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Aliens: Bythians
'FUTURE SEX: Can We Recover From Our Addiction To Monogamy?' by Stephen Davis, with channellings by Lyssa Royal If I was reviewing this book, I'd like to be able to say something like "I found it interesting/intriguing/fascinating/involving/some other word ending in `-ing'..." but it was about as involving and interesting as leeching files at 300 baud. It purports to be 'channellings' by several entities from nearby solar systems, on the subject of sex in their civilisations. At first, these discussions were a hoot; the author asks certain questions of each species, the most memorable of these being 'do you have kissing?', inevitably followed by 'with tongues?'... after three or four of them, it became less interesting - absorbing the details of each new society - and overall, it had a definite air of the Shirley McLaine School of Windchimes. Not that I'm knocking Channelling. Last night I had nine cups of very strong instant coffee and found that I, too, could channel interstellar consciousnesses. I decided to follow Stephen Davis' lead and ask them the kind of questions he was asking them.
Chapter Eight: BYTHE I found myself in contact with this entity, a strong-willed, direct and forceful mind in some respects; and yet, curiously vague in others. For example, when asked for a name or tag by which I could refer to him (I did manage to establish that he was male!), he couldn't quite grasp the concept. We decided, arbitrarily, to call him 'Fenderson'. He lives on board a huge interstellar cruiser with hundreds of other, similar beings; when I channelled this, the ship was in orbit around a gas giant. We couldn't establish which particular planet it was, but we did conclude it wasn't in our solar system. He said his race knew of ours and had visited us about two hundred years ago, but his 'manager', or 'boss' didn't think we 'merited further attention' yet. Fenderson, can you tell us what you do? I am one of the... managers, would be the best word -of the craft on which I live with seven hundred and twenty-five other Bythians and asorted other races. The ship is so large that it cannot be run by any one entity, and yet it is not large enough to merit the attention of a NAPAISub. NAPAISub? Our Dominion is overseen by a machine, an artificial intelligence which delegates many lesser functions to similar, smaller machines. Each of these sub-machines manages the affairs of a single world in the Dominion. ll of them are linked together. How many worlds are members of the Dominion? All of them. Even ours? Even yours. Why is it, then, that you haven't visited us? (pause) We have. When was this? (pause) By your calendar, around the year 1720. Your civilisation had not made any significant use of natural resources, and so it was decided that you were no threat. If we are part of your Dominion, could we ask you to visit again and perhaps give us knowledge, some advanced technology that could help us overcome the problems we currently face? It is not our 'habit' to 'give away' technology. On the contrary, we limit it, to protect young species from harming themselves, or other species. Your civilisation is surviving, even prospering. We will intercede again when you appear to be about to break the Law. Law? Can you be more specific? Subject races are not allowed to develop artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, energy-field matrices, or energy-conversion technology that works with more than fifteen percent efficiency. But you use artificial intelligence. Indeed, if I am correct in my understanding, your Dominion depends on it. WE are allowed to. YOU are not. Is that really fair? (pause) Would you allow the young of your species to possess loaded weapons, weapons that would allow the careless to easily injure each other? How would you feel, seeing children of six, playing 'catch' with a stick of gelignite? The Law exists to protect living beings, to ensure that peace reigns throughout the Dominion. It may sound trite, but the Law is for your own good. We exist to enforce the Law. You've said previously that your species was 'created'... Yes. Who made you? Myself specifically, or as a race? Well, both. I was personally created by my father. We, as a race, were created by NAPAI, the artificial intelligence that rules the Dominion. Being an 'artificial' intelligence, I surmise that NAPAI must have been created; so who made NAPAI? That information is not available. Do you mean, you don't know? No. You DO know, but you can't tell me? Yes. Okay. Uh, how was your race 'made'? NAPAI designed us. The first Bythians were grown in vats. They were educated by NAPAI, allowed to grow to maturity and to breed. Were there females and males? No. Our species consists entirely of males. How do you breed? We implant our young in other species. With their consent? (pause) I don't know. To my knowledge, we have never asked it. So, you're a bit like that creature in the 'Alien' films? With a degree more intelligence, yes. That's scary. Only if you have cause to oppose us. We rarely resort to biting other sentients' heads off. When we were created, a 'sister' species was made - to be receptacles for our young - but we are capable of utilising any warm-blooded being for reproductive purposes. Can you tell us why your species was created? To enforce the Law. As one of your singers put it, we are 'the Daleks of God'. NAPAI is the mind, and we are the hands. and, occasionally, fists. What do you look like? I stand approximately two metres tall, somewhat thin by your standards, light grey skin, two arms, two legs, four fingers and two thumbs on each hand. My head is flat - like a fin - and axe-shaped. I have two large segmented eyes on either side of my head, giving close to three hundred and sixty degrees of peripheral vision. I have two small sound-receptor spaces just behind my eyes. The front of my head has four vents which allow intake of air and nutrients. That would make kissing difficult, wouldn't it? (pause) Kissing? Kissing... well, members of my species derive pleasure from pressing our mouths together. (pause) Pleasure being sensations which encourage repetition of the action which provides them? That's one way of putting it. You sound as if you are saying that your race doesn't experience pleasure. We derive satisfaction from attaining goals, from completing projects within specified limits, from solving tactical problems. I am aware that other races become entangled in emotional involvements, ideas like love, patriotism, territorial imperatives and the like. I know of a race that feels 'love' for every living thing they encounter. NAPAI believes that such ideas would prevent us from performing our duties adequately. So, you don't get married? No. You don't fall in love? No. It sounds like your race has a pretty raw deal. At least we know why we were created. |
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