Month: December 2019

[Victory Dreams of Techno-Sleep]

I’m starting with a quick reminder: this is not Earth. Or Sol. Or Alpha Centauri. Or really anywhere remotely close to human society. (Even though, yes, the characters in this setting have very human names.)

For this setting, the planet is known formally as VS5993. Why? Because another species (the Anacondri’i) catalogued it as part of their (former) quest to map the known galaxy. When Ekzers developed the technology to make it to space, the world government swiftly swept in and banned it. A lot of that technology was confiscated, but Ekzers tend to find a way around that.

When inhabitants of this planet finally reached outer space, it was through the dedicated lifework of an Ekzer named Dick Gordon. And, in a very Ekzer way (defiantly) he splattered his name all over his invention: The Gordon Shuttle. This young space shuttle rocketed into space and profoundly broke the light barrier (a bit too close to the planet in a way that inadvertently terrified onlookers). Once the three crewmembers were able to return to normal space, they found that they’d exhausted all their fuel.

This was not an oversight. Dick Gordon was so convinced that friendly life existed beyond their planet that, when he realized they couldn’t carry enough fuel to escape the atmosphere, jump to lightspeed, and safely land, he decided to test it anyways. The result? Three very hungry crewmembers were found by a small merchant vessel of Anacondri-i who did try to establish formal relations.

The Ekzers had to eventually explain that they weren’t official representatives, but they successfully got a ride home. Albeit, a confusing one. (The Anacondri’I will soon have their own post in the Interconnected Multiverse section on the Extras page).

When the Anacondri’i ship made a discreet landfall, the few eyewitnesses effectively had their cozy worldview and cultural sensibilities shattered. The world government plowed through bureaucratic hell, technically established formal relations, and opted to keep the generic assigned name. Their aim at the time was to return to normalcy as soon as possible so that they could forget the giant alien snake-like beings trying to induct them into established intergalactic norms.

Since the inhabitants of VS5993 are a developed species, and, for the most part, leave everyone else alone, they are peacefully allowed their own territory (their planet and tiny solar system). For information on intergalactic relations, see [Territories Around Sol].

Due to a misunderstanding, all inhabitants from this planet tend to be called Ekzers by other species (sometimes pronounced Essers). Due to their language, the people of this planet do overall still call themselves human. If this doesn’t make sense, see [Interconnected Multiverse].

On occasion, Gordon’s Shuttle will still operate and take people into space. His descendants have fixed the fuel capacity, and now have several routes to nearby space stations.

 

(PS – maybe I’ve read too much Gordon R Dickson :))

[Victory Dreams of Techno-Sleep]

” “An Ekzer,” I continued, “is someone who doesn’t follow our world’s laws around electric and computerized technology. You see all this fancy stuff around?”

I gestured with my right hand loosely at the room around us.

“The lights, those screens, the monitors . . .” I started listing some tech I could see but she nodded her head eagerly. I kept going:

“We don’t like seeing it. Sure, lights are useful, but there shouldn’t be so many overheard like this. The only way they can get away with it here is because we’re in a hospital, so it’s usefulness overrides our distaste. We kept more useful technologies around sometimes, but it’s always tucked away or hidden since we don’t like seeing it. Ekzers, on the other hand, will flaunt it. They make it visible, litter their homes with it, and disrespect everyone else’s desire not to be so immersed. We’d rather they not.”

“Why?” She asked, temporarily reminding me of someone much younger than her age. To her credit, she was still genuinely engaged and following along with what I was explaining.

“Because it’s more sensible.” I clarified in response. Her face went a bit blank, as if she didn’t understand.

“And because electricity really does buzz. And it gets on people’s nerves. And the screens can cause headaches and. . .” I ranted a bit, working out some pent-up distaste. Some of what I said was, admittedly, parroted from the politicians. More of it was actually true in my experience, but I’d never really kept track of it that much.” -It Began with a Dream

If you can dream it, an Ekzer can make it.

These are the tinkerers, inventors, and mad scientists. They have unprecedented access to technology (whether it’s legal tech or not) and often flaunt it. Usually, the biggest displays of tech are saved for their own homes. However, Ekzers will visibly wear some piece of decorative computer tech as a protest against the current cultural norms. For example, earrings made out of broken circuit boards. Or a headband of woven, corroded wires.

Ekzers do have self-control. Even this community rejects certain practices (such as necromancy). They have a tribunal system set up where an Ekzer who potentially ventures too far can be judged by their peers.

Non-binary people (enbies) exist casually at a higher rate in the population. There’s not really a reason for this, aside from the fact that I am non-binary and I decided that I want to experiment with writing in a world like this. This means that enbies are included in planning public facilities (like bathrooms), casual conversations, observations of crowds, and common knowledge. It is openly accepted that non-binary people exist prolifically in this setting. The main language used is enby and enbies, but there can also be non-binary and non-binary people/person.

Ekzer tech can be wildly inconsistent and dependent on the tech’s creator. To understand this section, it helps to read about [technologies seen and their restrictions]. Here as some examples that appear:

-Goren’s speed groomer. His one (willing) indulgence in Ekzer tech. The groomer itself is a mirror. When he flicks the corner it’ll count down so he knows to close his eyes. Then, in under thirty seconds, various apparatuses on the mirror will perform personal grooming on the head. It styles hair, cleans teeth, and applies some lotions. At the end of the grooming regiment, it’ll spray with person with some type of soft scent (depending on what the person who installs it inputs).

-GS lights. By the snap of their fingers, a user can release light into a space. This light will spread out like fireworks from either a central point or several peripheral points established by the user. After the initial firework-like display, these lights will hover in the air until someone extinguishes them. Although they look like little embers, these lights are mostly harmless. In the same sense as how Westley in the Princess Bride was mostly dead. Amine releases these in front of Dmitrya (in TMotS) so her can watch her reaction. He did not create them, but he loves their aesthetic.

-Light deflectors. These make any object look like something else. Even non-Ekzers will use these devices to disguise their cars. (For more information about how vehicles are disguised, see [Technologies seen and their restrictions].)