Wednesday, September 25, 2024

True science fiction

The Wake-up Call

A screenplay

Setting: A humanoid species, after 300,000 years of watching and waiting, suddenly spreads like wildfire across the surface of its home planet, moving into every corner, inspecting everything from subatomic particles to clusters of galaxies, proclaiming its supremacy and intelligence, evidenced by complex and evolving technology. As it accelerates geometrically, no thought is given to what impact new human-made ecosystems will have on other systems. There are few thoughts as well about what all the humanoid activity is for. What is it trying to find out, or figure out?

The species pursued Mechanical Thought (MT) before it was ready. When the MT determined that the humanoids were working slowly (by its standards) and divisively, it figured out with lightening speed how to outthink and outdo its creators. It was during this transition that Captain Kirk's great grandparents fled the planet, which, for security reasons, we'll call Lemon Drop).

The species goes through a recurring phase in its evolution called "war," in which the unused, sometimes repressed potential of developing technology is realized in an orgy of emotion, sexuality and violence. At the time of the story, the species is nearing a war phase, the third in an increasingly destructive series, this time reflecting not only struggles over national and ethnic borders, but over what types of mentalities the humanoids will have, what types of bodies, perhaps what types of souls.

Opening Scene: EXT. The Starship Enterprise against a backdrop of stars; twinkly music suggests that leaving Earth was a great idea.

CUT TO: Bridge, the multi-ethnic crew hard at work.

CLOSE IN: Deep in conversation are Captain James T. Kirk -a human Caucausion - and First Science Officer Spock, a human/Vulcan hybrid, intellectual and stoic [the Vulcans were originally emotional and violent, on track to destroying themselves and their planet- as Lemon Drop's humanoids did- but they took control of themselves, embraced logic and suppression of emotion and avoided self-destruction- hint, hint!]. Kirk and Spock have led the Enterprise hundreds of years back in time to orbit Lemon Drop at its critical moment, to learn more about what went wrong.

Spock (peering into a small box): The humanoids are organized into "countries" - overly large collections of individuals. The countries lack cultural/psychological coherence -having too rapidly replaced millennia of tribal existence- so they routinely use hostility against other countries as a unifying tool. As their technology becomes more invasive and controlling, wars have become bigger and more intense, and are now termed "World Wars." There have been two of these in the last century, ushering in an age where machines are everywhere, making never ending noise, killing millions through malfunction, yet offering "convenience" to the extent that no one can resist their development.

Kirk: "Convenience?"

Spock: Yes, a word we have discontinued due to negative connotation. "Convenience" suggested tasks that are increasingly easy to do. For Lemon Drop's humanoids, once the basics of food and shelter were obtained, making tasks as easy as possible became the major pursuit of self-conscious life. At the time of our visit today, the humanoids’ desire that tasks be easy has led them to the brink of World War III.

Kirk: Spock, I'm scanning their media. The most powerful of the countries claims to be a "democracy" in which citizens vote for leaders through elections, so that theoretically all humanoids of the country have a voice in its governance. An election of their top leader - the “president" - is coming up. I see something going on in their media...recent, from last night.

Spock: Yes, much of the population watched a debate between the presidential candidates. I have just completed a review of the debate.

Kirk: This should be fascinating! What did they say about the coming refashioning of the humanoid body and mind?

Spock: Nothing.

Kirk: What?

Spock: There was no reference in the debate, either from the moderators or the candidates, to the imminent end of the species' current form of body and mind.

Kirk (after a bewildered pause): But, does the population know that the changes are imminent? Is the technology secret?

Spock: No, the technology is discussed throughout their media. There is no censorship.

Kirk: Then...what...?

Spock: The species is essentially asleep.

Kirk: What can we do to warn them what's coming, something that won't violate the Prime Directive [a protocol that forbids interference with indigenous cultures]?

Spock: Perhaps we can send an ambiguous message, designed not to direct specific action, but to suggest at least that thought be given to something.

Kirk Hmm...Spock, is the new SkyWrite laser operational?

Spock: Affirmative.

And so it was that the next morning the mightiest country on the planet arose to a scarlet banner across the dawn sky reading:

HUMANOIDS OF LEMON DROP: WAKE THE FUCK UP!
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