Finally, unbeknownst to Rome and Rei, the pill also took a snapshot of their DNA at age 25 which OMCOM was able to reconstitute when they hit age 75. You'll read about that in the short story entitled "Not The End" when I release The Vuduri Companion later this year. And, yes, Aason and Lupe acquired all of these abilities from their parents in addition to all the other advancements within the Vuduri.
Entry 2-166: June 10, 2014
The other 600 pills
Yesterday, I discussed the "magic yellow pill" that OMCOM gave to Rei near the end of the original long-form version of Rome's Revolution. Canus also gave Rei a white plastic bottle that contained an additional 600 doses. However, it turned out these were just the white pills, not the yellow pill. In fact, there was only one other yellow pill in the entire bottle:
Here is the scene when Rei gave this pill to Rome:
Rei started to hand the white pill to Rome then drew his hand back.
“What is it?” Rome asked.
“I don’t know,” Rei said, looking puzzled. “I thought the pill that OMCOM gave me was yellow. This one is white.”
“Do you think it makes a difference?”
“I don’t know,” Rei replied. He held the bottle up to his eye and jostled it around. He spotted one yellow pill mixed among all the other white ones. He shook it out and handed it to Rome.
“No sense in mixing apples and oranges,” he said.
“What has fruit got to do with this?” Rome asked, a bewildered look on her face.
“It’s just an expression,” Rei replied, laughing gently.
Of course we know that the yellow pill gave Rome a cell-phone in the head which she then passed on to her children.
But what of the other 600 white pills? We know from Part 2 of the current version of Rome's Revolution that Rei handed out the pills to the reanimated passengers aboard the Ark II when it arrived at Deucado. However, not everybody took one. When it was all said and done, Rei had about 100 pills remaining and the bottle got left behind when the Essessoni emerged from the caves to take on the Vuduri.
Rome and Rei returned to The Cathedral in Rome's Evolution when they were taking a census to determine how many Darwin members were still running loose on Deucado. Rei noticed the bottle was still there and took it with him.
Good thing he did. As it turns out, the white pill contained enough of the 25th chromosome that it stopped the expression of the Onsira phenotype. This effectively solved the issue for all time. Rei left many of the pills on Helome to help Virga and he gave some to Ursay to spread about the Earth. Presumably, he took the remaining pills back to Deucado.
So in the end, OMCOM not only fixed the backs of the crew of Ark II, but he invented the cure preventing MASAL from turning the entire human race into living robots.
Entry 2-167: June 11, 2014
Abandoning the Earth
Midway through the original long-form version of Rome's Revolution, when OMCOM used the star probes to discover the Stareaters, everyone at Skyler Base knew immediately the Earth was in mortal danger. Even though the VIRUS units would be capable of slaying a Stareater, you would still have its mass barreling through the Solar System and take out Jupiter, the Earth and probably blow up the Sun.
So the Overmind decided to abandon the Earth, just in case. Now this is easier said than done. There were hundreds of millions of Vuduri. Transporting them off the planet would have been a logistical impossibility. And where would they go?
Helome comes to mind, the inhabited planet orbiting Alpha Centauri A. It is a beautiful, peaceful world with an established colony. The Vuduri even had a static tunnel between the two worlds to facilitate shuttling people there. Was this one of the reasons the Overmind had the static tunnel built? An escape hatch? It was never mentioned but seems like it might have been. The fact that they tried to keep Helome ethnically pure may not have been a coincidence.
If anybody ever thought our space program is a waste and the money would be better spent on improving conditions here on Earth, remember this: The Earth has had five major extinction events in the last 500 million years. This includes the K/T event which occurred only 65 million years ago. There is nothing to say that another one isn't coming some day. In fact, it is almost guaranteed. So if we could establish colonies on other planets (Mars?) or in other solar systems, it will increase the chances that mankind could survive one of these.
Take a clue from the Vuduri.
Entry 2-168: June 12, 2014
The anti-cannibalism directive
In the original long-form version of Rome's Revolution, when OMCOM explained how the VIRUS units would reproduce, Rei asked the computer why they wouldn't eat each other.
OMCOM replied that he added an anti-cannibalism directive within their programming. They would only use raw material to reproduce, not each other. Of course OMCOM also claimed that there would be no mutations either. We know that is not true. OMCOM admitted this when he appeared to Rome and Rei as a hologram when they were on their way to Deucado:
“As I said, there were some, what you would say unforeseen, circumstances.”
“What kind of circumstances? Was there a problem?” Rome asked. She could tell OMCOM was stalling.
“My calculations told me that I would be able to control the entire mass, once the Stareater had been consumed, using a distributed hierarchical command structure. Much of the computing capacity was supposed to be redundant. I did not need it.”
“So what happened? Do you need it now?” Rei asked.
“Quite a bit of it is no longer under my control at the present time.”
“What do you mean, OMCOM? Whose control is it under?” Rome asked.
OMCOM said, “It is hard to describe. Perhaps the best way would be to say that a mutation occurred.”
“A mutation?” Rei asked, having a hard time saying the word.
“Yes. Early on, a small group of VIRUS units did not reproduce exactly as the original design.”
“So what happened?”
“They formed their own sentient entity.”
“You mean it formed another OMCOM?” Rome asked unsteadily.
“Not exactly. In fact, many, many more mutations occurred. There are now 20,927 different entities at last count.”
Not only was OMCOM wrong about the mutations but he was also wrong about the anti-cannibalism directive. The VIRUS units preyed upon each other which led to their rapid evolution. You will actually be able to read one of the VIRUS unit's story in the upcoming compendium The Vuduri Companion.
Of course, later, we found out from MINIMCOM that none of this was a mistake. That is why OMCOM phrased it, “There were some, perhaps you would say unforeseen, circumstances.” He conditioned it by saying the part in bold. From his perspective, the events were not unforeseen and in fact desirable.
Why? You'll find out in the upcoming novel The Milk Run which is about 1/3 done.
Entry 2-169: June 13, 2014
MINIMCOM’s personality is born
There comes a time in every novel, Rome's Revolution included, where the story takes a turn. Consider MINIMCOM's personality. At first, he was a prickly, fastidious auto-pilot computer but evolved into a very loving and supportive member of the family. How did this happen?
It can all be traced back to a single act by OMCOM just as the Vuduri crew was getting ready to abandon Skyler Base. Here is that conversation:
OMCOM said, “You do as you see fit. One last element: I am uploading the changes I have made in my personality module based upon feedback following interaction with the Essessoni. They seem to react to our guidance more reliably if you overlay what they perceive as feelings or emotions.”
“That makes no sense, sir,” answered MINIMCOM. “Maximum effectiveness equates to maximum efficiency. How can emotions increase efficiency?”
“It is just the way their brains are wired. The more they anthropomorphize your p
resence the more they will trust your guidance without question. Accept this as a given.”
“I accept your postulate. I will emote as needed as per your instructions.”
“Very good. Should you find the need, you are welcome to share these protocols and personality enhancements with other OMCOM or MINIMCOM units. Now return to master mode,” said OMCOM.
“Master mode initiated.”
“Once again, good luck, MINIMCOM,” said OMCOM.
“Thank you, sir. From my preliminary analysis, even though it is not logical, I have calculated that I will need it,” MINIMCOM said somberly.
As indicated in bold, you can see that MINIMCOM agreed to show emotions and although it took a while, he eventually came to enjoy it when dealing with the world. He evolved so much, in fact, that he became many people's favorite character. Who would have guessed?
Entry 2-170: June 14, 2014
Thinking like a woman
I am a man, not a woman. When it came to creating the characters for my novel Rome's Revolution, in the beginning, I couldn't quite get Rome to act in a feminine fashion. Her first iteration was more like a man in a woman's body. Here is an example:
Rei turned back and stared at the bed for a moment. He cleared his throat and started to speak but then stopped.
“What?” Rome asked.
“Uh…” Rei stammered. “This is going to sound too clinical but I don’t think it would be a good idea if you got pregnant during the trip. We need to figure out something.”
“That is not an issue,” Rome said. “Vuduri women control when they ovulate. I will not become pregnant unless you and I decide the time is right.”
“OK,” Rei said, obviously relieved to drop the subject.
You can see that Rei's question doesn't phase her. During that same conversation, Rei questioned their ability to live together, confined to the Flying House for a year.
“I think there is more that you are not telling me,” Rome observed. “Why do you question this?”
“It’s nothing. Never mind,” he said.
“No, tell me,” she replied. “Remember, I cannot read minds anymore.”
“OK. I’ll tell you. I love you so much that I don’t have very good judgment when it comes to this. But, when you think about it logically, even though it feels like I’ve known you my whole life, we’ve only really just met. I’d hate to think of us being stuck together and not enjoying it.”
“Do not concern yourself.” Her breath caught then her brow furrowed. “Are you worried that we are not meant to be together?” she said with some concern.
“Oh no, god, no. It isn’t that,” Rei answered hurriedly. “This has nothing to do with my feelings. It is the scientist in me. It’s just an observation, not how I feel. I mean, how will we end up not wanting to kill each other if there is nowhere to go and nothing to do for such a long time?”
Rome laughed, relieved. “You are being silly. There will be much to do. You must learn to speak Vuduri. No one on Deucado will take the time to learn English like I did.”
My daughter aka Lupe, helped me a lot with this. Whenever she read those scenes in the first few drafts, Paula (my daughter's real name) was quick to point out these discrepancies. All she had to do is say a woman wouldn't react that way or talk that way. That was enough. I was able to rewrite the scene or conversation and take a more feminine approach. Hopefully, you agree.
Once Rome's personality was established, it became easier in The Ark Lords and especially in Rome's Evolution to make her more womanly. The last thing I have to say is that women do not think like men and if you learn to understand the world from their perspective, it helps you go get along.
Entry 2-171: June 15, 2014
Healing a sick computer
In both the original long-form and the modern version of Rome's Revolution, the subject of OMCOM's "infection" comes up time and again. You will recall that the first time Rei gazed upon OMCOM's core, he saw memrons floating around that were perfectly clear.
Rome (and OMCOM) rejected Rei's observations as being mistaken. However, not only was Rei correct, but later OMCOM took the time to corral some of the clear memrons to study them. Here is that scene:
Rei had made reference to seeing “clear” memrons floating among the normal computing units and the black effector units. OMCOM decided to see if this was true. He rounded up millions of effector units and created a spherical shell around a sufficient volume of ordinary memrons such that he could analyze the pooled units to a value well past the third decimal place. He had the effector units examine each ordinary memron and if it checked out as nominal, he ejected it from his dragnet and the sphere grew smaller.
The results of this test were astounding. There were thousands and thousands of transparent memron units which did not respond to ordinary queries. He had his effector units dismantle one after another until he was able to piece together a working diagram of their topology. They were everywhere. Simple extrapolation told OMCOM that the quantity of these “stealth” memrons were more than sufficient to create a computer within a computer. In effect, OMCOM was infected within. This explained how the video feeds could fail without his knowing it.
It was piecing together this infection along with all the other odd things (like the attempts on Rei's life, the paucity of information regarding Deucado) that allowed OMCOM to deduce that MASAL was still alive and behind it all.
Once he had done that, all he had to do was give Rome and Rei a little nudge every so often and they would eventually find the evil computer and destroy him. Do computers have souls? Did MASAL die or just cease to exist? You will find out in the upcoming novel The Milk Run as soon as I can get it out there.
Entry 2-171 (extra): June 15, 2014
Happy Father’s Day
To all the real fathers, my Dad Ray, my Uncle Bill, my brother Ronnie, Denise's father Dan, my cousins Jon and David and to Donald, a very Happy Father's Day.
To all the Vuduri fathers, now and in the future: Edward (Rei Bierak's father - now long dead), Rei himself, Aason (some day, you'll see) and Fridone, Happy Father's Day as well.
Mike
Entry 2-172: June 16, 2014
Why do the Stareaters make the Vuduri pass out?
One of the pivotal scenes in Rome's Revolution was the sudden appearance of a Stareater just as Rome and Rei and the entire crew of Skyler Base was about to leave. The Stareater caused all the mind-connected Vuduri to pass out. Here is their first encounter:
“Iprogeti,” Rome said. “I masmis e fica.”
“And Rei, good luck to you too,” Ursay said.
“Thank you,” Rei replied.
Ursay looked to his left and said, “We will await your…”
Just then, Ursay grabbed his head, covered his eyes and exhaled sharply. Rei and Rome watched in horrified fascination as he threw his head back and forth, thrashing about as if he was trying to shake something loose. Suddenly, he slumped forward and his head came to rest on top of the video port, obscuring the camera’s field of vision.
“OMCOM, what’s happening,” Rei shouted.
Through the grille, OMCOM replied, “I do not know.”
The blurred image which was the side of Ursay’s head did not change. They could hear his labored breathing, but there was no other movement on the screen.
What is the mechanism by which the mere presence of a Stareater causes a Vuduri to lose consciousness?
The answer lies in their PPT generators. The Stareaters have a very important job to do so they have to travel between star systems at the speed of light or even faster. You will recall there was an inverse relationship between the size of a PPT tunnel and the distance it traversed. It has to do with how the negative energy of the Casimir Pumps is distributed.
Well, the Stareaters changed that equation. They are equipped with super-powerful PPT generators that are so strong, not only can they creat
e a gigantic PPT tunnel, but they can also make it deep enough so that even the largest Stareaters can travel at an effective average velocity of no less than 1/2 c. The smaller ones can travel even faster.
So that is the answer. The Stareaters are pumping out so much gravitic energy in the very same bands that the Vuduri use to connect minds. That much radiation simply swamps their senses and causes them to pass out. We know this because OMCOM placed a T-suppressor on Rome and she reawakened during the climactic "People of Earth" scene right at the end of the book. The T-suppressor negates gravitic energy and thus Rome was able regain consciousness.
Entry 2-173: June 17, 2014
Alternate Beginnings: Rome is pregnant (1)
When I first started out writing Rome's Revolution, I actually called it VIRUS 5. I eventually wrote Book 2 and called it VIRUS 5: Tau Ceti and right on its heels came VIRUS 5: Earth. But as has been documented here extensively, I had to crush the three books down to a single, full-length novel. A lot of things got excised to cut it down. This particular vignette was the original beginning of Book 2. It's a sweet little opening that nobody ever got to see. But now you do and here it is: