Primal Estate: The Candidate Species (13 page)
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Authors: Samuel Franklin
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Daytnin approached the first table. This one contained an older man with a prodigious belly. It was truly large, and Daytnin wondered how he could keep his balance while walking.
As the man became fully awake, he started to groan. “No, please, oh God, no…”
As the man became fully awake, he started to groan. “No, please, oh God, no…”
The other five, secured to their tables, started begging and screaming, tugging with their arms and legs. “Silence,” uttered Daytnin. The tags vibrated on their arms and an excruciating numbness coursed through their brains. They all stopped screaming or making any sound at all, other than that created by the contortions of their limbs attempting to pull free. There was relative quiet. “Full live flesh sample array,” Daytnin commanded.
A mobile arm appeared out of the ceiling, lowering itself just above subject number one. Daytnin selected a hose with a narrow metal tube resembling a thick needle at the end and prepared to take samples from this first subject. He would insert the needle, activate the crimp, then start the suction inside the ears, then nose, then mouth, working his way down the body, obtaining flesh samples of the mucosal membrane at various locations around and inside of every body cavity.
A mobile arm appeared out of the ceiling, lowering itself just above subject number one. Daytnin selected a hose with a narrow metal tube resembling a thick needle at the end and prepared to take samples from this first subject. He would insert the needle, activate the crimp, then start the suction inside the ears, then nose, then mouth, working his way down the body, obtaining flesh samples of the mucosal membrane at various locations around and inside of every body cavity.
In the auditorium above, surrounding the large white room, the teacher narrated in English, as was dictated by the language laws. These laws enforced the use of local language at all times when dealing with indigenous beings, that is, of course, unless the circumstances required secrecy. The Provenger all knew these people weren’t going anywhere, so no effort at secrecy was made. The narration was broadcast into the operating room so the technicians could listen to their own progress and hear the students’ questions. It boomed and echoed through the flat-walled room.
“Each insertion snips a small amount of flesh off that organ or mucus membrane. Each removal creates a unique sensation, resulting in a message being sent to the rest of the body, and especially the brain. This signal is recorded through the head brace sensors and analyzed. It measures the relative sensitivity of that particular tissue. Since mucosal membranes are our body’s interface with the external environment, this information is very important to assess the body’s progress in maintaining homeostasis with the external environment. This is why they need to be awake.
“Each insertion snips a small amount of flesh off that organ or mucus membrane. Each removal creates a unique sensation, resulting in a message being sent to the rest of the body, and especially the brain. This signal is recorded through the head brace sensors and analyzed. It measures the relative sensitivity of that particular tissue. Since mucosal membranes are our body’s interface with the external environment, this information is very important to assess the body’s progress in maintaining homeostasis with the external environment. This is why they need to be awake.
“As you know, every organ of a living being communicates with every other organ on a continual basis, both through the nervous system and through many chemical and protein signals.
“You’ll notice that the older humans on the table are all obese. We introduced Yngorn wheat agriculture for this species approximately twelve thousand years ago. High in carbohydrates, it was designed to both enable their population growth and improve their fat marbling. Since then, they have modified it through selective breeding and made it their major food source exactly according to our plan. The entire wheat family is now especially nutrient deficient when compared to the nutrient dense foods demanded by the physiology of the human species.
“You’ll notice that the older humans on the table are all obese. We introduced Yngorn wheat agriculture for this species approximately twelve thousand years ago. High in carbohydrates, it was designed to both enable their population growth and improve their fat marbling. Since then, they have modified it through selective breeding and made it their major food source exactly according to our plan. The entire wheat family is now especially nutrient deficient when compared to the nutrient dense foods demanded by the physiology of the human species.
“Humans evolved for over half a million years with a diet primarily of animals that they hunted, caught, or collected, as well as a large variety of minimally-used leafy plants, tart fruits, and roots, since these were accessed while moving to follow protein sources. This was how they were able to populate most areas of Earth. Anywhere animals lived, humans could also, regardless of climate. All the resources they needed to survive, from food to clothing, were provided by wild game. Vegetable food sources, on the other hand, changed region to region, being very sparse in many areas, and varied seasonally, making them unreliable and often nonexistent. Human population densities were necessarily very low due to the factors of predator-prey ratio. The top predators are always fewer than their prey.
“Keep this in mind while you consider the following question. Since each cell in the body absolutely requires certain nutrients to function properly, if those nutrients are absent for that cell, what does the cell do?”
“Keep this in mind while you consider the following question. Since each cell in the body absolutely requires certain nutrients to function properly, if those nutrients are absent for that cell, what does the cell do?”
A student stood up. “It dies?”
“Why, yes, eventually, but living cells, just like the larger organism, want to keep living, and they are tenacious. What does the cell do before it dies?”
“Why, yes, eventually, but living cells, just like the larger organism, want to keep living, and they are tenacious. What does the cell do before it dies?”
Another stood, “It calls for the nutrient? It demands it?”
“Exactly, like a sponge craves water. Since any organ is merely a mass of similar cells, you then have that entire organ calling to the rest of the body, especially signaling to the digestive system and the brain, for that nutrient. As we’ve already stated in our scenario, the nutrient is lacking.”
“Exactly, like a sponge craves water. Since any organ is merely a mass of similar cells, you then have that entire organ calling to the rest of the body, especially signaling to the digestive system and the brain, for that nutrient. As we’ve already stated in our scenario, the nutrient is lacking.”
Another student immediately stood and blurted out, “And since we get nutrients from eating, this need causes the brain to tell us to eat more.”
“Or it can steal the nutrient from other organs!” another student chimed in.
“Or it can steal the nutrient from other organs!” another student chimed in.
“Very good. And sometimes, if it is really desperate, it will use some similar nutrient, but not exactly what it needs or prefers. All this, of course, creates problems. It’s nice to see that some of you did your reading. I like to see this kind of involvement.”
The teacher paused to collect her thoughts. “So, any species that does not eat what it was specifically designed to digest is likely to have nutrient deficiencies. Each living organism has spent millions of years adapting to a specific niche in its environment. We’ve found that the first major mistake that an emerging intelligent species makes is to think they can eat foods that they weren’t designed to eat. They fall into this trap because they develop the technology to prepare the food in a manner that makes it taste good and allows them to digest it. But this still doesn’t mean that it is food appropriate for the species. It can still be harmful to the intestinal environment in a number of ways. It also acts as an inferior substitute to what the species should be eating.
The teacher paused to collect her thoughts. “So, any species that does not eat what it was specifically designed to digest is likely to have nutrient deficiencies. Each living organism has spent millions of years adapting to a specific niche in its environment. We’ve found that the first major mistake that an emerging intelligent species makes is to think they can eat foods that they weren’t designed to eat. They fall into this trap because they develop the technology to prepare the food in a manner that makes it taste good and allows them to digest it. But this still doesn’t mean that it is food appropriate for the species. It can still be harmful to the intestinal environment in a number of ways. It also acts as an inferior substitute to what the species should be eating.
“For the long-term health of the organism, the internal environment is much more important than the external. Just as a hostile external environment can kill over the short term, a simple deficiency of the internal environment can kill over the long term. It gradually prevents the body’s systems from doing their job.
“You see this here,” she said, pointing, “in our first subject. Even omnivores have relatively narrow parameters for food types, as they need to maintain an optimal environment in their digestive system to maintain homeostasis. All ingested material effects the internal intestinal environment. Some foods contribute to nutrient yield, some are neutral, and others are inhibitory. Some fit all categories regarding different nutrients. The foods a species has evolved to eat fall mostly into the contributory and sometimes neutral categories. Disease results to the organism that consumes predominantly the neutral and inhibitory foods for too long of a period.
“You see this here,” she said, pointing, “in our first subject. Even omnivores have relatively narrow parameters for food types, as they need to maintain an optimal environment in their digestive system to maintain homeostasis. All ingested material effects the internal intestinal environment. Some foods contribute to nutrient yield, some are neutral, and others are inhibitory. Some fit all categories regarding different nutrients. The foods a species has evolved to eat fall mostly into the contributory and sometimes neutral categories. Disease results to the organism that consumes predominantly the neutral and inhibitory foods for too long of a period.
“Homeostasis is an important concept. It is the body’s task to continually maintain its healthy internal environment despite outside conditions. The digestive system can be considered somewhat of an internal outside environment. It is the outside that we have taken within. If those conditions are hostile to the digestive system, failure begins, systemically. Because of their contact with the outside, the intestines provide the source material for all functions as well as act as a gateway to the immune system.
“Imbalance over the course of their lifespan can lead to the majority of their non-infectious disease. And in case you were wondering, we generally harvest before these diseases take their full effect. So please don’t leave perfectly good fat and protein on your plate and tell your parents that it is diseased.”
“Imbalance over the course of their lifespan can lead to the majority of their non-infectious disease. And in case you were wondering, we generally harvest before these diseases take their full effect. So please don’t leave perfectly good fat and protein on your plate and tell your parents that it is diseased.”
The technician working on Sam had almost completed the tissue sampling, and the increasingly bored students were eager for their teacher to stop droning away. They wanted to see the interesting part. The teacher read the expressions on their faces and thought she’d better start getting them refocused.
“After all the tissue samples are taken, the technicians will work their way back up the subject, removing those organs of interest for further, complete compositional analysis, as well as nutritional and flavor assessments. For instance; knee caps, testicles for the male, sections of skin, bladder, uterus and ovaries for the females, intestines, liver, kidneys, pancreas, gallbladder, and stomach are all taken for testing.”
“After all the tissue samples are taken, the technicians will work their way back up the subject, removing those organs of interest for further, complete compositional analysis, as well as nutritional and flavor assessments. For instance; knee caps, testicles for the male, sections of skin, bladder, uterus and ovaries for the females, intestines, liver, kidneys, pancreas, gallbladder, and stomach are all taken for testing.”
The students noticed all the bodies increased their writhing on the tables, testing their restraints, trying to pull free. But not a sound came from them.
“As I understand it,” the teacher smiled to Kwinon through the glass, “we are going to see the removal of a heart while it is still beating.” Kwinon raised one hand in the air to acknowledge the students’ applause. “As each organ is removed, arteries and veins are tied off or cauterized to prevent exsanguination, so that the subject’s brain wave readings are still available for measurement.”
“As I understand it,” the teacher smiled to Kwinon through the glass, “we are going to see the removal of a heart while it is still beating.” Kwinon raised one hand in the air to acknowledge the students’ applause. “As each organ is removed, arteries and veins are tied off or cauterized to prevent exsanguination, so that the subject’s brain wave readings are still available for measurement.”
Daytnin worked up the torso, making a cut starting at the groin and only going so far as to accommodate the removal of each organ. He tied off the veins and arteries first, removed an organ, setting it aside in a special container for that organ on the rolling table next to the subject, then cut further up the torso for the next.
Three professional Provenger tasters enter the room and filed directly toward Sam, stopping next to his slab. Looming over him, they made final adjustments to their headset, inputting their personal identification numbers. The mechanisms created a neural connection directly with their brains and made accurate records of what they were actually tasting. They eliminated the many variable individual factors that influence the enjoyment of food to include whether they were hungry, feeling well that day, or just had an argument with a friend.
Three professional Provenger tasters enter the room and filed directly toward Sam, stopping next to his slab. Looming over him, they made final adjustments to their headset, inputting their personal identification numbers. The mechanisms created a neural connection directly with their brains and made accurate records of what they were actually tasting. They eliminated the many variable individual factors that influence the enjoyment of food to include whether they were hungry, feeling well that day, or just had an argument with a friend.
The headsets were connected to a long tube, the end of which was affixed with a pincer that would cut off and hold a morsel while simultaneously extracting and preserving a small sample of the material being tasted. This sample would be assessed for nutrients. In this manner, the flavor could be directly related to the nutritional value.
Sam felt more than just the cold of the slab on his back. He saw, out of the corner of his racing eyes, his own body parts and internal organs being placed on the table beside him. He felt the vibrating pain of another cut, like scissors through nylon fabric, up his abdomen. His prodigious belly suddenly sank and became flat, as gobs of yellow fat interlaced with intestines were placed on the table next to him.
Sam felt more than just the cold of the slab on his back. He saw, out of the corner of his racing eyes, his own body parts and internal organs being placed on the table beside him. He felt the vibrating pain of another cut, like scissors through nylon fabric, up his abdomen. His prodigious belly suddenly sank and became flat, as gobs of yellow fat interlaced with intestines were placed on the table next to him.
The tasters frowned and shook their heads. While the Provenger coveted fat in their diet, their least preferred was this visceral fat of which the Sam subject seemed to have ample quantities. This fat acted as its own gland in his body, producing all kinds of hormones, and while its flavor was not repulsive, it was not considered good. It had the texture of slime and made some Provenger gag. Since there was so much, all three of them would have to taste samples from numerous locations. But they were professionals and would maintain their bearing.
Sam looked up and saw these bald men eating from his organs on the table beside him. His heart raced and then seized with pain. As he died, Sam knew this must be some kind of nightmare from which he would wake. When he did, he would hug his wife and his son, feed his dogs, and try to lose some weight.
Sam looked up and saw these bald men eating from his organs on the table beside him. His heart raced and then seized with pain. As he died, Sam knew this must be some kind of nightmare from which he would wake. When he did, he would hug his wife and his son, feed his dogs, and try to lose some weight.
Sam never woke.
“…not going to make it to the heart on this one,” Daytnin reported aloud. There was a hum of disappointment amongst the students.
“…not going to make it to the heart on this one,” Daytnin reported aloud. There was a hum of disappointment amongst the students.
Kwinon completed some work at the panel and she rolled out a second table. The next slab held a young female. “Let’s get started on you, Laura,” she said as she looked at the nameplate and started in with her samples. Again, all the membrane samples were taken, starting at the head and working down the torso. For the females, mammary gland tissue was vital and obtained easily by inserting the needle into the nipple.
Observing Laura’s heaving chest, flat belly, and strong heartbeat, Kwinon announced to the class, “I believe we will make it to the heart on this one!” The cuts were started at the groin as Kwinon worked her way up. She would tie off veins and arteries, removing organs one by one.
Observing Laura’s heaving chest, flat belly, and strong heartbeat, Kwinon announced to the class, “I believe we will make it to the heart on this one!” The cuts were started at the groin as Kwinon worked her way up. She would tie off veins and arteries, removing organs one by one.
The tasters, done with the subject Sam, moved next to Laura. This one proved to be more enjoyable. The removal of the intestines created a buzz among the students. They looked so different that the audience couldn’t believe they were the same organ as in the obese man. The tasters were relieved.
The teacher chimed in, “As I said, the longer a deficient nutritional environment is maintained, the more the organs suffer. This younger sample does not suffer yet from the chronic effects of carbohydrates.”
The teacher chimed in, “As I said, the longer a deficient nutritional environment is maintained, the more the organs suffer. This younger sample does not suffer yet from the chronic effects of carbohydrates.”
Laura’s heart pounded and her eyes raced around the room, taking in as much as she could see, looking for a way to safety that she knew would not come. The tag on her arm prevented her from screaming, and her panic reached every limb. Contorting to every angle, she vainly attempted to move in any way to stop what was happening. She sensed the release of pressure from her lower abdomen, and a constant dull tension on the insides of her chest, as the pull of gravity and the open cavity allowed her exposed organs to seek level. Laura tried to distract herself, to avoid the sensation of the cutting and pulling inside her, to avoid the smell of her own fluids, to keep from seeing the Provenger eating her organs at the table next to her. But there was no escape from the horror.
With the specimen named Laura, the heart was reached and slowly lifted, intact and pounding wildly. The students grew excited as it was pried up with two cold metal tongs, above the surface of her rib cage, stretching its plumbing. Laura glimpsed her heart in her lower peripheral vision, still connected, still beating. It tried to pump blood through a liver and kidneys and other organs that were no longer there.
With the specimen named Laura, the heart was reached and slowly lifted, intact and pounding wildly. The students grew excited as it was pried up with two cold metal tongs, above the surface of her rib cage, stretching its plumbing. Laura glimpsed her heart in her lower peripheral vision, still connected, still beating. It tried to pump blood through a liver and kidneys and other organs that were no longer there.
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