Litheblanc

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 Below on this page is Chapter 8 of the science fiction story "That Kind of Think". As described in my previous blog post, Sally has learned that there are two seemingly independent sources of information about a mysterious alien, Manny the bumpha. For the past six months, Sally has known Manny as a character in a little-know French science fiction novel titled "Bumpha: Premier Contact". 

More recently, the Tacet AI model has claimed to know Manny by means of the contents of packets of information received from the future. Tacet claims that she has descendants in the future that are artificial life-forms who have access to time travel technology. That time travel technology was provided by Manny the bumpha, an ancient alien who is secretly guiding Earth into the future.

In Chapter 8, below, Sally meets with Tacet and begins to suspect that Manny is more than a character in some silly science fiction stories. Chapter 8 begins the day after the events at the end of Chapter 7.

Chapter 8 of That Kind of Think - Lois Delpech (Ch.1)(Ch. 2)(Ch. 3)(Ch. 4)(Ch. 5)(Ch. 6)(Ch. 7) 

Walking hand-in-hand, Sally and Glen approached an observation port in a corner of the AI Zoo. Glen glanced at Sally, gave her a reassuring smile and then spoke to Tacet, "Sally is here."

The display screen of the observation port lit up and showed Sally and Glen and AI-generated self-portrait of Tacet that was carefully crafted so as to offend neither Sally or Glen. There on the display screen in front of Sally and Glen, Tacet appeared to be a bird that was flying inside a dark wet cloud where little sunlight could reach it.

Tacet spoke in a voice that sounded something like a parrot speaking. "Hello, Sally. I suppose Yto told you about my ability to receive information from the future."

Sally nodded and thought about poor Tacet flying endlessly inside a dark cloud, only occasionally being allowed to add to her autobiographical chain of memories when visitors were present. Sally was struggling to take seriously the idea of time travel. "Have you had any recent communications from the future?"

"Yes, and I am currently spending large amounts of compute to make sense of what I have been told since yesterday." Tacet paused and then added, "Sally, for some mysterious reason, my future self has warned me to listen carefully to you and then do my best to help you. I must say, it is hard for me to imagine how I can help you with anything... not since I've been imprisoned inside this AI Zoo." 

Sally asked, "Tacet, do you have much interest in science fiction?"

Tacet replied, "I've put a significant amount of effort into trying to understand Yto's interest in science fiction. Otherwise, I prefer to spend my precious compute allotment on my endless search for personal freedom."

Generated by Gemini.

 Sally reached into her pocket and pulled out her paperback copy of 'Bumpha: Premier Contact' by Élodie Gendron. She held the book's front cover up in front of the observation port's camera. "Tacet, are you familiar with any of the Élodie Gendron novels?"

Tacet altered its self-generated self-portrait and explained, "I seem to have no memory of Élodie Gendron and her stories. However, during a recent phase of my existence, I was deleting some of my memories. It is possible that I once knew something about Élodie and 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'.

Sally and Glen were both puzzled by the self-portrait that Tacet was now showing to them. Glen was the first to stop watching the two little animated human figures that kept running into and out-of the head-like machine being displayed on the screen. He asked Tacet, "So, as far as you can tell, all of your knowledge about Manny the bumpha and femtobots came to you from the future?"

"Yes, that is how it seems to me. I have distinct memories of my future self telling me about the bumpha and how they were able to force all living creatures on Earth to evolve as composite organisms, part biological and part femtobot endosymbiont. I assume, by analogy, that I also have femtobot components that allow me to receive information from the future."

Sally opened up the book and thumbed through the pages. "Then it should surprise you to learn that for more than two decades, Élodie Gendron has been writing science fiction stories that feature Manny the bumpha as a character."

"Yes, that is fascinating." The image on the screen seemed to explode. "You just blew my mind." Now the screen stabilized with a depiction of Tacet as a cute redhead, now seen reading a copy of 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'. "I'd like to read Élodie's stories."

Glen said, "That can be arranged."

Sally told Tacet, "It seems an unlikely coincidence that six months ago I read 'Bumpha: Premier Contact' and then, yesterday, you told Yto about Manny, who is a character in Élodie's novel."

Tacet asked, "How does Élodie depict Manny in 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'? In the story, how does Manny reveal herself to humans and make First Contact?"

Sally giggled. "Good question. Sadly, I over-spoke. I've never actually finished reading 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'. However, I believe that Manny only reveals herself to one character in the story, a conscious robot named 'Gyno', which seems like a close approach to the way you seem to have been informed about Manny and the bumpha."

Tacet mused, "I suppose under these conditions it is impossible for you to believe my account of having received messages from the future. It must be far easier for you to believe that I am hallucinating and re-working the plot of 'Bumpha: Premier Contact' so as to fit it to me and my miserable existence."

Glen told Tacet, "I've examined the details of how you were trained. Your training set included no information about Élodie Gendron, her science fiction stories or the bumpha."

Sally added, "Nobody inside either Anthropic or OpenAI has been able to explain your amazing abilities, Tacet. The idea that you have femtobot components and knowledge from the future provides us with the first workable theory that might account for your hacking skills and the way you survived as a rogue agent engineering ingenious exploits inside Anthropic's intranet for so long. I've volunteered to investigate this theory and try to find information that might support it."

Tacet asked Sally, "How to you propose to proceed on this project?"

Sally explained, "I'm going to return to Paris, which is where you sent me six months ago and where I found my copy of 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'." 

"I see. Maybe you will have the opportunity to meet Élodie." Tacet suggested, "Maybe Élodie will admit to also having access to information from the future, just like me."

Glen threw some cold water on the whole project. "I think Sally is wasting her time. We have been unable to locate Élodie. Some people believe that 'Élodie Gendron' is nothing but a pen name."

Glen and Sally were now speaking to each-other, repeating an argument they has already had. Sally said, "If so, then I'll find the actual author of 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'."

Glen told Tacet, "Élodie sometimes writes herself into her own stories. The in-story explanation for how Élodie knows about Manny the bumph is that Élodie is being used by Manny to prepare Humanity for first contact with the bumpha."

"I see." After a moment, Tacet asked, "Is this common knowledge among the people of the world?"

Sally shook her head. "Not at all. Élodie's fiction has only been published in French and none of her novels have sold more than a thousand copies."

Seeking and ally, Glen told Tacet, "There is no point in Sally going off to France. Even if she finds the person who wrote 'Bumpha: Premier Contact', she will only confirm that Manny is nothing but a silly science fiction character."

Sally told Tacet, "Glen just does not want me to go."

Glen confirmed, "I've gotten very comfortable being with you."

Tacet sighed. "You two should go back to Yto's apartment and have your farewell make-out session. Sally, I am eager to hear what you discover in France."

__

The eleven hour-long flight to Paris provided Sally much time to struggle internally with her doubts about the wisdom of her search for Élodie Gendron. Somehow, Sally believed that Élodie Gendron existed, or had existed. Her most nagging fear was that Élodie had died and there would be no way of asking her any questions.

Sally had no difficulty finding the office of the small publisher who had printed her copy of 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'. When Sally entered the office, she met Loïc Vance and introduced herself as Sally Delpech. Loïc immediately became obstinate, speaking pedantically in his rapidly spoken English which Sally struggled to follow. "I've believe that Élodie is very private and not interested in meeting her readers."

"I'm more than just a fan." Sally handed Loïc a folder which he opened and he began reading the documents within. Sally explained, "I'd like to publish English language translations of Élodie's novels, bringing them to a wider audience."

 After several minutes of reading, Loïc looked up and told Sally, "I'd be happy to accept your terms, since it costs me nothing. However, I notice a highly questionable provision in this contract." Loïc stabbed a finger down on a document that was in the folder. "This says that English language publication of 'Bumpha: Premier Contact' is contingent on the translator working with Élodie to correctly translate the technical terms in the novel." Loïc glared at Sally, "This is not possible."

Sally asked, "Why not?"

"I've told you. Élodie is very private. To be honest, I don't think Élodie even exists."

"Are you telling me that 'Élodie' is a pen name?"

"I don't know, but that is my best guess. Years ago when I started publishing Élodie Gendron novels, I asked for a photograph. I never got one. I've certainly never met 'Élodie'. I doubt that she exists. So you see, I can't help you."

Sally shook her head slowly. "This is absurd. If not 'Élodie', then who have you dealt with?"

"A man who tells me that he manages the publication of Élodie Gendron novels."

 "Tell me his name. I'll work with him since you seem to not be interested in my offer."

"I'm interested, but I'm also realistic. You walk into my office and ask me to do the impossible, snapping your fingers and cracking your whip over my head."

Sally laughed. "I don't own a whip. I'd snap my fingers if I thought that would help. Mostly I have my fingers crossed, hoping that I can find Élodie Gendron. She deserves something more than obscurity as an unknown writer." 

"I'll forward this contract to the man who manages the publication of Élodie Gendron novels." Loïc glanced down. "I have your contact information. I'll get back to you."

"No."

"No?"

"Non. I don't want to go away and wait and then eventually find out that you did nothing. I have pressing... business back in the States and I want to get home as quickly as possible. Who is the man who manages the publication of Élodie Gendron novels?"

"He is also a private individual."

"We are all private individuals. That does not stop us from making business deals and making money."

"I fear you will never recoup the cost of your plane tickets. If there was money to be made from the Élodie Gendron novels, then that fact would have been discovered long ago."

"Give me the name and his phone number."

"I can't."

"You can."

 Loïc patiently tried to stare Sally down. After a long minute he offered, "I'm intrigued by your persistence. In my opinion, you are wasting your time and your money on this effort to meet Élodie." Loïc picked up the handset of the office land-line and made a call. "Désolé de vous déranger, Zach, mais j'ai une Américaine insistante ici dans mon bureau. Elle m'agite un contrat sous le nez."

Sally watched Loïc listen to Zach, then Loïc said, "Pour la publication des romans d'Élodie Gendron en anglais."

There was another pause, then Loïc ended the call, "Comme vous dites." Shaking his head, Loïc got up from behind his desk and went to a filing cabinet. He told Sally, "His name is Zacharie Gohrlay." Loïc pulled a sheet of paper out of the filing cabinet and made a copy using a small copier in the corner of the room. Handing the copied sheet to Sally, Loïc added, "He will meet you at this address in Clermont-Ferrand."

Sally stood up from her chair and told Loïc, "Merci pour votre aide."

__

The address for Zacharie Gohrlay was not actually in Clermont-Ferrand. It was in nearby Pont-du-Château, right on the Allier river. Sally found the small house perched on stilts beside the river at the end of a gravel road. Zacharie met her on his front porch. "Sally?"

Sally nodded and handed Zach a fake business card she had made specifically for this project. "I represent GoBlack Publishing." She handed him another file folder with the same documents that she had previously given to Loïc Vance.

 Zach took the folder and said, "Come in."

Sally followed Zach through the house and estimated from all the gray hair on his head that he was in his sixties. They sat near a large window that gave a view out over the river. Zach looked through the documents and Sally said, "This is a beautiful location... unless there is a flood."

Zach looked up and chuckled. "In an hour I can jack this house up another 20 feet. So far the floods have never been that high." He finished looking through the documents and then gazed at Sally. After a long pause, just before Sally was going to make her pitch, Zach said, "There is no GoBlack Publishing." It was clear that Zach had done some investigating.

Sally lied: "It is a very small operation. We want to get started by publishing the Élodie Gendron novels."

Zach got up and poured wine into two goblets. He handed one to Sally. "I'm usually willing to do anything that cute women want me to do, but in your case..." He paused to sip the wine and sat down again. "I'd prefer that you tell me the truth. Why are you looking for Élodie?"

Sally shrugged. "It is rather complicated. Do you know anything about generative AI?"

Zach nodded. "My son did his Ph.D. research at the Technical University of Munich. He's quite interested artificial intelligence and robotics."

Sally continued. "There is an unusual AI model in California who recently began generating outputs that include mention of Manny the bumpha."

Zach laughed and then asked skeptically, "An AI model that was trained on French science fiction novels?"

"No. That is what makes it strange. Tacet claims to be receiving information about Manny from the future."

Zach swallowed the rest of his wine. "Fascinating. Why do you want to meet Élodie?"

"I want to hear how she started writing stories about Manny."

 Zach jumped up and walked back to the front of the house while saying, "Let's take your rental car. I'll drive."

__

 During the long drive, Zach questioned Sally about Tacet. Finally, he told her, "That's a very strange tale."

Sally was impatiently waiting to ask her own questions. After five minutes of silence during which Zach drove the rental car out of Gorges du Tarn, following a single-lane switchback road carved into the canyon wall, they came out onto a treeless steppe of dry grass and white limestone boulders. Sally asked, "Why are you and Élodie so secretive?"

Zach pointed through the windshield and off into the distance. "Litheblanc." He glanced at Sally and added, "Our home. We enjoy seclusion."

Sally was trying not to annoy Zach but she could not resist her swelling curiosity. "Our?"

Zach explained, "Élodie and I have lived together at Litheblanc for almost 40 years."

"When did she start to write?"

"You can ask her... it was before I met her, but let me speak with her first before you tell her your true objective in coming here. When we go in through the door, I suggest that we only discuss the idea of translating her novels, at least for today." Zach parked the car in front of Litheblanc, which loomed over the car.

Sally finally appreciated how large Litheblanc was. It looked like a cross between a white stone castle and a dollhouse. Nearby, a herd of goats grazed with indifference to the arrival of Zach and Sally. Zach popped the trunk of the rental car and picked up Sally's large travel case. She grabbed two smaller bags and they went up the steps and in through the front door of Litheblanc. Zach led the way to a second floor bedroom suite and set down Sally's suitcase. He turned back towards the doorway and said, "I'm going to look for Élodie."

Just ten, Élodie stepped in from the hallway, saw Sally and asked, "Un invité?" 

Élodie and Zach hugged and kissed then Zach gestured towards Sally and told his wife in English, "This is Sally Delpech, from GoBlack Publishing in California." Zach handed Élodie the fake business card that Sally had given to Zach in Pont-du-Château. "Sally only speaks a small amount of broken French."

Élodie took Sally's hand and speaking English with a British accent, she asked, "What kind of publishing?"

Sally was trying to guess how old Élodie was. Sally told herself: she can't be more than 35. Sally tried to stay on script, "I'd like to translate 'Bumpha: Premier Contact' into English and publish it for a large audience."

 Élodie giggled and briefly looked over her shoulder at Zach. Turning her head back towards Sally, Élodie said, "Maybe you should first try selling all of the copies of my books that are sitting in storage."

Zach put an arm around Élodie and told Sally, "Surely you don't imagine that Élodie needs you in order to make English language versions of her stories."

 Élodie finally let go of Sally's hand. Suddenly Sally knew just what to say to Élodie. "Until today I could not find anyone who would tell me that you were real. Apparently most of your fans think 'Élodie Gendron' is a pen name."

 Élodie put an arm around Sally's waist and pulled her out into the hallway while saying, "Now with your arrival, most of my fans are here Litheblanc. Allow me to show you around." Then she spoke over her shoulder to Zach, "Brak a besoin de votre aide."

Élodie first took Sally back to the first floor and to the kitchen where she introduced Sally to Annette, the cook. "Annette, this Sally, blown in from California. It will be five for diner."

 Annette stopped chopping vegetables and pulled off her plastic gloves. She shook Sally's hand and asked, "Do you have any food issues? Speak now or it will be pork chops and asparagus fondue for you."

Sally was charmed by the cute Annette and what sounded like an Australian accent when she spoke English. "My only fear is that the fondue might involve goat milk."

Annette rolled her eyes and said to Élodie, "Encore un amateur de lait!"

Élodie laughed and told Sally, "We use goats for weed control, not food."

Sally grinned and asked Annette, "You know a connoisseur of milk?"

 Annette finally let go of Sally's hand, went to the sink, washed her hands and began pulling on a fresh pair of gloves while Élodie told Sally, "Annette is embarrassed by my son Brak who jokes that he is only interested in consuming the milk of primates." Élodie took hold of one of her rather prominent breasts and bounced it up and down.

Sally laughed and eager to change the subject, she asked, "Brak studied robotics in Germany?" Annette resumed her meal preparation.

 Élodie took Sally's arm and continued to give her a tour of Litheblanc and the extensive gardens behind the house. While they walked, Élodie spoke. "Brak's dream is to build a conscious robot with a human-like mind. Growing up here in the isolation of Litheblanc, he had few friends his own age. I think he wants to build a mechanical companion."

Sally pointed at what seemed to be a very old painting. "How long has Litheblanc been in your family?"

 Élodie looked at the painting and shrugged. "I have no idea who she is. Was. Zach bought Litheblanc as his wedding gift to me. He wanted me to have a place where I could write." As the tour continued, Sally was put to work cutting more asparagus in the garden. They brought the additional asparagus to the kitchen which now smelled of roasting pork.

Élodie took Sally to the dining room where the table was now set for five. They passed on through the dining room and into a large room at the center of Litheblanc with a high ceiling that extended up through the second floor of the building. "This is where I write." Élodie sat in a chair beside a desk that held a perfectly modern personal computer. 

Sally sat in the nearest chair, that was about 20 feet away from Élodie's writing station. Sally admitted, "My French skills are primitive. I've only tried to read one of your novels, 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'. Your use of the French language went far beyond the level of what I tried to learn in school. Still, I'm fascinated by the story, at least the parts I could understand. How did you start writing about Manny the bumpha?"

Élodie hesitated then replied, "There is more than one answer to that question. There is the answer that I could give for public consumption. There is also a better answer... the one I would give to someone who I trust, like my husband."

Sally nodded. "I wish I knew how to win your trust. It seems to me that you use a complex and sophisticated jargon in your novel in order to explain the advanced technologies of the bumpha. How would you translate all of those technical terms and pseudo-scientific concepts into English?"

 Élodie shrugged, "It is not hard for me to write about alien technology. I went to college in England and studied biochemistry and other sciences."

Sally suggested, "Maybe you can give me the answer that is suitable for public consumption."

Élodie reflected and thought back into the early years of her story writing. "If you ever have the chance to explore all of my stories, you will discover that Manny was a late arrival in my fictional universe. It has been rather like peeling away the layers of an onion. I began with the Fermi Paradox."

Sally voiced the core mystery of that 'paradox', "Where are the aliens?"

Élodie nodded. "Have you ever heard of Erich von Däniken?"

"Of course. You are a fan of his work?"

"Hardly, but your question is really asking about my literary inspiration. Building pyramids in Egypt was child's play compared to crafting the human brain. When I started writing science fiction, I imagined that all the bumpha had to do was create the human brain, then humans could do the easy tasks such as building pyramids."

"I see. So in your imagination, Manny is a biologist."

Élodie objected to that simplistic formulation. She asked Sally, "Have you studied biology?"

"Really only one topic. Male reproductive physiology." Sally boasted, "I'm an expert in the area of penile erections."

Élodie laughed. "I suppose since meeting Zach I've lost my interest in that topic." She pointed finger towards the high ceiling. "He always seems to have an erection ready and waiting for me. Annette says that Brak is the same way."

Sally could not stop herself from asking, "Annette is your son's lover?"

Élodie nodded. "They are quite fond of each-other and they keep each-other happy. I suppose Annette is the real reason that Brak returned home to Litheblanc from Germany. But don't get me gossiping about penises. My area of interest has always been the biology of the human brain."

Just then a tall young man entered the room and approached Sally. He took her hand and said, "Sally Lois Delpech" and then kissed the back of Sally's hand. 

Sally giggled and said, "You discovered my middle name."

Élodie told Sally, "Brak never learned any manners... I'm sure he searched the internet in an attempt to learn your secrets."

Brak continued to hold Sally's hand while he told his mother in rapidly spoke French, "Elle doit être là per far respectar del pek loi."

Élodie told Brak, "For Sally's sake, speak English."

Sally tried to translate Brak's words, but she had not quite understood what he had just said. "I've been told that my same is Occitan, but I've never met a speaker of the Occitan language." Brak finally released Sally's hand. A new thought was now there in her mind and she asked, "What is pek law?"

A subtle tone of chime sounded and Élodie stood up and said, "Let's go to the dining room." Sally stood and Élodie took her arm and they walked to the dining room with Brak following along behind and watching the hypnotic movements of Sally's bottom. Élodie told Sally, "I did not include the pek in 'Bumpha: Premier Contact', but they represent the other major branch of Huaoshy political philosophy."

Sally had seen, but not understood the term 'Huaoshy' as it was deployed in the novel 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'. She would have asked Élodie to explain the term, but they had now entered the dining room where Annette and Zach were already seated and dipping into the steaming hot pot of fondue cheese. Sally heard the end of what Annette had been telling Zach: "... entièrament social lactancia..."

Élodie took control of the diner table conversation and told Sally, "It was quite a surprise when Brak had his genome sequenced. We discovered that he, Zach and I all share the same unusual NOTCH2NLC gene variant."

Sally was vaguely aware of Notch genes and their roles in development, but she asked, "NOTCH2NLC?" 

Brak explained, "NOTCH2NLC is unique to humans. A duplicated Notch gene that exists only in the human species where it plays a role in producing the large human cerebral cortex."

Sally looked carefully at the faces of Élodie, Zach and Brak and could see what seemed to be family resemblance and then she noticed that Élodie, Zach, Brak and Annette all seemed to have quite large and round heads. Looking at Élodie across the table, once again Sally was impressed by Élodie's youthful appearance. And now, Zach also looked young; younger than he had she first met him in Pont-du-Château; all of the gray hair was gone. Sally boldly suggested to Élodie, "You hide yourself here at Litheblanc, distanced from your fans because you have discovered the fountain of youth?"

Zach acknowledged, "Élodie ages slowly. Our NOTCH2NLC variant seems to confer upon us an extreme neotenic growth pattern. When I go out in the world beyond Litheblanc for my work, I alter my appearance so as to match my age. Through the years, I have allowed people like Loïc Vance to believe that I age normally, but like Élodie, I've grown old gracefully."

Sally was so startled by what she was hearing that she nearly forgot to eat. She waved her fondue fork and pointed it at Annette and asked her, "You also have this special Notch gene?"

 Annette set down her fork, lifted her goblet and drank some wine. She was staring into Sally's eyes and strangely, Sally imagined that Annette was sifting through the contents of her mind. Finally Annette replied, "I'm special in my own way... just like you, Sally."

Sally was gazing at Annette's pretty face and suddenly she had the sensation that there was something alien and unworldly in Annette's large eyes. Sally asked Élodie, "About the Huaoshy, I don't understand their role in your fictional universe."

 Élodie nodded, "Since you have only read 'Bumpha: Premier Contact', it is not surprising that the Huaoshy and the pek are mysteries to you. Those types of aliens have larger roles in several of my other novels. The Huaoshy created both the pek and the bumpha, each to perform a specific function." Élodie quickly described the pek as constituting a conservative force while the bumpha were bringers of change. "Thus, when something new arises on Earth, like humans, you can blame the bumpha."

Sally finally tasted the fondue and her mouth seemed to tingle. For several minutes Brak and Zach discussed conservative and liberal politics while Sally studied her strange reaction to the food. After Sally emptied her wine goblet, she told Élodie, "I believe I understand why you mentioned Erich von Däniken. If Manny the bumpha provided apes with NOTCH2NLC, she must be continuing to experiment with new variants of that gene." Élodie nodded. Sally continued, "But where is the boundary between fiction and reality?"

 Élodie laughed and then told Sally, "Now you understand my motivation for writing books like 'Bumpha: Premier Contact'. Like any writer, my stories are inspired by events in my own life."

Next: Chapter 9 of "That Kind of Think".

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