Commune, empty space, some [classified] light-years from the Zero system
Cloud Nine's ship, the Proletarian-class carrier
Punisher of Avarice, proceeded with caution to the large artificial planetoid floating in the middle of empty space. No planets, suns or moons graced this corner of the cosmos. But it was filled with ships coming in and departing. Those were transport vessels which brought resources to the hungry planetoid.
- We're cleared, - reported one of the crewmembers in the cockpit, a telepath. - It's waiting. We have been granted several hours.
- They said "several", just like that? - Nine was befuddled.
- Yeah, - nodded the telepath somewhat uncomfortably, - I guess that means you can talk to it... them until they are bored or something.
The traffic was intense - supralight shifts were not allowed near the planetoid to avoid damaging it... and to keep some relative secrecy if someone would want to discover it.
The thing was massive, but immobile. It had no engines (and thankfully so far
it does not want them, Cloud Nine thought with relief). That could change in the future, but as of now, the massive body was still a part of the Commune. Its largest achievement, itы most zealously guarded treasure. Something the communists did not want outsiders to see. Perhaps we are still afraid of it, thought Cloud Nine. Perhaps we still cannot fully comprehend what we have created.
![Image](http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100724103405/worldsofsdn/images/9/9f/PlanetoidCore1.jpg)
The ship slowly docked to one of the enormous bays of an orbital crown that literally grew out of one of the poles. Nine and a team of Commune officials left the ship. They did not need to go anywhere - the dock corridor they entered was just created out of the huge mass of nanomaterial, and it was immediately transformed into a large hall, resembling an audience hall. A cloud-like being separated from the walls.
- Welcome, comrades, - the being spoke. - Would you like direct talks or limited?
Direct talks entailed the risk of someone becoming too fascinated with the Core and never returning. This is why contacts were kept to an auditory and visual minimum. Even nerve-tapping in the Core was not recommended for visitors. Of course, it was all legal... but not recommended. Those who were brave enough wanted to join the Core anyway. It would be stupid to prevent them from doing so.
- Limited, thank you, - Nine replied. - I have come... I mean, you already know what I have come to ask.
- Indeed, - the Core replied with a deep voice. - Bragulans, a tiny rising emotionary speckle on a scattered space...
- Could you please constrain your flow! - Nine said harshly. Dealing with the Core was often very complicated. The supermind which was created by untold thousands of fused intelligences (with some degree of fear Nine thought that perhaps one day he will fuse with it as well) was rather eccentric. It was obviously benevolent. It kept the Commune's energy grid planning on a very high level, something a human mind or even a fused one could not comprehend. The Commune's citizens did not regard the Core as a god, merely as one of the strange creatures inhabiting it... but that was probably due to the Core's own desires. It did not wish to be a god. It kept itself supplied by Commune ships and preferred to rely on the Commune to defend it. In return it offered the Commune its enormously powerful intelligence for purposes of planning both in peace and war, advice and counsel in times dire and good. And of course, the Core did not want people to perceive it as a threat. It was a superior intelligence, but not an omnipotent one.
- Forgive us, - spoke the Core. - The political dilemma of the Bragulans. There are several million options and a yet larger outcome tree with extremely complex probabilities. We have already... I have already pondered on it, and decided that Bragule cannot be contacted with right now. However, we should be neutral to their endeavors.
Nine knew this effect - sometimes the Core perceived itself as a single mind, but sometimes its individual intelligences occupied themselves with personal tasks and at that moment it referred to itself as "we". The computational speeds inside the Core were so high that a human or cloud could hardly comprehend the life of the enormous hivemind. Shifts between I and we were pretty common. Nine thought that in a funny sense, the Core emulated the behaviour of monarchs who used plural to denote their "Majesty", but for a purely technical reason.
- The reason is not purely technical, comrade Nine, - the Core suddenly said. - But I hope you are satisfied.
- I am, thank you... comrades, - Nine replied.
- Yeah, - said the Core in a sudden new, more street-like style of speech, - and don't even think about that. I know what you thought about - gods. The Core is not god. God does not exist. And even if it would, I would kill it. We have estimated our power to be enough for technical collisions with extradimensional beings if we ever meet any. Do not try to ressurect the opiate of the masses inside your head in any form or shape. God is dead. Niet...
- Thanks, I know. Sorry, comrades, - Nine damned himself for his stupid inner ramblings a minute ago. - How is the Plan?
- The Plan requires uploading. Transmitting now...
Nine felt his mind aching. Bulk transmissions were always a little painful. The Plan was dumped into his mind like a huge bucket of very complex numbers, non-linear equations and other trivia. In a second he knew that energy leeching was increasing in sector such-and-such, and that the Core already sent a message to the Supreme Soviet to initiate a new wave of "austerity conditioning" among the Sector's populace. Austerity conditioning often kept the Commune's energy grid from needless leeching. It was a form of propaganda which extolled the "New Sparta", as Commune's detractors called it - having the vast power of Commune at bay, but using only a small amount of the energy available. Being a "leecher" in the grid was a good way to ruin your public face. It was something akin to the old "national culture" concepts, wherein some cultures had its members not performing usury or, for example, spending only a certain part of income on himself.
There were no five-year, ten-year or hundred-year plans in the Commune. Just one Plan, "The Plan", which was developed by the Core (although Zero had the old auxiliary supercomputers running that were planning Commune's energy redistribution some 50 years ago, and they could be relied on in case of emergency). It was an ever-changing maze of people's desires, energy constraints and allocations and other parameters, none of which were constant.
Nine was amazed and for a second he trembled, because he knew he was just a wish away from the Core. He could join it. He could become a part of this great mind.
- We have detected the will in comrade Nine to join us...
- NO! - he shook his head. - Just... No. Don't tempt me.
- Yes, yes, excuse us, - the Core's remote that it sent to converse with the communists suddenly shut up for a minute. - Oh, what wonders! Oh, what intricate, unbelievable beauty grandeur greatness joy awe delicate tender wonder curiousity... Curious black needles traversing the calms superdimensional realms... Oh... Calculation as unpredictable petals in wild spring blooming growing fractrals that bleed like flowers open their hearts and die....
The Core's remote started shaking, but soon regained posture. Nine winced. Perhaps the Core is not all roses.
- We can inform you, I can inform you that a Collector yummy funny thing... monolith has been detected traversing in the direction of the oh-so-delicious region of most curious space! - the Core exclaimed.
- By the old bones of Marx, - cried Nine, - Please, remember we are connected by limited means. What is "the oh-so delicious region of most curious space"?
- It's... the... what it their primitive language, it is called the Central Alliance, a region possibly transported by a higher intelligence with greater capabilities than our humble collective, - mumbled the Core's remote incoherently. - The Alliance of the Center on the outskirts of the known inhabited teeming with brutal bloody exploitative primitive barbaric lifeforms, what an irony in the name, we could better call it the Outer Alliance but technically better yet, Alliance of the XHYUIPQOOPO... - it seemed the Core became consumed with tasks more suited for a superintelligence again.
- I see, you've grown bored, - Nine shrugged. - Anything else before we leave?
- The directions to the Supreme Soviet will be sent in three fashions, condensed telepathic messages for telepaths, condensed expressionpacks for clouds, condensed nerve-tapping expressionpacks for humans. I think we'll have them ready in a week or so, - the Core said with a suddenly emotionless voice. - Excuse me, I have subdued higher emotions, advanced emotions to investigate the very curious events and commit to recent tasks with a cooler head, as you would say.
- And preliminary advice on intelligence? - Nine and his team were almost leaving, but he decided to ask the Core about one more thing, perhaps it's not yet completely gone...
- Mirage operation Secularis is an inefficient method because they lack my resources, - bluntly said the Core. - We us I shall manage operation Secularis in a superior fashion. I shall request from you a team of highly trained individualistic in the 10th degree telepaths, whom I shall train as my agents and transmitters. They will serve as links between me and the splinter groups that the current Mirage strategist Vector has laid out. He actually came to consult me recently and it was an oh-so-funny game, I taunted and tempted him, we do not understand why how it is possible for such an old wise smart evil good being not to join us. He chose to remain in his empty shell of petty bourgeois nihilistic egoistic individualism separate body separate mind. We are disappointed but the game will continue. I will relate to the Mirage, I will relate to comrade Sikorski that we want to play.
Nine didn't even nod, he knew that the Core already knew his thoughts. Their last statement was creepy as fuck. Play a game? Operation Secularis was probably one of the most dangerous endeavors of the Commune in a galaxy full of religious bigots.
Mirage headquarters, New Leonov. Commune.
![Image](http://www.taday.ru/data/838/495/1234/%D0%BE7.jpg)
The tightbeam came like a lightning strike in a storm that Sikorski didn't expect.
-
It wants to play? - the intelligence director of the Commune eyed the report suspiciously. - God damn it... These overpowered children want to play again. Taunting me, eh, are you, comrades from the Core? But then, I can't deny, you're offering me powers that my operation was lacking. I agree. Send a tightbeam to the core.
The Core. Commune (cont'd)
Nine saw how the hall started to lose shape and shrink somewhat. The Core was annoyed, but still spent some part of its power on the conversation. Soon it will end, thought Nine. As it always does.
- We have planned we see a possibility I envision a utopia, - spoke the Core remote less and less coherently, he was becoming transparent. It seemed the audience with the hivemind was coming to an end. - The utopia city of the sun union of man and machine the supraformation. There is comes a time to forge a union with great minds that think alike with freethinkers with those who are comrades with those who have removed the shackles of capital petty grid pathetic human individualism petty little vermin leechers those who are worthy to become a chain to protect the galaxy protect me give possibility for all to flourish. Those areas which are the Most Curious Alliance, the large letter U towering on Zero like a hideous beautiful pyramid totalitarian glorious majestic friendly union, the also so technical planning calculating cunning Miratian post-Miratian loose alliance cannon bunch of rogue micro mini not-yet-communist tribes groups sufficiently advanced enclaves... I will submit, without fail, all precious plans of the game-not-a-game, of the grand decision-making process to forge to unite to consume to get lost...
- An alliance between the Commune, IUW, Central Alliance and Umeria? - Nine's advanced thinking processors were running on top speed trying to cope with the flow of contradictory, poorly worder, emotionally and undertone-laden information. - Holy crap, it's so difficult to deal with you sometimes. But then, I think you're working on the new directives, so I won't spend your precious minutes. Goodbye, comrades. I applaud your fate, your glory and your sacrifice for the Commune, - he spoke the standard formula which remained unchanged for ages since the first three fused individuals decided to merge into something greater on a rocky moon. Now, a long time has passed since that day and the moon no longer had any rock left. Neither did it orbit the old planet they took it from. Nine did not know how many millions of minds, millions of souls the Core had.
- Bear with us... with me, Nine, my friend, - the Core said somewhat shyly. - To relay all the thinking in our mind without a direct contact is very hard. It is unfortunate that this wall separates us, but we understand the risks of narcotic addiction consumption of endless endless you cannot imagine computational power worlds of imagination sky castles glorious future. That is us. One day you will be old and tired. One day you will join. We shall be waiting. Goodbye, our friend. Come again. You are curious and delightful, yes, oh yes.
The remote vanished. Once again the chamber transformed into a corridor. Most of the people who came here visited the Core often, so none of them were freaked out. Well, maybe only a little bit. Some thought it would be cool to join one day. Others probably tried to imagine what the Core was capable of... if it wanted.
- Comrades, let's go. We're leaving, - Nine said, and the team went back to their ship.