The ten-episode Kindle Vella series collected here for the first time!
Ciras, an advanced race of artificial humanoids, populate the distant world of Dialectica, working in unison to propel their society forward. Their prosperity is due to a set of edicts that drive every choice, every action, and because of these rules, there is no violence, there is no poverty, and there is no doubt in their leadership. But when an important Cira stumbles into an emergency ward on the brink of core failure, one Cira will have to make a rash decision, a choice that puts him on a path to uncover the one thing their perfect Cira society doesn't already have: the truth.
This collection also includes eight other short works, several long out-of-print and a few never before seen, all set in the literary universes of The Dawn Cluster and The Shirker!
The ten-episode Kindle Vella series collected here for the first time!
Ciras, an advanced race of artificial humanoids, populate the distant world of Dialectica, working in unison to propel their society forward. Their prosperity is due to a set of edicts that drive every choice, every action, and because of these rules, there is no violence, there is no poverty, and there is no doubt in their leadership. But when an important Cira stumbles into an emergency ward on the brink of core failure, one Cira will have to make a rash decision, a choice that puts him on a path to uncover the one thing their perfect Cira society doesn't already have: the truth.
This collection also includes eight other short works, several long out-of-print and a few never before seen, all set in the literary universes of The Dawn Cluster and The Shirker!
1.0
Day 61,682 on Dialectica began much as it always had, at least as far as what my own 13,870 days online suggest. The global chronometer reached 07:00 and any Ciras assigned to night shift duties were relieved by any Ciras assigned day shift duties. Most factory priorities shifted from queued production to process analysis, as per Edict 12 âEvery process is subject to innovation.â And all Ciras online for less than 1,825 days arrived at the regional academic auditoriums for daily information sessions and skill assessments. One could easily assume, based on the efficiency our colony operated at, that Day 61,682 would unfurl without incident. I confess I did so assume.
I was wrong.
1.1
Newell powered on twelve minutes past 08:00. His colleagues didnât understand why he opted to initialize his daily routines at such an odd time, but Newell did so for that reason alone. His rationale was simple â he just preferred to avoid a congested commute. As he shuffled about his domicile, performing his morning diagnostics, he could see Ciras outside travelling to and from in droves.
In approximately six more minutes, the number of individuals still in transport will decrease by 73%. The dawn cacophony will simmer and I will arrive at work calm, focused. To do so otherwise is downright counter-productive. Thatâs the truth.
Edict 1: Do Not Lie, Even To Yourself.
Now fully charged, Newell enabled his wireless connectivity and began downloading his daily updates. He had assigned read priority to any postings for the Cira DevOps team. It did not matter if the position was Design, Developing or QA â Newell just wanted to be involved in the work, a chance to lend his skill to the betterment of his community. No such positions had been posted overnight. The prominent news item circulating throughout the updates was of a Cira being apprehended at 04:53 in a failed assassination attempt on The Chronicler.
Edict 3: No Lethal Harm Is To Be Inflicted Upon Another Cira â Unless Such Inaction Would Result in Harm More Extensive.
Very odd. I cannot deduce any circumstance in which the death of The Chronicler would circumvent any harm.
Logical conclusion: that âbot is a poltroon.
Once his core memory had been updated and the last of his diagnostics completed, Newell departed his domicile and headed for Region 29âs Emergency Maintenance Ward.
It was 08:19. The quantity of Ciras en route to their duties had decreased by 67%.
There are more of us still mid-commute than usual. Maybe Iâm starting a trend.
1.2
A planetary tremor had registered the night before, and several Ciras assigned to excavation duties in Region 29 had been incapacitated by the collapse of the failing structure. The exhumed survivors had been transported to the EM Ward and Newell had spent the first two hours of his shift supervising his internâs cauterizing of their wounds. In most cases, new appendages were needed, but Newellâs team were only interested in stabilizing the patients, and his intern had proven quite apt.
If I was on the DevOps Team I could suggest several enhancements to circumvent the need to cauterize in the first place.
Confident his intern did not require any additional oversight, Newell trekked to the lubricant station. Three lower servos in his leg had begun to tighten after only an hour of mobility, and he desired the premium oil he could only get while inside the ward.
The DevOps team surely has found suitable upgrade servos by now. At least ones whose functionality last more than six years.
Newell had just began to apply the oil when the ward doors flew open.
And the most important patient he would ever attend to came stumbling in.
1.3
âPlease⌠assistance is required.â
The Cira limping into the ward was a model older than any of the other patients, older than any of the maintenance staff. Very few individuals still online in the community were of its design, but his chassis paint job and ornaments made him easily identifiable.
âThatâs The Chronicler,â the intern stood motionless behind the counter. âThe Council Members never pass through Region 29.â
âYour observation is irrelevant,â Newell sprinted to his incoming patient, offering himself as a brace while leading him to the nearest operating room. âHe requires immediate attention and we will administer it.â
âThank⌠thank you.â The Chronicler managed, using his left hand to keep his head upright. âNeck gyroscope⌠malfunctioning.â
As they reached the operating room, Newell helped The Chronicler up onto the table.
The intern stood in the doorway. âWould it not be prudent to inquire Region 1 for-â
âThe Chronicler is suffering from systematic power failure and I conclude, if not treated now, he could lose memory integrity before Region 1 could respond. I will repair him and you will assist me. Edict 7 is in effect. Acknowledge.â
The intern nodded. âObey The Mandates Of The Ranking Cira. What should I do first?â
Newell scanned The Chroniclerâs head. âHis uplink connection is non-existent. We will need to back up his core edicts and personality files manually. Please locate the transfer cables for a Cira model 4.â
The intern began searching the equipment lockers for the applicable cables, while Newell assessed The Chroniclerâs damage.
âI do not see any abrasions or scorching, no foreign penetration⌠Sir, what caused your crisis?â
The older Cira shook his head. âUnknown. Functions⌠hampered while passing through.â
I am inclined to agree with my intern, Newell thought. The elders have no need to pass through Region 29. His presence here is disconcerting.
âNewell, I am unable to locate any transfer cables outfitted for The Chroniclerâs design.â The intern held up what he had found. âThe oldest cable we possess is for the Model 6.â
Newell scanned the patient. The display read: âInternal power 2%. Core memory must be backed up.â
I do not wish to be the Cira who allowed our greatest resource for knowledge to expire.
Newell rotated his right index finger until it locked a heat scalpel in place. He leaned in and began an incision around The Chroniclerâs right aural assembly.
âDoctor, I am not familiar with your proced-â
âPrior to the inclusion of shielded memory drives, older models were designed with a secondary data port underneath the cranial plating.â Newell shimmied his scalpel underneath the protruding metal and popped off the section he had cut. âTrioptic frequencies made this redundant, but in this situation, it very well may preserve The Chronicler as we know him.â He took the cable from his internâs hands and connected one end to the exposed data port, then attached the other end to the uplink port on the wall console behind him.
Nothing happened.
âIt appears the wardâs uplink is also non-existent.â
Newell referenced the scan readout. It read: âInternal power 1%. Core memory will be lost.â
I know of only one other option and it presents a danger. However, this Cira is The Chronicler, and the danger of my inaction would âResult in Harm More Extensive.â
Newell removed the end of the cable connected to the wall console and instead connected it to his own personal data port. He initialized the transfer nine seconds before The Chronicler ceased all movement. As the luminosity behind The Chroniclerâs eyes abated, Newell confirmed he now possessed an additional personality file and a copy of The Chroniclerâs core edicts in his secondary data cache.
He turned to his intern. âTransfer complete. I rescued The Chroniclerâs memory files. That is why I opted to act rather than wait for Region 1. However, they need to be contacted and assign a representative to retrieve The Chroniclerâs files.â
âYes, doctor.â
As his intern left, Newell removed the cable from The Chroniclerâs cranium, while still analyzing his patientâs plating. Other than being an outmoded Cira, there were no visible signs of duress or impairment.
Whatever brought him to Region 29 almost proved fatal. Hopefully it was worth the risk.
The Edicts of Evolution and Other Tales is a novel of short stories, a universe of unique planets, aliens, robots, and political intrigue slowly forms in an almost poetic way. Some stories are connected, some are stand alone. Each new tale told feels like a perfect snapshot of that moment. In this sci-fi filled novel, you meet characters that are struggling to figure out if their existence is enough or if there is more to life than the daily grind of making ends meet.
Mark J Schultis weaves stories together to create such an interesting world. Each story felt wholly complete. Sometimes short stories can feel incomplete due to lack of detail to keep them short. This was not the case with this novel. Each story was a perfect snapshot of a moment in an individualâs life. I wanted to know more, but not because I felt it was lacking in any way, but that I wanted to stay in this world for longer. I would love an entire 300+ pages of just Marek Dunn- a member of the Astronautica Expansion Defense (AED) that finds himself fighting against protocol and giving mercy. Or of CIRA Newell- A robot that slowly realizes they live in a society built on lies. Or of Prock- a castle servant that fights against odds to join the military to be close to his love.
There were a few times it took a good portion of a chapter to understand what was happening, which made it a little confusing sometimes to grasp the story. I did have to reread a chapter or two to fully feel I understood the premise. Each chapter being different sometimes pulled me out of the moment and I would have loved a smoother transition.
That being the case, I could see this so clearly. The imagery was incredibly descriptive, and each story could easily make a book by itself. Anyone that loves short stories, sci-fi, military tales, and action, would love this book. I usually donât like things overly military- and I thoroughly enjoyed this one.