Year 4945, Day 165, early morningAt home, Phlyka was awoken by a hard blow in the face. There was an explosion of pain in her nose and cheeks. Her duvet was ripped away and dozens of fists and sticks rained down an unexplained punishment. She could hardly breathe as her naked flesh was turned into a mass of bruises. She tried to move but hands held her wrists and ankles. The beating went on for two minutes. Her body jerked and twisted but to no avail. She thought that she was going to die. As her belly was struck again and again, she lost control of her spasming muscles and pissed and crapped the bed. She vomited a little blood and bile too. Her breasts were flattened and her nipples were both torn, causing blood to splatter. Her eyes were battered and swelled up, making it hard to see anything. A few teeth and bones felt as if they’d been cracked. The initial attack seemed long but it was soon over. When she tried to speak, someone shut her mouth with a big patch of sticky tape. She was lifted from her bed and her wrists were handcuffed behind her back. She was marched down the hall by a group of people, then down the stairs, out of her house and across the street. She could hardly walk. Her legs weren’t working properly after so many vicious hits. They held her up and dragged her along, scraping her feet on the road. She was taken into another house. For a minute, she didn’t know which one. The dawn breeze blew chill across her new injuries. She shook with sudden cold and shock. They took her downstairs, her feet banging on each step down. In the basement, the floor was tiled and wet. It was the communal shower room. This was Steits and Mheyn’s house. Phlyka’s terrified cries were muffled by her gag. The Brothers and Sisters had turned against her. She felt doomed and totally alone.
“You’re so DIRTY this morning, Phlyka!” spat a woman, possibly Yavro. “We’ll have to clean you up really well!” They unlocked one of her wrists, laid her on the cold floor and cuffed her to a metal bench leg. More handcuffs were used to secure her other wrist and ankles to other metal fixtures. (These were her own handcuffs turned against her. It was a bitter insult.) Then, as she lay splayed out, several icy shower jets were trained on her, full blast. This induced tremendous pain and discomfort over most of her body. One jet was directed into her face, making her feel like she was going to drown. Several hard boots slammed repeatedly into her sides, making the experience a miasma of agony. She wriggled and turned, trying vainly to reduce her torment. Surely no one could save her now. They must’ve neutralised Scintos already. Hope was fading. The drugs had failed. She was being smashed to pieces by her own community. After five minutes, they turned off the water, unlocked her and hoisted her up. She’d survived ... barely.
“That’s mostly done but we should make sure,” said Evayla. “Bring the couch.” A syba-trohn couch was brought and Phlyka was laid over it like a man, face down. Her wrists and ankles were locked to the couch legs. Swiftly, a showerhead was rammed deep into her rectum and held there. The cold water was turned on again. It flooded through her lower intestines and also spurted onto the floor. Phlyka could feel her belly fill with freezing fluid, reducing her core body temperature. She struggled madly as she was bloated out with water but there was no escape. A few people hit her hard with sticks. Her ears were targeted with punches and kicks. A minute later, the water was turned off and her intestines were drained messily onto the floor, assisted by someone squeezing her belly hard. Sporadic beating continued as others hosed away the effluent.
“OK, now for the marking,” said Divelj. “I’ll go first.” She produced a razor blade and started carving lines into Phlyka’s back. The sharper pain made Phlyka struggle more.
“Don’t do that, Phlyka,” said Divelj, pinching Phlyka’s blackening cheeks hard between her fingers. “You’ll only make it worse.” Phlyka knew she was right. She had to stay still or else her skin would be ripped off by a stray blade. Divelj carried on carving little lines. She was writing something. She did it quickly. Many others were waiting. Phlyka could only clench her teeth and try to bear the pain. One by one, they took the blade and made their mark on Phlyka. Most of them said nothing, not wanting to waste words on her beyond what they were carving. Some of them spat on her and rubbed it in. One angry woman pulled Phlyka’s head upwards and sliced her mark deeply into Phlyka’s forehead.
“Please don’t make me do this!” begged Raquaim as he was brought forward and given the blade. He sounded like he’d been terrorised and broken by the others. The same had probably been done to other youngsters, given that no one else was trying to defend Phlyka.
“We can give you the same treatment, son,” said Tavolas. “Anyone who sides with a first class traitor is a traitor himself. That goes for EVERYONE!” Fearing for his life, Raquaim scored shapes on Phlyka’s upper arm. Phlyka wept bitterly through her purple, swollen eyes. How was she a traitor? She hadn’t done anything wrong. This had to be an awful, deadly mistake. Several minutes later, everyone in the group had taken their turn. Phlyka was dripping blood from most of her body, having been scarred all over. They’d left her feet alone, though. She was hosed down again with ice water but more blood followed. They unlocked her from the couch and pulled her upright once more. All the handcuffs were removed except one pair, which was used to secure her hands behind her back. She was taken outside again and put into a twam. She was driven for a few minutes, out to a country area. She bled all over the seat, feeling progressively weaker. She could hear motors behind the twam. The others were probably following her in their own vehicles. She guessed that she was going to her place of execution. Soon, she was pulled out of the twam. Small flaps of her sliced skin had stuck to the bloody seat and were now torn off. The vehicles behind arrived and stopped nearby. All the occupants emerged. Phlyka stood naked, mutilated, cuffed and drenched in blood. A man and woman were holding her by the arms to prevent escape. She couldn’t stop shivering. One of the men cut the swellings around her eyes. The blood and lymph drained out, reducing the swelling. Phlyka was able to see the 712 Brotherhood and Sisterhood gathered around. Even the younger children had been brought.
“Alright traitor,” said Mheyn. “This is your very last chance.”
“Tell her about her treachery,” advised Steits. “We all need to hear it, so we understand.”
“You were overheard discussing syba-trohning with Juhellin last night,” said Mheyn clearly. “Evayla and Dakylbu both heard you before dinner in the 659 cluster. You planned to do it next month. That’s your first class treachery. You intended to break the first rule of the Sisterhood: NO ADULTERY. In addition, you refused to march with us against the Transformers in Dinzledon. Over the years, your sympathy for the Transformers has been notable. There’ve been periods of confusion and wandering off, which have probably been cover stories for Transformer collaboration. That now works against you, since they’ve been revealed as highly duplicitous and damaging to our society. To show you, once and for all, that you’re one of us, we’ve all cut our names into your skin. As your Brothers and Sisters, we’re fully entitled to punish you as we see fit.”
“We’re giving you one way out,” said Steits. “You might’ve heard of the old ‘Trial by Pursuit’ practice? We’re going to revive it today. You’ll run from us. We’ll give you a two-minute head start. If Scintos touches you first, you live. If Juhellin touches you first, you go to his 658 cluster and they deal with you. If anyone else touches you first, you die. Am I clear?” Phlyka could only make incoherent, desperate, muffled noises.
“Off you go!” said Steits. “Xircev and Angavi will follow and adjudicate. Don’t touch them.” Xircev brought out a knife and poked Phlyka in the back. Phlyka winced and started jogging away down the nearest woodland track. There was no other option. Xircev and Angavi tailed her. She could see the area now that her vision had cleared. She knew it well. She saw a chance to save herself. She had to reach the cave.
“Is that two minutes?” asked Mheyn after two minutes. “Ah, yes it is. OK, release Scintos and Juhellin.” The two men were brought forward. They were also naked, as the Trial demanded. Their hands were cuffed behind their backs, to make them more controllable. Their mouths were gagged with tape, to prevent them from complaining and calling for help. Scintos had been beaten heavily to remind him to monitor his wife in future. Juhellin had been abducted from home earlier and beaten badly to warn him not to mess with the 712 group. They both knew what to do now. Scintos had to win Phlyka back. His life probably depended on it. Juhellin wanted Phlyka for himself, thinking that he might be killed if he failed. At the start of their run, Juhellin barged into Scintos without warning and knocked him down. As Scintos got up again, Juhellin charged ahead. Behind, most of the adults from 712 followed. They were the chasing group, the death-bringers: the ones to beat. Scintos found himself surrounded by the group, running for his wife. He wondered where she might be and made his best guess. He slowed down and allowed the group to pass. When they’d gone, he took a short cut through the woods on the right. Thorns, splinters and stones hurt his feet but he had to go on. Three minutes later, he reached the cave. Where was she? There were shouts in the distance. The group was closing in from a different direction. Perhaps they’d also considered the cave. Scintos hurried inside, trying not to slip on the wet, stony floor. It was only a small cave but it was still dark inside. Scintos staggered over to the narrow gap that they’d found years before. He squeezed his slim body through and then felt around with his legs and body. Soon, he found Phlyka lying on the floor. She seemed limp and exhausted. He turned around, knelt down and peeled off her gag with his cuffed hands.
“Scintos, you made it!” she gasped as her strength ebbed away. Scintos put his gag onto Phlyka’s hands. Slowly, she gained purchase and managed to peel it off.
“We’ve won!” he said. “Thank God that we think alike. Shall we leave here now? The nightmare’s over.” In the shadows, Xircev and Angavi were watching and listening. They both laughed quietly at Scintos’ last statement. They didn’t think that the nightmare was over. They still wanted to persecute the traitor. She’d lost her honour, in their eyes. She’d never be treated as an equal again. They didn’t have to spell it out. Being so close to them for nearly thirty years, Phlyka and Scintos could gauge their attitude purely by their tone of voice.
“I came in here ... knowing that Juhellin couldn’t reach me,” said Phlyka, her breathing laboured. “The gap’s too narrow for him ... but not for you. This way, I reaffirm ... my lifelong marriage to you.” Scintos knelt on the rough stone floor and kissed her fractured, swollen lips. Her face was too injured for her to reciprocate properly. However, she struggled to rise. As she did so, she realised something. If the Transformers were capable of manipulating people’s bodies and minds without their knowledge, maybe they’d done the same to her. That was why she’d had those confusing visions. That was why she’d been a fan of the Transformers. That was why she’d seen herself as a Chimera in her dream. That was why the Sisterhood and Brotherhood had turned against her so ruthlessly. They’d known instinctively that she was tainted, probably for life.
“Great tactic, traitor,” said Angavi. “You made sure you got hubby back and survived. However, you made us get our clothes dirty on cave muck, going through that gap. That was annoying. Now, let’s all get out of here. We have things to do.”
“Maybe YOU do,” said Phlyka. “Scintos, I wasn’t going to ... have relations with Juhellin. This was all a misunderstanding ... but it showed me one thing. I can’t live here ... anymore. It’s too brutal and I ... don’t belong. I can’t stand it. Sorry to everyone. Goodbye.” Without warning, she staggered into a gaping chasm at the far end of the small chamber. She fell thirty metres and smashed her head on the rocks below, dying instantly. Her body fell into a rushing underground stream and was swept into a deeper tunnel.”
“NO!” screamed Scintos running too late to the chasm.
“Oh look, the traitor’s taken herself out!” said Xircev. “That’s one less thing for us to worry about! It’s a shame that she can’t be our slave now, though. Think of the things we could’ve done to her!” Angavi laughed.
“I was going to shove a Transformer toy up her behind, since she loved Transformers so much,” said Angavi. “I would’ve used a nice, big, spiky one for maximum entertainment! She would’ve needed surgery to remove it.” Furious beyond words, Scintos charged over and head butted Angavi hard in the face. Then, he left the cave and went outside. Juhellin had just arrived at the cave entrance.
“It’s over,” said Scintos. “She’s killed herself. If I don’t get a new wife soon, I’ll die too.” Juhellin was stunned. He didn’t know what would happen to him now.
“Someone give me a ‘phone!” demanded Scintos. “Get these damned cuffs off me! Bring my clothes, you bunch of psychos! Tell the cave rescue team NOT TO BOTHER! You’ve KILLED MY WIFE!” The group had gathered around. The contest had gone wrong but they weren’t too worried. The main thing was that they were rid of the traitor. Angavi and Xircev followed Scintos out of the cave. Angavi took out a tissue to staunch her nose bleed. Xircev unlocked Scintos’ and Juhellin’s cuffs and then the whole group walked back to the vehicles, where they’d left their stuff.
“Wasn’t everyone supposed to be on anti-aggression drugs?” queried Scintos.
“We were,” replied Steits. “They did calm us down for a while but then we heard about Phlyka’s treachery and our rage erupted. Everyone came over to our side. Of course, we stopped taking the tablets straight away. Now we’re back to normal.”
“Ah, I feel much better!” said Mheyn. “It’s like lancing a boil.” She was insulting Phlyka! Scintos raised his fist and prepared to strike.
“I wouldn’t, if I were you!” warned Steits.
“Hit me and we’ll show you what a bad day’s really like,” added Mheyn. “I’d like that. Why not try it, little man? No one would miss a worthless cuckold!” Scintos saw her manic death stare and evil grin. He blanched. He realised that her inner demon had emerged. Transformer manipulation had coaxed it out. It was in control now. Against Mheyn, Steits and the rest of 712, he was outmatched. He backed down from his challenge and switched focus to getting home.
* * * * *
Year 4945, Day 165, early afternoonThe damned Transformers! They’d destroyed his marriage. They’d turned his Brothers and Sisters against him. They’d tried to sentence him to death by making him a widower. He’d had enough of their atrocious sabotage and meddling. He knew one way that he might be able to strike back at them. Scintos refused to go directly to the remarriage agency. Instead, he drove his silo pod at excessive speed to the research centre where he worked. Ignoring the rules, he parked immediately outside the front door and then stormed inside. He jogged down some corridors until he reached the south courtyard. He’d brought a hammer with him from home. He used the hammer to smash the lock off the door to the clock tower. He climbed the stairs to the top of the clock tower and located the communications hub, which was mounted on the outside wall. He opened the nearest window, leaned out and ripped the hub off the wall. He pulled it inside the tower and used the hammer’s claw to prise the cover off the hub box. Inside, he saw Transformer technology. At the centre was a small array of highly unusual components. They glowed and pulsated in an unnatural way. Being so close to them, he felt many strange sensations that he’d never felt before. He recognised that this was the crucial part of the device. It was inter-dimensional technology: the key to Transformer superiority. For years he’d suspected that something like this existed around here. Now it was in his possession. Would the Transformers come and reclaim it? He waited for a few moments but no one came. He felt a mental connection to the device, as if it could enable him to communicate telepathically.
“Transformers, go away!” he thought into the device. “We don’t need you here anymore!” Nothing happened.
“Do you hear me? Go away!” he thought angrily. “You’re just killers and meddlers! You ruined my life and I hate you!” Still nothing happened but he had a sensation of things moving in the ether.
“GO AWAY AND LEAVE US ALONE!” he shouted. “YOU’RE NOT WELCOME HERE ANYMORE!” He still felt that things were moving, a long way away. He’d triggered a reaction. He looked out of the window. The star ship was hovering in its usual place. Moments later, it turned around and disappeared. He could feel the atmosphere lighten. Somehow he knew that they’d gone for good. They’d never return. He presumed that the anger burning in his brain had persuaded them to leave but he’d never know for sure. He took the pieces of the hub downstairs and across the courtyard. Retracing his route, he returned to the reception desk by the front door. He put the hub on the desk and told the receptionists to pass it to the Physics Department. Tavolas and his team could deal with it.
“Our communications just went down,” said one receptionist. “We can’t contact anyone.” That was because Scintos had just disconnected the hub and brought it to the desk.
“You have legs,” said Scintos. “Use them, woman! This is critically important! It could be the biggest breakthrough in scientific history!” Taken aback, the receptionist trotted off to the Physics Department. As she did so, Scintos walked out of the building. The Transformers weren’t going to recover their technology. They’d left it behind deliberately, so that the locals could rise up and explore the galaxy. He knew it in his bones. That was fascinating but Scintos had other priorities now. He had to remarry as soon as he could and then leave the country. As Phlyka had said, the situation here had become unbearable. He had to make a new start, preferably on the other side of the world. It grieved him immensely how the situation had been turned against him. At least the blameless Juhellin had been allowed back home. He vowed to do all he could to make things better for the world ... and for the memory of Phlyka.
* * * * *
Year 4945, Day 165, late afternoon“So this is the famous element 150?” asked Steits. “I can’t believe it was overlooked! I feel stupid. How could I fail to realise it was here?!” Next to him, his wife Mheyn laughed and held his hand.
“Only Scintos suspected and he kept it to himself,” she said. “The Transformers were extremely good at withholding their technology from us. This is a gift. They’ve thrown us a bone!” Most of the group laughed. Nearly the entire 712 Brotherhood and Sisterhood had gathered in Tavolas’ large office, to see the most important alien artefact ever found. Tavolas was held in high esteem, so he’d been granted an office big enough for a hundred-person lecture. He’d also been supplied with ample refreshments, which he’d distributed to the group.
“Thank you Scintos, you hapless cuckold!” said Divelj, raising her glass to him. “Does anyone know where he went?”
“Far away, most likely!” said Angavi, her broken nose still bandaged and painful after it was reset in the hospital. “If he ever comes back, I’ll give him a hearty welcome.” She punched the palm of her left hand with her right fist. Some of the others chuckled.
“We don’t know where he’s going,” said Refodge. “Naturally, he wants no more to do with us. Could I see that element 150 over here, Tavolas?”
“I’m not sure if we should be handling it,” cautioned Vanjes. “The Transformers said that it has tremendous supernatural properties.”
“Oh come on!” scoffed Thykla. “Three people handled it between the clock tower and this office. They’re alright. The Transformers handle the stuff every day and they’re alright.”
“If I recall, similar things were said about uranium,” said Vanjes. “How many people died before there was a rethink?!”
“Where’s your spirit of adventure, Vanjes?” said Xircev, reaching forward and snatching the element 150. The array was four centimetres long, three centimetres wide and half a centimetre thick. It was mounted in a special glass case. It looked like a child’s puzzle except that it radiated a constant, woozy, rainbow light that never stopped changing. Within seconds, Xircev was gazing at it and starting to feel an effect. She became very attentive and information poured into her mind at an incredible speed.
“What’s it like?” asked Evayla, who was very curious.
“Intense,” replied Xircev, handing her the array. “Unbelievably ... intense.” Evayla was perturbed at the abrupt change in Xircev’s demeanour but took the array anyway. It was her turn to feel the power. After that, it went to Murtocs and then it continued to be passed from person to person. Each one went quiet and stopped interacting with the others.
“We should stop,” said Vanjes, concerned. “Who knows what it’s doing to us?”
“No Brother, it’s fine,” said Murtocs calmly. “We need to experience this. It’s the next step in our development as a species.” He fell silent again and his brain continued processing the new information rush. Just then, Mheyn’s ‘phone rang. She took the brief call as the ‘array experience’ spread from Brother to Sister to Brother.
“Good news!” she announced. “The body’s been found six kilometres downstream! I mean, most of it’s been found. Half the skull and all the brains are missing. Some of the skin on her back was torn off in the tunnel. Too bad, Phlyka: you shouldn’t have made us slice you up so much. They’ll pack up her sad remains and bring them to us tomorrow.”
“We’ll bury her in an unmarked plot on the edge of the cemetery,” said Steits. “She won’t need a ceremony. We’ll tell her kids but they won’t be too interested, given the way that she disrespected and shunned them.”
“Mheyn, I really think you should try the array,” said Angavi, having experienced it only a minute before. “It’s the most profound thing ...”
“Don’t worry, I can wait,” said Mheyn, smiling. “Everyone else should take their turn first.” She sat down on a very comfortable and expensive office chair to wait. The array completed its tour of the group as Steits received a burst of cosmic enlightenment.
“Wow!” he said as he sat in another chair, his eyes wide. “There’s so much! How can we absorb it?! I’ve never imagined ...” He passed the array to his wife and her short ‘trip’ began. She received essentially the same update as the others:
This was about the Ghost River Galaxy, that’s what they called it; that’s where they lived.
There was a vast amount of information available but these were the most urgent points.
Until recently, the galaxy contained just over three million interstellar species.
Now, it contained two point five million.
There’d been a war.
To be more accurate, there’d been a massacre of mind-bending proportions.
Nearly all the deaths had been caused by the Transformers and their limitless hordes of killer robots.
The most powerful native species in the galaxy had been wiped out.
A selection of less powerful species had also been eliminated.
As well as the slaughter, the Transformers had obliterated several thousand planets.
The object of the exercise was to prevent certain races from contacting Mheyn’s people, in any way.
The Transformers had done all they could to erase these races’ genes from existence.
This was because they’d analysed all significant genetic material in the galaxy.
They knew that some of it had great potential, especially when combined with that of Mheyn’s people.
Bringing the genomes together could’ve created super-beings with extraordinary powers.
Now, that potential was gone.
The Transformers had destroyed possible future adversaries before they’d been created.
The remaining civilisations had been left behind, to repopulate the galaxy as they saw fit.
Most of the obstacles to their progress were gone.
They were free to do what they wanted in most areas.
No primitive peoples could resist an attack by interstellar races: their power was too great.
The first targets were the remaining threats: local rivals, marauders and special cases, such as Mheyn’s people.
One of the most powerful survivor species was en route, to eliminate a future threat.
They planned to reduce Mheyn’s world to ashes, particularly since it had some element 150 on it.
They were homing in on the array.
They’d arrive sometime in the late evening.
Armageddon would begin around midnight.
The Transformers had moved to another galaxy by now.
They wouldn’t stop the destruction.
No one would stop it.
No one had the power.
No one had the will.
Life on this world would end very soon.
[It was difficult to estimate the precise time schedule of extinction due to a wide variety of local variables.]
Utterly dismayed, Mheyn put down the array, sighed and went to the nearest window. The world’s future had been snuffed out, just like that. She opened the window and looked up into the sky. As dusk approached, a few streaks of light could be seen travelling swiftly through the upper atmosphere. She knew what they were. The element 150 visions had shown her.
“Advance scout ships have already arrived,” she reported to the group. “The attack will start in a few hours. All our karma’s caught up with us. What’ll we do now? It looks like Phlyka had the right idea, leaping to her doom. Perhaps she was forewarned by her mechanical masters?”
“Shouldn’t we raise the alarm?” suggested Dromajit naively.
“There’s no point,” said her father Xenzi. “There’s no escape. We’d only scare people. Our time’s nearly over.”
“I’m going to miss my favourite TV shows!” said Cahrili, stamping her feet angrily.
“You’ll see them on the Other Side, I promise,” said her mother Beyn. “In fact, they’ll be better than ever!”
“More good news,” said Tavolas. “Kind of. I keep an automatic weapon here for emergencies. This qualifies, doesn’t it?” He opened a cupboard and pulled out a light machine gun, capable of firing a hundred bullets in twelve seconds.
“Good man,” said Steits. “Solid to the end. Check for jams, release the safety and let us have it.” The parents gathered and held their children. No one tried to run because they were all convinced of the impending apocalypse. They’d even seen the approaching attack fleet in their visions. Many of the group wept, cried out and prayed. Tavolas raised his gun, held it tightly, aimed and fired. When he’d killed everyone else in the room, he blew out his own brains with a round from his side-arm.
* * * * *
Year 4945, Day 166. [End of Calendar]The planet’s biosphere was duly incinerated overnight by a massive orbital bombardment. The Transformers had preserved the ‘syba-trohnians’ for destruction at the hands of others. They’d divided the people of the Ghost River Galaxy and effectively conquered them by sapping their greatest strength. Now, the various surviving species would take the opportunity to conquer each other and weaken the galaxy further. Basically, they’d be doing some of the Transformers’ work for them, making the whole area severely retarded in terms of development. The remnants could be mopped up later by another Transformer attack force. It was all very cost-effective: part of the grand Transformer strategy of universal annihilation. There wasn’t supposed to be life in this universe. It was an aberration: an accidental crossover from a different universe. It was an obstruction and the god Primus had ordered his Transformer troops to remove it. He was pleased that the project was going smoothly. Primitive natives were so easy to fool!
NotesFor more information about ‘element 150’, see my earlier short story ‘Single Parent Family’ on TFArchive.com.
I was going to extend this story thousands of years into the future. The ‘syba-trohnians’ would’ve explored parts of the galaxy before their eventual destruction. However, with teleportation technology and the mystical powers of element 150, the world was exposed immediately to interstellar aggressors. Also, it was a priority target because of its genetic potential. Still, it’s said that a quick death is kinder than a slow one!
To clear up any ambiguity, international dag wonking is the nautical equivalent of scub prinkling.
The ghastly denouement had some inspiration from an archaeological dig in Germany a few years ago. A grave was found containing the bodies of two men and a woman. It was over 20,000 years old. The woman and one man were buried together, as if they were a couple. The other man was buried on his side, facing away from the couple. The archaeologists guessed that these three people had been executed as a punishment. They thought that the couple might have been illicit lovers while the other man had been complicit by not stopping the affair. All three people were fairly young and died at the same time, indicating a probable execution. This was done to warn other people not to cheat on their partners or tolerate cheating, because such behaviour leads to serious conflict later on. At the time, people were starting to live in towns. Conflict in towns can be disastrous for everyone.
Upon reflection, I realised that this story could be read as an allegory for the manipulation of people online in the real world, especially in recent political campaigns worldwide.
Main Characters (and some non-featured, immediate relatives)712 Housing Cluster (science)Evayla (mother, 42) & Dakylbu (father, 43) - Sduliont (son, 14) & Korkirone (daughter, 13, married Smerrov [14])
Divelj (mother, 42) & Tavolas (father, 44) - Raquaim (son, 14, married Nugachi [11]), Ishmiet (daughter, 13, married Chlemt [13])
Wuldefik (mother, 44) & Vanjes (father, 45) – Znelfa (son, 8 ), Thryd (daughter, 7)
Qulan (mother, 41) & Refodge (father, 40) - Marwemo (son, 16, married), Besmier (son, 15, married)
Phlyka (mother, 43) & Scintos (father, 42) – Djayn (son, 22, married Zegron [21], one granddaughter [2], one grandson [6 months]), Durnion (son, 20), Zhandez (daughter, 19), Thuoni (daughter, 18)
Xircev (mother, 38) & Xenzi (father, 37) – Hurble (son, 14, married Mogalyn [14]), Dromajit (daughter, 13), Piepsun (son, 9)
Mheyn (mother, 45) & Steits (father, 44) [leaders] – Buakice (daughter, 15, married Feshtik [14]), Cledikite (daughter, 21), Duzzi (daughter, 23), Enfivule (daughter, 24)
Angavi (mother, 40) & Nesip (father, 40) – Kinaibikh (son, 13)
Beyn (mother, 36) & Thykla (father, 37) – Cahrili (daughter, 7), Vilak (son, 12)
Yavro (mother, 38) & Murtocs (father, 39) – Oremo (son, 8 )
711 Housing cluster (retail)Eksah (mother, 39) & Agawn (father, 38) - Scharg (daughter, 10), Cvomlat (daughter, 11), Stiuvaun (son, 6)
Aindaveiro (older man, 61)
705 Housing cluster (manufacturing)Shgledou (mother, 37) & Dkienor (father, 37) - Chlemt (son, 13 [see 712])
691 Housing cluster (clerical)Zerjub (mother, 38) & Iefalla (father, 35) – Wundeklib (daughter, 8 )
Nrepiaul (mother, 36) & Olasketh (father, 39) – Tarketu (son, 9). Strovix (uncle of Tarketu, brother of Nrepiaul, 33)
628 Housing cluster (construction)Tergot (mother, 30) & Ponbaq (father, 32) - Nugachi (daughter, 11 [see 712]), Giunfice (daughter, 8 ), Zadkaz (son, 6)
658 Housing cluster (farming)Cravygnic (wife, 34) & Juhellin (husband, 34)
Ekala (wife, 32) & Wondife (husband, 33)
Gavikt (man, 30)
Onzaha (man, 29)
Quia (man, 27)
275 Housing cluster (international dag wonking)Zegron (mother, 21 [see 712]) & Djayn (father, 22 [see 712]) - daughter (2 [see 712]), son (6 months [see 712])
InspirationsThe movie ‘Mulholland Drive’ – for plot twists and reality twirls.
The album ‘Raw Power’ [remastered] by Iggy Pop and the Stooges – useful for raw power!
The British ‘Brexit’ process of leaving the European Union – for a great deal of squabbling and complication.
Indirectly, the hottest globe-trotting Savage of modern times.
Walking around Chirk Castle’s hill, Chirk, Cheshire, England, U.K.
The coast of North and Mid Wales: natural areas and resort towns.
My dreams of ‘warping’ landscapes and buildings: shapes and distances changed in seconds, features created and removed by magical means.
Underground railways such as the Channel Tunnel and the funicular mine railway at Llechwedd Slate Caverns, North Wales.
Occasional canal bank collapses in the UK, which cause local flooding. Some old canals aren’t maintained properly.
Every so often, my local university produces something potentially dangerous like a chemical spill or a cross-bred pathogen that could spark an epidemic.
