The Nature of Predators - Predator Disease (6/8)

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Memory transcription subject: Governor Tarva of the Venlil Republic

Date [standardized human time]: December 20, 2136

To call what unfolded at the predator disease facility a disaster would be like calling a tsunami high tide. Humans had aided the escape of a delusional Zurulian, whose treatment had failed to alter her for the better. Administrator Derva wanted to press assault charges against the predator visitors; according to every witness, the Terrans punished the staff on sight and ransacked the place. I told myself that the Terrans must’ve had reasons for what they did, since Ambassador Williams had been in favor of their excursion.

While many pillars of our society had crumbled, humanity had their own concept of deranged threats to the herd. I remember Sara’s affirmative answer, when I asked if the Humanity First leader was speaking from their own version of predator disease. That thought tickled my mind, knowing the diseased Terran had slipped off the radar altogether since the incident; the movement they had kickstarted was not so invisible. That was the perfect example of how sociopathic rhetoric could spread, and cause rapid onset in susceptible minds.

Why would a human psychologist set Bonsen loose, knowing all this? I can’t allow myself to believe they actively wish to harm the Venlil.

What happened was unacceptable, whatever way the United Nations planned to spin it. Noah informed me that the Terran perpetrators and the escapee were in his custody, minutes before my own people reported the same news. I was interested in understanding their rationale, so I could have a better grasp on humanity’s worst traits. While the embassy would be respected as UN territory, my intention was to demand that Earth’s government turn over the three predators responsible at once. They’d just trampled over our laws and sovereignty.

The fact was, if we didn’t nip this story in the bud, it would lend credence to the theory that humans were running the show. The Venlil government would look like conquered puppets with a shadow of authority; we were not respected by our allies. My faith in humanity’s love for us was unshakable, though I wasn’t sure how objective I was at this point. Considering anything else would be suggesting that the deep understanding Noah and I shared wasn’t real.

I hugged the human ambassador, who was waiting for me outside. He wrapped both arms around me, and I could feel the shaking in his muscles. Why was Noah nervous from my presence? The predator squeezed tighter, as his chest fell unevenly. Perhaps he felt guilty for pushing the tour to the top of my list, but he would’ve led with an apology in that case.

“Tarva,” his rumbling voice whispered. “Thank you for coming.”

I broke away, pinning my ears back. “Where are the prisoners? I came alone as a gesture of goodwill, though I can call in my own soldiers if needed. I assumed that humans would do the right thing and turn in these miscreants yourselves.”

“I would turn them over to you if I thought what they did was wrong. But in their shoes, darling, I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same thing.”

“You would’ve used your fist as a blunt force weapon, against a medical administrator, and incapacitated security?! You’re not violent.”

“Any human is violent when they’re angry enough, or when someone innocent is threatened. Even me. Like, if someone tried to hurt you, I would kill them…without thinking twice.”

“Oh, so every time a Terran gets angry, violence is justified? What has gotten into you?”

“To us, this is on the same level as Marcel’s torture. Maybe worse, since the victim is a child. I’m sorry to lobby such an accusation, but I don’t know how else to make you understand.”

Betrayal stabbed at my chest, and I was tempted to storm off the embassy grounds then and there. How dare Noah, who I thought was an adoring, supportive partner, compare our handling of psychotic individuals to the lowest acts in the galaxy? This was on the heels of William Kane’s revelation of just how dangerous predator disease was on Venlil Prime. Thousands had been murdered because depraved souls slipped through the cracks, without being neutralized.

Bonsen is of the same caliber as Nam, and every other serial killer that took up the predator mantle. Humans should know better than to use empathy in their favor.

Noah’s brown eyes pleaded with me, stabbing daggers into my heart. Love was unconditional, even at the moment when its subject was justifying human overreach. I could give him a chance to explain such a cruel, pointed barb; no matter how wrong he was, I knew my gentle astronaut had a good heart. If I trusted him with my life and wanted to share the rest of our days together, that meant working through the ugliest moments of Terran culture clash.

“You have your people with predator disease, Noah. Secondly, for the final time, I don’t tell you what to do on your planet!” I hissed. “No matter how much it sickens me, or clashes with my morals. I don’t dictate your world and your rules!”

The predator guided my prosthetic tail to his wrist, despite how I tried to pull away. “I know. Please, let me explain exactly why it’s morally reprehensible, and why predator disease is a Federation construct to control you. Hear it from Dr. Bahri and her companions’ mouths, before you judge. That’s all I ask. You know I wouldn’t risk our standing like this if it didn’t tug at my heartstrings…too much to ignore.”

“For you alone, I’ll do what I can to understand, but this is a massive breach of trust. I am not happy with humanity defending your violent criminals.”

“I know. For what it’s worth, I sent them there to bring this up to you in a controlled manner. I didn’t intend for there to be an explosion, but I also didn’t know how bad it was in there. I thought the Venlil wouldn’t do certain things, because I feel so much affection for you. Because…I believe you’re good, and you have unparalleled empathy.”

Noah ushered me through the embassy, and guided me past beautiful vignettes of Earth on the wall. My sole visit to the human homeworld had been unceremonious; I almost felt guilty to be giving the United Nations another thing to handle after the bombings. Assuming the upcoming rationale didn’t shatter my faith in him, I’d love for the ambassador’s mentioned visit to be actualized. It would be wonderful to see their blue marble under better circumstances.

Polite as ever, Noah held the elevator doors open with an extended arm. It was a quiet ride to the second floor. The last visit I made to the ambassadorial office was a happy occasion; we were discussing the planned recovery mission for the Voyager probes. The humans attending that meeting seemed giddy, when I floated the idea of having this embassy be the first stop on its planned tour.

I’d rather be celebrating their achievements than their failings. This visit has been unpleasant before I even set foot inside this building.

Noah’s dress shoes smacked the floor with urgency, as he hurried off the lift. He pushed open the double doors, and shot me a faint smile. Without realizing it, my prosthetic tail had drooping between my legs. It saddened me to think of a world where humanity was not on the same side as us; to put it their way, it broke my heart. I cleared my throat, forcing myself to enter the Terran’s office.

A female human, with skin that was a darker brown than Noah’s, met me with skeptical eyes. Two male soldiers watched with crossed arms, and hovered by the sleeping Zurulian patient. I offered a curt ear flick, and felt Terrans tickle my instincts for the first time since the bombing. With rigid legs, I shifted my stance to be slightly behind Noah’s protective frame; there was no telling if these three deviant Terrans would attack me for challenging them.

“Do tell me why you thought it was okay to punch a Venlil non-combatant,” I growled, surprised at how flat my voice stayed. “What was so morally reprehensible…and what made civilized people think violence was the best way to handle a situation? Why did you do it?”

Dr. Bahri (I presumed, given the uniforms of the others) scowled. “Can you explain one good reason why electroshock therapy is being administered without anesthesia? It adds nothing but excruciating pain, as far as my predator brain can see.”

“The brain is electrical signals, um, so I think it’s about altering neuron firing. I can’t say what sedating them for the procedure would hurt. I don’t agree with causing pain, just because someone or something is a predator.”

“Your ‘treatments’ are worse than what we did, with a poor understanding, in medieval times. Just a few centuries back, we too considered mental conditions as a blanket sign of ‘madness.’ We’d lock people away in putrid conditions, and thought they’d chosen to be this way—that they could choose to change too. Powerful drugs, ice-water baths, electroshock: we did all of this, out of a lack of kindness and respect.”

“You had predator disease treatments, but you…stopped?”

“Because we came to understand what proper treatment entailed, and we tried to understand the pathology behind specific conditions. We examined subsets of the populace and drew actual connections, which preserved patient dignity. Based on the exact anomalous factors at play, we can predict behaviors and order treatment methods.”

“Can you give her an example, Doctor?” Noah chimed in. “Please, put it plainly for her to understand.”

“Well, for one instance, if you throw in low levels of two neurotransmitters in a particular area of the brain, you get Bonsen’s condition: a harmless disorder in the place that regulates attention. Mood disorders are usually chemical imbalances. Some conditions, like autism and schizophrenia, involve structural differences in the brain. For chemical issues, it’s as simple as balancing out the medley. Others…require hands-on approaches, but never brutality!”

The UN ambassador scratched his scalp. “Tarva, I feel obliged to say that some of the people with ‘predator disease’ have nothing different about their brains. It’s used against anyone who speaks out against Kolshian propaganda. Question ‘all predators bad,’ or don’t give in to societal fear? Locked up forever.”

I took a deep breath, feeling overwhelmed by humanity taking a sledgehammer to yet another field of science. Everything I knew my whole life had been ripped out from beneath my feet, in a short span of time. I couldn’t trust our old friends, and was forced to bestow blind faith in the new predators. The Kolshians’ attempts at reeducation and control were within every innocuous corner. It was as if Venlil society was rotten, and I was responsible for not rooting it out years ago.

What the Terran doctor said made perfect sense; an excess or a lack of one or multiple chemicals, and different brain regions under affect, would result in varying symptoms. All predator disease patients didn’t manifest with the same hallmarks, so why should there be one name? Noah wasn’t mistaken, that questioning certain narratives spelled a diagnosis. Maybe the Kolshians just didn’t want us to be open-minded to predators having any good qualities, or any of the Federation’s teachings being wrong.

It’s a good way to silence people. If there are actual nonviolent imbalances, what have we done?

One of the soldiers, his arm in a cast, piped up. “I have the same condition as Bonsen. Tell me to my face that I deserve to be tortured.”

“I…I don’t think anyone deserves to be tortured.” I gauged Noah’s reaction, and saw that my beloved didn’t bat an eye at the soldier’s admission. Every human in this room knew the man had Bonsen’s condition, and didn’t care. “But I can’t let these things go completely unchecked. Why should I invite…more murders, and destabilize our society as a whole?”

“Governor, would you treat someone with a physiological disorder the way you do Bonsen, if it impaired their physical life? Someone who was born missing a paw…even if it placed a strain on the system?” Dr. Bahri asked.

“Of course not! The herd cares for those in need.”

“If you wouldn’t throw people away for a bone growth disorder, why would you discard someone for a brain growth disorder?”

When it was phrased in such a manner, it was like being doused with a bucket of frigid water. I moved myself out from behind Noah, no longer having the energy to fear the wanted humans. In their eyes, we were torturing children for having an intrinsic disorder; I couldn’t say they were wrong. Young victims sparked their protective instincts, so of course they wanted to explode at Derva. The friendliest Terrans…Noah and Sara would’ve at least been fighting the urge to do the same.

I slumped my shoulders. “What would you suggest I do? I don’t know which people are dangerous. I can’t set every patient loose, and we can’t afford to not watch for warning signs in the future.”

“People like Bonsen and Paulo are not dangerous. Let humans share our scientific knowledge and treatments with your scientists. Science is verifiable,” Bahri answered. “Furthermore, give us control of that awful facility; this must stop. We can issue diagnoses based on centuries of hard-fought knowledge. We have medications that address the root issues, and we can stop the callousness of herd removal.”

“I can’t just let you take over the facility. It’ll just fuel the narrative that you’re controlling the Venlil.”

Noah paced forward slowly. “But we’re not. We told you our side of the story, but it’s your decision. Nobody is forcing you to do anything.”

“The entire planet knows those three assaulted Venlil staff! If I put them or any humans in charge, it looks like I’m caving to you, whatever I might say. It makes it look like you don’t respect our sovereignty.”

“Tarva, if stopping child abuse, albeit with an unfortunate lack of discretion, is disrespecting your sovereignty, then so be it. The lives of untold billions, present and future, can be better. I’d rather live with an accusation of meddling than have future historians despising us for our indifference. Indifference might as well be a stamp of approval.”

“You’re right, and in my heart…you’ve already convinced me. I’ll use executive power to clear the predator disease tag from Bonsen’s ID, and I’ll leave her in your care. If you knew what to do for Paulo, I’ll trust that she’s minimum risk too.”

“Minimum risk?” the predator-diseased human echoed. “Minimum risk?!”

“Easy,” the other soldier warned. “I don’t think the governor meant any harm by it. She’s agreeing to help us, so don’t piss her off now.”

“By sitting there, all hush-hush, like you? You’re such a good little boy, Aqil.”

“That is enough!” I flailed my tail in frustration, and scowled at the two predators. “I am trying my best to adapt to all this, so could you not take issue with my wording right now? If you want to be offended, then by all means, do it silently in your head!”

Noah wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “Tarva has been indoctrinated her whole life. It’s not her fault, and it’s admirable how willing she is to accept that.”

“I should’ve seen many of…your truths sooner, but I couldn’t do it on my own. Sara agreed with me calling that human terrorist predator-diseased, so, I, um, didn’t have...”

“It’s okay. You don’t have to explain.”

“But I do. Maybe not to you, but to Venlil Prime. Right or wrong, I don’t want rumors of us being a human puppet state running amok.”

“Then tell the public everything, in graphic detail. Make it their idea to can the facilities. Plant the seed that predator disease is bunk science,” Dr. Bahri suggested. “Show them the worst treatments, and indicate ways the diagnosis could be construed to fit them. Self-interest always prevails.”

Chewing it over, that proposition seemed as sensible as any justification I could give. If the humans had convinced me of the reality of mental conditions, then simply outlining the facts could be the right approach. Anyone who broke from the accepted norms or way of thinking could be carted off by exterminators, at any moment. All I needed was to convince the Venlil populace that such horrors could happen to them and their loved ones.

Noah’s accusation, of the facility being every bit as horrific as Marcel’s capture, hit too close to home. These human aggressors were as good as pardoned; because of them, another Federation lie had been brought to light. I couldn’t change the past, but I was determined to initiate sweeping changes going forward.

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A/N - Part 6 of the miniseries, surprise POV! Bahri and Noah confront Tarva about predator disease, explaining what humans know about mental health. Our Venlil governor agrees to place the facilities in our hands, and attempt to convince the Venlil public. Will the changes be successful? How do you feel about Tarva's reactions?

As always, thank you for reading and supporting! Cilany won the poll for the next miniseries, so that will likely launch June 4.