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Alpha Prime, MY 2274
The Consciousness Chancellery watched Caretaker H’minee writhe in pain. Standard methods of data extraction had been unsuccessful and so the Consciousness had decided to forcibly implant nodes throughout the Progenitor’s brain that controlled higher cognitive functions to remove the needed information. Specifically, more data were required to understand alien psychology, and more importantly the details of the Progenitor civilization. It was quite clear that Chiron was not the home planet of these aliens, and if they existed on other planets then that, too, would be a threat to humanity. From the very moment of contact they had been hostile to humans, and to each other. Humanity, for all its flaws and petty wars, could learn to cooperate: not so the aliens.
This decision had been difficult. Chancellor Rebecca Whinn had objected on moral grounds, as had the only other Full Human on the Chancellery, Markus Harkins. Apparently, being partially connected to the Consciousness as a Cyborg or fully immersed like full members of the Consciousness muted such moral objections, evidence of progressive transfer of emotive functions of the human brain that were sacrificed to accommodate the Prime Function. None of the Consciousness thought nodes objected, although a few had technical qualms, and one had voiced the opinion that the effort was useless and that only extermination was expedient.
At this time the last of the nodes were being implanted. Minute droplets of light pink alien blood trickled down the sides of H’minee’s carapace, evidence of her violent struggle. Even the finely honed Cybernetic implantation regime could not deal with the instinctive and almost subconscious resistance that the alien was demonstrating. Some of the newer Consciousness implants simply shut down after a brief bioelectrical assault, and others were terminated by being encapsulated by reflexive scar tissue. Evidently the alien’s physiology was adept at combating intrusive biomechanical penetration. This spoke of an advanced and engineered genetic code, and that got the Consciousness Chancellery’s undivided attention. Thought nodes were buzzing as they tried to assimilate the implications.
H’minee was doomed, of course. Even if her sedated mind wasn’t aware of it, her destiny was to become a part of the Consciousness as an encapsulated node, a living computer from whom data could be extracted, or emplaced.
The Consciousness Chancellery watched Caretaker H’minee writhe in pain. Standard methods of data extraction had been unsuccessful and so the Consciousness had decided to forcibly implant nodes throughout the Progenitor’s brain that controlled higher cognitive functions to remove the needed information. Specifically, more data were required to understand alien psychology, and more importantly the details of the Progenitor civilization. It was quite clear that Chiron was not the home planet of these aliens, and if they existed on other planets then that, too, would be a threat to humanity. From the very moment of contact they had been hostile to humans, and to each other. Humanity, for all its flaws and petty wars, could learn to cooperate: not so the aliens.
This decision had been difficult. Chancellor Rebecca Whinn had objected on moral grounds, as had the only other Full Human on the Chancellery, Markus Harkins. Apparently, being partially connected to the Consciousness as a Cyborg or fully immersed like full members of the Consciousness muted such moral objections, evidence of progressive transfer of emotive functions of the human brain that were sacrificed to accommodate the Prime Function. None of the Consciousness thought nodes objected, although a few had technical qualms, and one had voiced the opinion that the effort was useless and that only extermination was expedient.
At this time the last of the nodes were being implanted. Minute droplets of light pink alien blood trickled down the sides of H’minee’s carapace, evidence of her violent struggle. Even the finely honed Cybernetic implantation regime could not deal with the instinctive and almost subconscious resistance that the alien was demonstrating. Some of the newer Consciousness implants simply shut down after a brief bioelectrical assault, and others were terminated by being encapsulated by reflexive scar tissue. Evidently the alien’s physiology was adept at combating intrusive biomechanical penetration. This spoke of an advanced and engineered genetic code, and that got the Consciousness Chancellery’s undivided attention. Thought nodes were buzzing as they tried to assimilate the implications.
H’minee was doomed, of course. Even if her sedated mind wasn’t aware of it, her destiny was to become a part of the Consciousness as an encapsulated node, a living computer from whom data could be extracted, or emplaced.
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