I finally figured out that my future world is post post-apocalypse. Mankind and all of society has been nearly destroyed and arisen again. But in my future world, they did not just recreate our society. Their technology is a little ahead of ours in some ways and their society is a little behind ours in other ways. But the bottom line is they are different. The Earth of the 35th century is a do-over. Given all the resources of the planet and the time to recover, they do everything different from us.
This makes for a great culture clash and makes Rome and Rei's love story all the more poignant. They come together despite their different backgrounds because the human spirit is the one constant that transcends all the ages.
So there you have it. If and when the time comes to approach the publicist, this is the orientation I will use: the world of the Vuduri is the Post Post-apocalypse.
Entry 4-213: July 27, 2016
The Fat Spaceship, part 1
When I first introduced MINIMCOM, he was just an advanced version of an autopilot computer. He was bolted into the cabin of the second Vuduri space tug and assigned the task of helping Rome and Rei tow the damaged Ark II to Tau Ceti. The journey was supposed to last nearly two years but between the three of them, the assembled group figured out how to get there in less than one year.
When they arrived at Tau Ceti, at the planet called Deucado by the Vuduri, they were attacked immediately by the Vuduri stationed there and while Rome and Rei escaped, MINIMCOM was crushed beneath the 7000 metric tonne Ark II. Little did Rome and Rei know but the VIRUS units that MINIMCOM was carrying escaped, partially consumed the space tug before MINIMCOM could seize control. Utilizing their transmuting power, MINIMCOM emerged as a sleek white starship, fully integrated within the airframe of the space tug and approximately the same size.
Eventually, MINIMCOM found the need to expand his bulk and over time, he assumed the size and shape of a full-blown transport. But eventually, he grew almost too large. Here is the scene where Rome and Aason acknowledge how much he had increased his bulk:
“Mommy, he’s getting so big!” Aason exclaimed as they reached the top of MINIMCOM’s cargo ramp.
“Yes, he is,” Rome replied, looking about in wonder. She held Aason’s hand tightly as they walked down the corridor in what had previously been the cargo bay. Doorway after doorway marked the small staterooms that MINIMCOM had fashioned to transport any displaced or kidnapped mandasurte who wanted to return to their families on Earth.
Going as fast as Aason’s two-year-old legs could walk, they eventually reached the archway entrance into the cockpit. While the cockpit was much larger than before, Rome could see its basic organization had been retained since MINIMCOM’s days as just a space tug. Rome buckled Aason into the co-pilot’s seat. Even though he was large for a two-year old, he still looked tiny in the seat made for adults.
Rome sat down in the pilot’s seat and buckled herself in. “Are you sure you are all right with this?” She felt a vibration which she assumed was MINIMCOM sealing his cargo ramp.
“Very much so,” answered MINIMCOM. His voice issued from the grille built into the front console. “No one has requested passage to Earth in 4 months, 5 days and 7 hours. I will not bore you with the minutes and seconds. The mandasurte of Earth only wish to come here. It appears as if my days as an interstellar taxi service have come to an end.”
Tomorrow, the now semi-gigantic MINIMCOM soars into the air.
Entry 4-214: July 28, 2016
The Fat Spaceship, part 2
Yesterday, Rome and Aason had entered the now-gigantic MINIMCOM in order to look for a spot to place her library. MINIMCOM was well over twice the size of his original form. It served his needs when he was acting as an interstellar taxi service but now it was just in his way. We'll have to figure out something to do with all that extra ship:
Noiselessly, MINIMCOM engaged his powerful EG lifters and he leaped into the sky. When MINIMCOM was first fused into the airframe of one of the Vuduri shuttles, his outer shape was small and sleek, not even 50 meters long from nose to tail. Over the last two years, he had grown into a full-fledged transport, nearly half the size of the starship Algol.
“Where are we going, Mommy?” Aason asked, straining to see over the console.
“We are going to look for a site for my library,” Rome answered, pointing up. She tapped an icon on the left display screen to activate the external cameras. She saw the ground dropping away quickly. Satisfied, she turned her attention to the grille as the starship soared upwards.
“I was not sure this would be interesting enough for you,” Rome remarked.
“It is a very worthwhile project,” MINIMCOM replied as he leveled off about ten miles up. “You are to be commended. And, I am honored to be a part. Let us find you a perfect spot.”
MINIMCOM displayed his underside cameras onto the large center viewscreen built into the console. From this height, Rome could see the pock-marked face of Deucado in full relief. As her father observed, it was somewhat surprising how life could have developed at all on a planet that had been struck so many times by comets, meteors and the like. Now that MINIMCOM had deployed his livetars within the Kuiper Belt as a protection shield and the starprobes as a detection shield in the Oort Cloud, Deucado would no longer suffer from those type of events.
“Focus in on Lake Eprehem,” Rome said. MINIMCOM zoomed in on the large crater lake, placing it in the center of the viewscreen.
“There is Ibbra City,” Rome said, tapping the display. “Put a marker there.” MINIMCOM complied with the visual equivalent of a pushpin. “Pan north now,” she said. The image started sliding from top to bottom. “Stop,” she said. “Put a marker there, too, on New Ark City.”
MINIMCOM complied by placing a marker over the area where the Essessoni were making their homes. There was something out of place to the far west but Rome ignored it.
What was it that was out of place? It was Darwin Base but you won't find that out for several hundred pages. And why did I make MINIMCOM so fat? You’ll see soon enough!
Entry 4-215: July 29, 2016
X marks the spot, part 1
Yesterday, the now too-large starship MINIMCOM took Rome and Aason up into the air in order to find the perfect spot to house Rome's new library. Rome decided to approach its placement using both a pragmatic as well as egalitarian approach. Here is how she did it:
“Focus in on Lake Eprehem,” Rome said.
MINIMCOM zoomed in on the large crater lake, placing it in the center of the viewscreen.
“There is Ibbra City,” Rome said, tapping the display. “Put a marker there.”
MINIMCOM complied with the visual equivalent of a pushpin. “Pan north now,” she said. The image started sliding from top to bottom. “Stop,” she said. “Put a marker there, too, on New Ark City.”
MINIMCOM complied by placing a marker over the area where the Essessoni were making their homes. There was something out of place to the far west but Rome ignored it.
“Please zoom out. I want to find the Vuduri city.”
The image instantly shrank until the ragged shoreline of the two huge bays on Asquarti, the western continent, came into view. The northern bay led almost to the North Pole. The southern bay, the one she had visited the other day and home of the planetary fishing fleet stretched as far as the eye could see.
“There it is,” Rome said, tapping the screen. “Put a marker there as well.” MINIMCOM complied.
“Now show me where the Deucadons are building their settlement.”
MINIMCOM placed a flashing circle to the north and east of New Ark City. “It is more than a settlement. It is nearly the size of New Ark City. They are calling it Deucadia now. I suppose that means they liked the title you ascribed to their people.”
“Well, it is appropriate,” Rome said, smiling. She stared at the display. The three mandasurte cities formed an arc. The Vuduri city was well to the eas
t.
Rome nodded. “That is excellent. Now connect the dots and let us find an area that is equidistant to the population centers.”
“I would put it closer to your home,” MINIMCOM replied. “You will be traveling there often.”
“I was just trying to think ahead,” Rome said.
“You will be doing all the work initially,” MINIMCOM countered. “You may as well place it at a location more convenient for you. The Vuduri can make the trip when they are interested.”
“You are right,” Rome said. She stared at the screen for a moment, considering MINIMCOM’s comment. “How about there?” she asked, placing her finger on the screen.
The location Rome spotted, highlighted in bold, is Darwin Base. It will figure into the novel later on. Tomorrow, MINIMCOM explains the sweet irony of the exact spot the Rome selected.
Entry 4-216: July 30, 2016
X marks the spot, part 2
Yesterday, MINIMCOM was hovering over a relatively unpopulated area of Deucado, trying to find the perfect spot for her library. She wanted to center equidistant from each population center but that turned out to be slightly impractical. So she scaled back a little. When she finally selected a location, MINIMCOM had a rather interesting observation:
“You are right,” Rome said. She stared at the screen for a moment, considering MINIMCOM’s comment. “How about there?” she asked, placing her finger on the screen.
“Interesting choice,” MINIMCOM remarked.
“Why?”
“That is squarely on the path the Essessoni took when they first arrived, on the day they decided to attack the Vuduri compound.”
“Oh,” Rome said. “Do you think that would cause any resentment?”
“On the contrary,” MINIMCOM answered. “It is the perfect place to put an edifice designed to celebrate the diversity of the races. That trail marks the beginning of harmony among all.”
Rome smiled and nodded. “OK,” she said, using Rei’s favorite expression. Then she added, “Take us there. Please.”
“As you wish,” MINIMCOM replied. He tilted his nose downward and headed toward the area Rome had identified. The starship leveled off about 100 feet above the ground and cruised over the landscape until they came to the location Rome indicated. MINIMCOM floated to a stop, extended his landing gear then settled gently onto the ground. As Rome and Aason exited the starship via the cargo ramp, MINIMCOM sent along his livetar to join them.
The day was beautiful, so warm, and so sunny. Tau Ceti stood in the cloudless sky, a little more orange than Sol but brilliant nonetheless. They were standing in a threadgrass field surrounded on all sides by cane-tree forest. Rising above the trees to the north was the plateau leading to the northern mountains. 20 miles to the west lay the eastern shore of Lake Eprehem. To the east, out of sight, was the alluvial plain that led to the great northern and southern bays.
Rome closed her eyes and tilted her face up, feeling the warmth of the sun. She inhaled the clean, crisp air of Deucado. Lifting her arms upward, she started twirling in place. “Yes, yes,” she said. “This feels right."
So Rome has finally found the right spot for her library which will eventually become the focal point of the entire Deucadon culture. Good for her!
Entry 4-217: July 31, 2016
Hexagons and Saturn
Have you ever wondered why a snowflake always has six points? Have you ever wondered why a honeycomb is made up of hexagons? Have you seen the recent images of the top side of Saturn with the gigantic hexagon? Is that the work of an alien life form or some sort of cosmic artist? Not really. Let's start over. Here are some images to help you visualize these concepts:
There is a reason and it is pretty simple. It has to do with the number of π. The circumference of every circle is 3.14159 times the diameter. We learned that in grade school. If you stack a series of circles around that first circle, you can fit exactly six circles of equal radius around the inner circle. Not five. Not seven. Exactly six. Well, not exactly six, it is really 6.28 circles. But since there is no such thing as 28/100ths of a circle, six will have to do.
So any grouping in nature that consists of circles or cylinders or tubes that are round will also form itself into what is known as hexagonal close packing. This means that six circles around an inner circle is the tightest you can get. This is not a law, it is just a mathematical fact. And it doesn't just apply to circles, either. It also applies to spheres in a single layer. However, when you start adding in new layers, the mathematics becomes more complex. It turns out that the next layer up only also forms hexagons but the spheres themselves settle into the gaps created by the lower level. The next level up is stacked exactly the same as the layer two rows below. This goes on and on and on as much as needed.
Anyway, I hope this explains the "mysterious" hexagon on the North Pole of Saturn. It isn't mysterious at all. It is just another variant of π as seen from above.
Entry 4-218: August 1, 2016
Greeks, Romans and Vuduri
One of the themes promulgated within The Ark Lords was that the Vuduri had next to no information about anything that happened before the Great Dying.
The fact is they didn't want to know. They believed that the entire history of mankind led up to that terrible event and they did not want to repeat the errors of the past. So doesn't that seem contradictory? Those that do not know the past are doomed to relive it?
To some degree this is true. However, the Vuduri used a few simple axioms to guarantee that their society was nothing like that of the Essessoni or any cultures before that. They simply refused to use fossil fuels. Their only rule was to not create greenhouse gasses and make sure the Earth never experiences global warming again.
How did this manifest itself? Everything they move uses magnetics or electro-gravity. All of their energy is derived from Casimir Pumps meaning they are non-polluting. They do not eat meat so there is no intense animal husbandry. The list goes on and on but that is the gist of it.
So when Rome proposed building her library, why wasn't there more resistance from the Vuduri? After all, they had "erased" all evidence of the Essessoni from the face of the planet. But what about the Greeks and Romans? Dinosaurs, even?
The answer is because once they had accepted the 24th chromosome and became mind-connected, there was no longer any danger of society veering one way or another without the complete knowledge and approval of the Vuduri people by way of the Overmind. There was no crime. There was no war. Nothing to fear from the past, really.
So when Rome decided to build a history repository for all the races of mankind, it was actually an idea whose time had come. Too bad the Ark Lords had different ideas.
Entry 4-219: August 2, 2016
The PPT Cannons
The world of Rome's Revolution is actually a fairly peaceful one. The 24-chromosome mind-connected Vuduri have divorced themselves from crime and war. It was only the introduction of outside elements that forced them to develop weapons in the first place.
Rome and Rei encountered such weapons when they first arrived at Deucado. In fact, Rome was fairly shocked that the Vuduri had any weapons at all. Rei, a man who hailed from our century, was not surprised at all. But after their disagreements had been settled, the world of Deucado returned to its peaceful state.
In fact, MINIMCOM, the autopilot computer that became a starship, never felt the need or desire to produce weapons. The fact that he would need them later on in the saga had no bearing. He could not predict the future. Only I could since I wrote the books. So I had to come up with a method for MINIMCOM to design and implement weapons without realizing it. The opportunity arose in The Ark Lords after Rome had found the perfect spot to place her library. She needed MINIMCOM to begin construction on the site. Here is how such an innocent act could create what I needed down the road:
Rome closed her eyes and tilted her face up, feeling the w
armth of the sun. She inhaled the clean, crisp air of Deucado. Lifting her arms upward, she started twirling in place. “Yes, yes,” she said. “This feels right.”
She opened her eyes to see Aason rolling around in the threadgrass. She laughed then turned to the large black presence beside her. “Where do we begin?” she asked.
“I have been preparing the necessary equipment,” said the livetar. The ambulatory shell walked around to the front of the ship. Rome’s attention was drawn toward the upper half of the nose by a loud, grinding noise. Two thick cylinders, at least a foot in diameter, extruded from the front of the ship, below the cockpit. When they reached about 10 feet in length, the tips extended, bending forward and spreading out into a fan shape.
“What are those?” Rome asked.
“Those are multiple bi-directional PPT throwers,” the livetar replied.
“What are they for?”
“I will use them to clear and level the ground. I will also transport a paving material to give the roadways a strong foundation. For today only, I am not a starship. Today I am a roadgrader!” The livetar bent his mouth slit upwards into a small smile. “Hop aboard and we will begin.”
Rome laughed and followed the two-meter tall livetar around to the rear of the starship.
“Come, Aason,” Rome said within her head, using her PPT connection to her son. “We are going to start building.”
“Coming, Mommy” Aason replied and he ran over to them. Together, they climbed aboard the starship and headed directly toward the cockpit.