed to reinforce that in the beginning of The Ark Lords. Here you'll see I packed a lot of description in solely for that purpose:
“No, it isn’t OK,” Rome said between sobs. “Sometimes, I feel like I don’t know how to do anything.”
“Of course you do,” Rei said in a comforting voice. Looking around and not seeing his son, Rei figured he could change the subject by asking, “Where’s Aason?”
“I sent him back with my mother,” Rome answered. “I wanted to be alone with you this evening. I wanted the meal to be special. But I ruined it.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Rei said, “We’ll make hamburgers again.”
This made Rome cry out louder. Her sobs were heartfelt.
“What Romey?” Rei asked tenderly. “It’s all right.”
“It isn’t,” she said. “You don’t understand. It is not all right.”
Rei eased her back so he could look deeply into her beautiful eyes. By any standard, Vuduri or otherwise, Rome was stunning. She had let her brown hair, flecked with gold, grow back to shoulder length. Her body had once again regained its spectacular form since the birth of their son Aason. Her tanned, olive-tinted skin was flawless, her lips full and alluring.
“What is it?” Rei asked. “Burning a few hamburgers wouldn’t get you this upset. Is there something else?”
Rome took a deep breath and let out a sigh, wiping at her tears. She looked at Rei and said, “I am so ashamed. I don’t know how to tell you.” Her lips quivered as if she was going to say something else but she did not.
“Just tell me,” Rei said, prompting her. “Did something happen?”
“No,” Rome said, “that is the problem. It was why I wanted to talk to you. Alone.” She wriggled free of Rei’s arms and stood up, with her back to her husband.
“Please, sweetheart. Just tell me.”
You must remember that Rei and Rome shared a psychic connection. They also used the Espansor Bands to merge their minds directly. At least I think they still used them. I'm not 100% sure. Regardless, what was Rome's big secret? Something she was so ashamed of that she kept hidden from her husband even when he was in her mind?
Tomorrow.
Entry 4-187: July 1, 2016
I'm bored
There is a famous saying that goes something like this: idle hands are the devil's workshop. Some people say it slightly differently, that idle hands are the devil's playthings. Either way, it means that bored people get into trouble. And so it was at the beginning of The Ark Lords that Rome knew she was too idle and she was ashamed of it. It colored her every day. Here is how Rei found out this simple fact:
“Did something happen?” Rei asked her.
“No,” Rome said, “that is the problem. It was why I wanted to talk to you. Alone.” She wriggled free of Rei’s arms and stood up, with her back to her husband.
“Please, sweetheart. Just tell me.”
Rome turned back and looked at Rei, her face taut with anguish. “Rei, I’m bored. I’m just so bored.”
Rei snorted, trying to stifle a laugh. “That’s it? That’s your big secret?”
He stood up and walked over to her. Before they launched in 2067, Rei had been just a shade under six
feet tall. But after spending a full year in one-third gravity then two more years in the lower gravity of Deucado, he had actually grown an inch. His broad swimmer’s shoulders and his musculature always made him seem to tower over any of the Vuduri, especially Rome who was barely five feet tall. He gently placed his hands on Rome’s shoulders.
Rome looked up at his handsome face with his boyish good looks and piercing blue eyes. His sandy brown hair, never properly combed, almost always amused her but was no source of comfort this particular evening.
“It is no secret,” she said. “I spend my days chasing around after our two-year old. I teach English to the mandasurte and occasionally, if I am very lucky, I find the rare Essessoni who wishes to learn the Vuduri language. Other than keeping our house clean and cooking our meals, I don’t have anything challenging to do.”
Rei reached down and took her non-burned hand. “Romey, we killed a Stareater, you singlehandedly brought an Overmind to its knees, stopped a war and we vaporized an insane computer with a volcano. Don’t you think that anything following that is bound to be anti-climactic?”
You see, I thought Rome had become something of an adrenaline junkie. Rei suspected it too. He thought maybe she was looking for the rush of danger, of intrigue.
Well, she wasn't but that doesn't mean it won't find her. I'll let her explain tomorrow.
Entry 4-188: July 2, 2016
The Library is born, part 1
Yesterday, we found out Rome's deep, dark secret. She revealed this at the beginning of The Ark Lords. She was bored! It took Rei a moment or two to realize the seriousness of Rome's predicament. Like all men, he could only listen to her feelings so much before he needed to do something. Luckily, the pair are very well matched and Rome treasured Rei's ability to solve problems.
Rei reached down and took her non-burned hand. “Romey, we killed a Stareater, you singlehandedly brought an Overmind to its knees, stopped a war and we vaporized an insane computer with a volcano. Don’t you think that anything following that is bound to be anti-climactic?”
Rome frowned and shook her head. “You’re not listening to me. I’m not looking for excitement. With all the people flocking to this planet, there are so many issues. My mother is supervising the establishment of the bison herd on the threadgrass plains. My father is working with the Vuduri to build a huge fishing fleet. And your project…”
“Broadloom?” Rei offered.
“Yes, Broadloom, your project is going to feed thousands and thousands of people one day. All of you are involved in important tasks. I want to do something important as well beyond just being a veprocenda, a, a, home-maker.”
Rei nodded slowly, looking off to the side. Quite abruptly, he turned away and walked over to the window. He gazed across the bush-lined courtyard to the far side of the house. Their home had been one of the first built by the Essessoni after they arrived here on Deucado. The house was basically U-shaped with an in-law suite located around the far side. Before they left to move into their own home, Rome’s parents had built a solarium which Rome had since converted into a studio.
“What about your painting?” Rei asked. He pointed to the solarium. “I thought you loved that.”
Rome walked over to the window and looked out as well. “I do,” Rome said. “The studio has fantastic northern light. But that is just my hobby. I am looking for something constructive; some way to contribute to the greater good. What you would call a real job.”
“So what do you want to do?”
Rome took a deep breath and reached into her pocket. She pulled out a Vuduri data-cube which was a small black silicon block, roughly one inch on each side.
“What is that?” Rei asked.
I'll tell you tomorrow.
Entry 4-189: July 3, 2016
The Library is born, part 2
Yesterday, Rome held out her had to reveal the Vuduri equivalent of a USB stick at the beginning of The Ark Lords. To her, this represented her future, a career. She just had trouble verbalizing what she intended. Rei helped her fill in the gaps:
“What is that?” Rei asked.
“It’s a data-cube, of course,” Rome replied.
“I know that,” Rei said, chuckling. “I mean what’s on it?”
“While we were on our year-long trip coming here from Tabit, I interviewed you about the history of your people and what came before the Great Dying. I developed a timeline, a, a historical database.”
“Well, if it’s based upon what I told you, it’s pretty faulty.” Rei made a wry expression. “I didn’t pay much attention in history class. A lot of what I told you was based on movies I had seen.”
“I knew that,” Rome said. “You never pretended otherwise.”
“So what do you want to do with it?”
Rome furrowed her brow. “I had an idea but I am having trouble formulating the words, so they make sense.”
“Try,” Rei said.
“I was thinking about interviewing other Essessoni to fill in the countless blanks remaining. I thought that if I gathered enough information, I might be able to complete the history of your people and the world before that.” Rome stared down at the data-cube.
“Well,” he said, “if you are going to do that, I can save you a ton of time and make it way more accurate.”
Rome cocked her head. “How?”
“One of the people on my Ark, her name is Bonnie Mullen; she was in charge of the historical records. Her husband, Edgar, was the loadmaster for the Ark II. Each Ark carried a complete set of data slabs with a summary of everything my civilization knew about the sciences, history, the whole lot. I’ll ask her if you can borrow them.” Rei pointed down to the data-cube. “You can toss that one in the trash.”
Rome smiled. “I wouldn’t do that but your idea is wonderful.” Rome glanced off in the distance then turned back to Rei. “How much data is involved?” she asked.
Rei looked up at the ceiling and did some quick math in his head. “Given how much the slabs can store, you’re talking multiple peta-bytes.”
“Hmm,” Rome mused. “To store that much data, I would need the equivalent of an OMCOM.”
“So build an OMCOM,” Rei replied, casually. “I know you know how. You told me yourself.”
Sounds easy, huh? Just go build yourself an OMCOM. Well, it isn't as easy as you think. What if somebody said to you, oh, you need a cell phone? Just go build an iPhone. Where would you even start? Let's see if Rome can figure that out tomorrow.
Entry 4-190: July 4, 2016
The Library is born, part 3
Yesterday, Rome was finally able to verbalize her aspiration at the very beginning of The Ark Lords. She had decided to wanted to compile a history of Rei's people, known as the Essessoni, by interviewing the crew of the Ark II. Rei gave her a shortcut; all she had to do was access the data slabs that the colonists had brought with them from Old Earth. To Rome, this seemed like an excellent idea. But how to store that much data?
“So build an OMCOM,” Rei replied, casually. “I know you know how. You told me yourself.”
“True. But I would need memron fabricators…” Rome looked out the window again. “I know!” she said. “MINIMCOM has memron fabricators. He would let me use them. I don’t know about the operating system, though. Whenever I have done this in the past, I have always had access to an initialization module. The computer in Vuduri City has no such basis.”
“I bet you MINIMCOM could help you with that, too,” Rei said.
“Yes,” Rome answered. “Where would I put it though?” She looked around the room. “To build an OMCOM requires a large amount of volume or surface area.” Rome spread her arms as wide as she could to emphasize the point.
“I’m sure we can find you a suitable location. There’s plenty of room on this planet.”
“If I create this, this data repository, I could make it accessible to all. I could make it available to others in
English and Vuduri.”
Rei walked over to her and put one hand on her shoulder. He stooped down so he was eye-level with her. “You do realize you are talking about creating a library.”
“Yes!” Rome said enthusiastically. “A library! A library for the people of Deucado!”
“Does that include all the people?” Rei asked.
“Of course,” Rome replied. “What do you mean?”
“Well, for example, the Deucadons. They’re kind of my people. They’ve been here for five hundred years and we know nothing about their history.”
“You’re right!” Rome said emphatically. “If I’m going to build a true library of history, it should be about all the people who live here. Essessoni, Deucadons, Ibbrassati, even the mandasurte in general.”
And so it was that Rome decided to build a library on Deucado, the first of its kind. This library would house all the accumulated knowledge of mankind, both the past and the future. But to truly succeed, she would need the cooperation of the Vuduri. There had been a truce for over two years. It shouldn't be a problem, right?
Entry 4-191: July 5, 2016
The Library is born, part 4
Yesterday, Rome began fleshing out her plan to build the very first library on the planet of Deucado in the first chapter of the novel, The Ark Lords. She had most of the mechanics worked out. There was only one major stumbling block:
“What about the Vuduri?” Rei asked. “They live here, too. My people know next to nothing about yours. You carry all that around in your head, right?”
Rome tapped her temple. “You would think so but I no longer have access. When I was in the Overmind, I suppose I could have memorized much of our people’s history but I did not feel the need to do so. Now that I am out, I only remember some. Not enough.”