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The Human Experience: Chapter 2 Released

 
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 18, 2014 9:26 am    Post subject: The Human Experience: Chapter 2 Released Reply with quote

Strong language present


Excerpt from “Earth's Allies: History and Culture of the Major Alien Races”
by Dr. Maribelle Fredricks:


Despite the long-standing and productive collaboration between our peoples, both political and cultural, many Humans remain uncomfortable interacting with the Eos (Their human name is derived from our mythology, their name for themselves would take up about a paragraph in human language). Despite many differing explanations offered for this problem, it's clear to the observant that the discomfort arises mainly from the difference in reproductive practices.

It's common knowledge that only one out of every thousand Eos reproduce, but what is not commonly known is why. Eos, despite their remarkable surface resemblance to the human race (they differ mostly in hue, looking somewhat pale and being on average a bit shorter), Differ greatly in their biology. One Eos couple is capable of producing hundreds of children in the space of about five earth years. This renders it impractical for every Eos to parent children. Humans typically accept the logic of this situation, but secretly lament the deprivation they believe most of our allies must feel.

However, this is highly offensive to most Eos. One of their most fascinating traits is their common lack of sexual impulses. The majority of the Eos are, as we would say, Asexual; although they do not have an equivalent term, since it is for most their natural state of being. Most are also Aromatinc, meaning that they are incapable of romantic feelings. Many Humans have trouble accepting this, and flatly reject it as impossible. This has lead to many embarrassing criticisms of the Eos culture from parties unhappy with their “coldness” or “forced sterility”. Most Eos receive this criticism much like an artist would receive and assumption of alcoholism or promiscuity. The criticism displays much ignorance and lack of imagination; fortunately, very few people involved in diplomatic relations with the Eos espouse these erroneous beliefs.

The fact is that Eos culture is typically very affirming and warm. They from strong community and filial bonds, and most pursue a fairly hedonistic lifestyle. Not that they are incapable of serious thought or self-sacrifice, as any human privileged to serve with the Eos in the U.E.S.I.* can attest."


*Universal Exploration and Scientific Initiative


“Listen up!”

The crowded transport suddenly fell silent as Dr. Harris barked out his orders. He'd left the military years ago, and for all accounts was a respected physicist, but the aura of Captain had never fully left him. The buzz cut and icy blue eyes contributed to his militaristic bearing, leading all of the students to snap to attention as if preparing for battle.

“In about five minutes, we'll be docking at the Jupiter space station. For many of you, this will be the first time you've met an Eos, or any alien, for that matter. I expect you all to behave yourselves and be respectful of their culture. I don't want to see any evangelizing or flirting or stupid questions about their body temperature. And if any of you even mention the Human Supremacy movement, I will personally throw you out the airlock.”

There was some nervous laughter at the back of the transport. Dr. Harris glared at the offending party, who stopped and turned a deep crimson.

“I also don't want to see any showboating. Remember that all of you are still students, and that you are applying to the initiative. Decisions won't be in until next year, and you comportment matters just as much as your academic accomplishments, so don't get ahead of yourselves and start picking out names for your own ship.”

The intercom on the wall crackled and a robotic voice slithered out:

Docking protocols commencing, please sit an fasten your seat belts.”

“You herd the android.” Dr. Harris muttered, “Hop to it.”

The students quickly scrambled to their seats and strapped themselves in.

“Oh, one more thing,” Dr. Harris stated, his face softening at last into a smile. “Do try to have fun, you are in fucking outer space for god's sake.”

The Students laughed, and the jets kicked in as the transport reached it's destination. A few moments later, Dr. Harris lead the students down the loading ramp and into the hanger. A young Eos man was waiting for them at the landing.

“Doctor Captain Harris!” He exclaimed, and to the student's shock threw his arms around the old man in an a bear hug. They tensed, expecting an outburst of anger at the familiarity, but Dr. Harris just laughed and slapped the man on the back.

“Onna, how are you my friend?”

“Wonderful! We've expanded the living quarters 30% to make room for the Kerns; so happy they've signed the treaty by the way, we're throwing a party for them when they arrive. And our terraforming project has hit a few bumps, but we have new addition to the team thats-”

“One thing as a time, Onna,” Dr. Harris laughed “We'll be here all day.”

“Oh! Sorry.” Onna exclaimed, blushing slightly. “I forgot I was speaking English, it takes so long to say anything in English.”

“We can discuss xeno-linguistics later. For now, we-”

“Yes!” Onna interrupted, and clapped his hands together. “The delightful new students!” He turned towards the crowd and waved enthusiastically. “Hello! I'm so happy to meet all of you; tell me everything about yourselves!”

“Later, Onna, they can't do that in two words like you.”

“Of course. Sorry students, I get carried away when I meet knew people. But, Doctor Captain Harris, you said there was one in particular you wanted me to know?”

“Yes, I did.” Dr. Harris hesitated slightly. He never would have admitted it, but he'd put off this decision till the last moment. There were two students who were significantly more qualified than their peers, but only one could fill Onna's request for for his personal team. He pulled out his clipboard, feigning to not remember the name. In reality, he knew both of them were standing in the front row.

There was Lillian Verens, an accomplished linguist with the remarkable ability to read the Eos language. She had an impeccable academic record, a long list of extra-curricular contributions, and glowing recommendations from her professors. The only thing that gave the Initiative pause, was the fact that her grandparents were known members of the Human Supremacy movement. Lillian was adamant about her distance from the group, and had no record of any crime, but the movement had used sleeper agents before, and this made the Initiative nervous.

Next, there was David Chamberlain. He'd had patents on revolutionary computer technology even before he'd enrolled. He'd restructured his university's entire network, making it twice as efficient and completely secure from hacking. No one was exactly sure how he'd done it, even his professors didn't always know what he was talking about. The only issue was his history with mental health. He'd tried to harm himself twice in the past three years, and he'd refused medical help until he'd been told doing so would exclude him from the Initiative. He was begrudgingly seeing a therapist at the moment, but his progress was ambiguous at best.

Dr. Harris glanced at the two students, who stared back at him innocently. Neither of them had been told that they were a candidate for Onna's a team, an almost guarantee of a sparkling career with the Initiative.

“Yes,” he said at last, clearing his throat, “Onna, I'd like you to meet one of our most promising students:”

(Here's your first choice folks, select your hero!)


Last edited by Pyrrhic on Thu Mar 13, 2014 9:14 pm; edited 2 times in total
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PostPosted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 5:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey Pyrrhic! Love what you have started so far. You've got the beginnings of a very expansive story universe - kudos there. And what characters we've been introduced to so far are very interesting. Choosing the hero/heroine is a toughie (I kind of want both to have their time, haha), but a decision must be made *hovers over the poll selections for hours*

Can't wait to read more Very Happy
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PostPosted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 6:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the comment. If I don't have more votes in a week, I'll close it and move forward.

Question: I'm still trying to figure out the Eos; does Onna seem too childish?
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 4:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hm...to me it seems like two sides of the same coin.

Yes because he's speaking in a language that is different to him, interacting with beings that are different from him, so he's very excitable. He's like a child with a new toy if you will.

But no, because that's not necessarily a bad thing. It just means he's eager for the interaction. Plus his native language is different - he can express the lengthy speech he just made with a few syllables it seems like - so he's going to seem giddy and overly talkative and just plain hyperactive, haha.

In sum, I think he's fine. Plus I just figured that was part of his personality. A little quirk never hurt.
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PostPosted: Thu Feb 27, 2014 8:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

poll closed, Lillian it is!
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 9:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Excerpt from “Earth's Allies: History and Culture of the Major Alien Races”
by Dr. Maribelle Fredricks
:


“The language of the Eos is one of the most complex and difficult in the known universe. Part of the complexity stems from the composition of Eos vocal chords. For a full biological explanation, please consult the many works written by Dr. Goldberg and and Hn. Exlin*. For the purposes of this book, it suffices to state that the Eos voice is more nuanced than Humanly possible, and their gramatical structure reflects this. The meaning of words depends on inflection, volume, pitch, and degree of reverberation after the word is spoken**. Needless to say, humans cannot hear most of these nuances, much less reproduce them vocally. Some humans have achieved a rough understanding of their written language through diligent study, but it's proven much more practical for Eos to either learn human language (which is a simple matter for them), or to use technological assistance.

The most striking result of their complex language is it's efficiency. It's possible for an Eos to communicate literal volumes of information in a few syllables. This is a possible contributing factor to their open and friendly culture, as well as their reputation for being “chatty” in their non-native languages. But like all cultural norms, this is a generalization, not an inherent trait. Like any sentient species, the Eos contain a range of personality types; no species could survive otherwise, regardless of social expectations.

*Hn: Abbreviation of “Honored”, the Eos term for an individual with significant academic, artistic, or social achievement.
**There are other factors, but these are what disqualify humans from producing it.


“So happy to meet you, miss Lillian!” Onna exclaimed, and pumped Lillian's hand vigorously. He squeezed a little too hard, indicating that it wasn't a form of greeting he was used to.

“Thank you, Hn. Onna, I'm-” She glanced quickly at Dr. Harris, “A bit confused, honestly.”

They were now alone on the platform, the other students having been dismissed to their quarters. Dr. Harris looked her directly in the eye and almost smiled, which was the closest he ever came to saluting a civilian.

“Onna put in a request for an addition to his team. He's working on a highly experimental project. Most of the brass don't even know about it yet, and he wants all the bugs worked out of the plan before delegating it to the research teams.”

Lillian raised an eyebrow.

You will be delegating the project? Then you are-”

“The director of the initiative? Yes. Of course.” Onna replied, “I hear you are one of the best linguists in Heritage University's doctoral program?”

Lillian nodded, “Which makes me one of the best in the world.” She said calmly, without flare or embarrassment.

“I back her abilities without reservation.” Dr. Harris added. “Miss Varens has never disappointed us.”

“Wonderful!” Onna exclaimed, and embraced her as warmly as he had Dr. Harris earlier. Lillian shot Dr. Harris an inquiring look over Onna's shoulder; he just smiled and shook his head.

“Welcome to the team.” Onna continued after releasing her. “I can't wait to show you our lab. You're going to love the cascading collaboration system. I think one of your other students actually designed it.”

“David Chamberlain?” Lillian said, surprised. “Yes, he's a friend of mine. You're really using his computer program for this project?”

“It's the best for what we hope to do. Come with me and I'll show you. Dr. Captain Harris I will see you at the board meeting?”

“Of course, Onna, go on now.”

Onna guided Lillian through a series of corridors and brightly lit rooms filled with people from all over the known universe. He chatted away about the team she'd be working with, who were all apparently the most delightful people in the galaxy. He chatted a bit about the scientists, but didn't actually say what the project was. Lillian tried to piece it together, but all she could tell was that it required several biologists, computer experts, mathematicians, Engineers, one kindergarten teacher, and herself.

“Of course, you won't work closely with all of them.” Onna was saying. “Since this is mostly a preliminary endeavor, and not yet an actual project, you'll spend most of your time with one of our computer experts. You'll be testing the algorithms and trouble shooting, as well as giving feedback to the engineers.”

“That's fascinating, but what is the-”

“And don't worry about how this will reflect on your candidacy for a permanent position here. This is all wildly experimental, so if it fails, the very worst that can happen is a request for an additional project from you before making a decision. Of course, a success would jump your career forward considerably, you may even be promised a spot on one of our future exploration vessels. Fascinating project, that, I'll have to tell you about it sometime.”

“I'd love to hear that, but the project itself-”

“Ah! Here we are!”

Onna waved his hand in front of a red colored wall panel, causing the door to slide open. The room it revealed was furnished differently than the rest of the station. The walls were a pleasant blue, instead of the stark white present everywhere. There were the standard desks and workstations in the middle of the room, but there was also a small kitchen and a bathroom tucked into opposite corners. Furthermore a couch and set of chairs were arranged in a cozy fashion in front of the back wall, which contained a large window looking directly out into deep space. The whole room was a strange mixture of laboratory and home.

“Hmm.” Onna murmured. “It looks like Col isn't here at the moment. He must be at the cafeteria. No matter, you can meet him later.”

Lillian knew enough about the Eos language to know that the very subtle, but present drop in Onna's tone when he spoke about Col meant something. What, she didn't know, but she made a mental note to observe her colleague carefully.

“Is he the computer expert?”

“What? Oh, yes. A very good one, very diligent. He definitely earned his place here. I can tell you that.”

Lillian nearly asked why that would be a question, but something about the distraction in the typically exuberant Onna made her rethink it. After a brief pause, Onna snapped back to his usual self.

“Well! I'll leave you to get the feel of the place. We've tried to make it comfortable, since the work will require extra time. Please let me know if anything can be improved to make your days here more pleasant, and do drop by my office sometime, I love getting to know the new recruits.”

After another awkward hug, Onna traipsed off to his own business. Lillian stood still for a moment, then a smile broke out over her face. She sat down at the desk, and waved her hand over a round metallic object. It whirred quietly, and a holographic projection of a white screen blinked on in front of her face.

“Welcome to the U.T. Interface, would you like a tour?” The pre-recorded voice played.

“U.T.?” Lillian muttered, “What the hell is that?”

Lillian dismissed the computer aide, and instead poked around, looking for information on the project. She found a small file marked “U.T. Research Platform” coupled with a series of arrows in a semi-circle. Lillian realized that the arrows were a gesture direction, to open whatever it was. She waved her hand over the icon, than flipped her hand towards herself like the arrows indicated.

“Woa!” She said out loud, and jumped to her feet. The room around her had almost disappeared. She was surrounded by life size charts: some of brains from several species, with specific corresponding areas highlighted, others were blueprints of complicated machines, and more were long pages of mathematical equations. A pre-recording of the same sentence in several human languages and Eos cycled continuously, and a series of disembodied notes floated in the foreground, connected to their subjects like balloons.

Lillian rubbed her temples slightly. “What am I even looking at?” she said to herself.

In response to her voice, the charts sorted and stacked themselves in front of her, the notes and recorded voices vanished, and headings appeared above the files:

“Comparative cognitive structures” “language acquisition statistics” “Prototype blueprints and research” “Risk assessments” “Algorithms” “Cultural accuracy” “Test runs” and “Team communication frequencies”

Lillian grinned from ear to ear.

“David, you mad genius.” she said to herself.

“Who are you talking to?”

Lillian jumped and whirled around. An Eos man was standing behind her, leveling a suspicious stare at her.

“Just myself. The program took me by surprise. Are you Col?”

“Yes.” he said simply, and waved his hand, dismissing the holographic show.

He was tall for an Eos, and darker than most of them, making him look eerily human, although he was still clearly and Eos. He had dark circles under his eyes, his hair was ruffled, and his cloths were unkempt. He didn't look the part of a respected scientist, as he would have to be to get aboard. The Eos didn't utilize the student program.

“I'm Lillian Varens, I've just been assigned here”

She said, and extended her hand, bracing herself for another overflow of affection. But instead, Col looked at her hand like it was a live shark.

“I um, don't really do that.” he said, pointing at her hand.

“Oh,” Lillian responded calmly, “I see.”

“I apologize for my appearance,” he said, yawning, “I was sleeping on the couch. I assume you're another computer programer?”

“No, I'm a linguist.”

Col looked at her more closely. “I was told we were adding a whole team of philologists. You're the only one Onna sent?”

Lillian shrugged “To my knowledge yes.”

“Why just you instead of a whole division?”

“Probably because I'm more knowledgeable than a whole division put together.” once again, Lillian spoke matter-of-factually, with no bravado or shame.

Col narrowed his eyes slightly. He crossed the room to his desk, opened a drawer, and pulled out two sheets of paper. He walked back over to Lillian and handed her the first sheet.

“Read it.” he said simply.

Lillian took the paper and scanned it. It was the same sentence in twelve different languages. Six of them human, the other six from other races.

“They all say 'There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dremt of in your philosophy.”

Col made a dismissive gesture with his hand. “you could have guessed from the human languages and-”

“Although.” Lillian interrupted, “The Kernish sentence doesn't include a sentence stop, their way of denoting sarcasm. And the Gopple phrase inverts the correct placing of the subject and object, a common insult to the intelligence of one's conversational partner. The two languages here are different dialects of Nathsolm, and they only make quotations when they feel trapped and unable to articulate their true feelings. This one is a language invented by Hn. Exlin, which he used to code his personal journal full of criticism for the human race, and the last one is Ustal, who consider poetry stilted and inexpressive. Furthermore, the fact that each language is placed in alternation to the human language suggests who ever complied these did so not out of study, but out of a desire to criticize human culture, implying that we have a simplistic and niavly optimistic attitude regarding the nature of the universe.”

Col listened without changing the expression on his face. “Okay.” He said when Lillian had finished, took the page from her, and handed her the second. Lillian glanced at it and smiled.

“This is actually my favorite piece in your language.”

Col harrumphed. “You're bluffing.”

“Am I? It's what humans would call a novel, a very long and complex one too. It's love story about Hara and Ven. It charts the progress of their relationship from children to husband and wife. I'm surprised you have a copy, romances are considered vulgar in Eos culture.”

Col snatched the page away and stuffed it back into his desk. He then faced Lillian and crossed his arms.

“Alright,” he said, “Maybe you're not completely terrible.”


Later, Lillian found David in the cafeteria and dragged him off to a corner.

“You're never going to guess what happened today!” She whispered

David poked at his food, an indeterminate blob, then put his fork down with a squeamish expression.

“You're not actually going to make me guess, are you? I'm exhausted from the incessant cheer and space sickness.”

Lillian frowned. “Space sickness isn't a thing. You're just hungover.”

“I am not! I've been sober for six moths, you know that.”

“Five.”

“It's six.”

“Five months and one week.”

“Fine, five months.” David sighed. “I'm not drinking, Lillian; I swear.”

“And you're keeping your appointment with the counselor here?”

“Yes, God! You're not my mom you know.”

“Yeah, I'm your friend, and you asked me to do this, remember?”

David dropped his head and studied his food. “Yeah, I do.”

An awkward silence ensued. Lillian sipped her coffee; David spread his food around his plate. At length, he spoke up:

“So, what was it that happened? You're clearly happy about it, so I assume it wasn't another 'can-we-trust-you-really' thing?”

“No. They actually put me on some crazy top secret pet-project the director has going.”

David's eyebrows went up.

“Really?” He said, “It's got to be language related if they wanted you.”

“It is!” Lillian exclaimed, “It took me forever to find out what it was, I had to ask Col, it was embarrassing.”

“Who's Col?”

“Oh, computer guy, you'd like him. Pretty standoffish for an Eos. We're sharing a lab.”

“Isn't dropping the “honored” prefix kind of familiar after 30 minutes?”

“I'm not sure if he is one, there's something up with his situation here.”

David chuckled. “Mysterious co-workers, secret projects, sounds like a paperback novel you'd take to the beach.”

“Yes, yes, it's all fascinating, can we stay on topic for 10 seconds?”

“Sure, go ahead. What's the project?”

Lillian paused for dramatic effect. “It's only in the planning stage, we're not sure if it's possible yet,” she said, almost whispering, “But Onna's sure it is, and after seeing the research, I'm pretty sure it might be.”

“Will you tell me what it is already?”

A gleeful smile spread over Lillian's face, and she grabbed her friend's arm, giving it a little shake. “David, Onna wants me to help design a universal translator!”

David dropped his fork. “A what?! You mean, an actual translator; like, the thing in sci-fi that dissects unknown languages after a few sentences?”

“Yes! And that's not the best part. Guess what super genius’s program they are using to organize the project?”

“Not mine?”

“Yep! Yours.” Lillian said, and jabbed David playfully in the arm. “How's it feel to be a part of the future?”

“But, but,” David stammered, “It's nothing interesting, it's just a glorified index card box.”

“Sure,” Lillian snorted, “They're just index cards that organize, cross-reference, and update themselves, and tailor their presentation to the user without them having to do any actual programing. Not to mention the interactive features, the virtual lab, the stunning security system...”

“Okay, okay,” David said, his face turning red, “You should be my agent.”

He lapsed into a silence, and began drumming his fingers on the table. Lillian narrowed her eyes slightly.

“What is it, David?” she said.

“Huh, nothing!”

“It's not nothing, you're making that face.”

“I'm not making a face, what face? Not that I'm making one, because I'm not. What are you talking about?”

“You're making the: 'I-want-something-I-know-I-shouldn't-ask-for' face. What is it?”

David sighed. “Okay. It's just that, this program was my senior project. I haven't had a chance to see it in action yet. I mean a real, practical situation. I don't suppose you could, you now, sneak me into the lab so I could take a peak? Just so I can make sure it's working properly?”

Lillian hesitated. “Well...”

(You're turn; what does Lillian do?”
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