I. The following message was received amongst the thousands sent to Bobert Crandon: “It is evil to impede the progress of the human intellect with psychoactive chemicals. It is evil to forbid humanity the right to augment their evolution with the machines of their own design.”
“It’s so upsetting, Your Grace,” said Crandon. “To receive such a treasonous and heretical message…”
“We expected it,” I said. “It’s Lilith. Of course, you can trace it?”
She was baiting us. The killings on Dalgherdia had stopped, but there were rumors of the vampire cult spreading: on Sideria and Eirelantra, amongst the bored intellectuals, and on Skarsia, amongst certain disenfranchised battlequeens, favorites of the 5th Matriarch who thought they could leverage it for position. It was only on Volparnu, where a religion lead by a woman was unacceptable, and Dolparessa, home of both the Nau’gsh and Tara’s most devoted supporters, where the sect could find no foothold.
Why? Lilith’s true motives were clear to us although obscure to the public. For the time, we didn’t want to reveal what we knew – the heretical behavior of Cillian’s daughter would surely cause endless scandal, a complication we did not need. What I could not comprehend was the attraction the cult held for its followers. Perhaps some of them supported her radical politics, but I sensed that for most of them, it was not the case. Popular opinion was still strongly against cybridization.
Do you really want to know? asked Lorcan.
I raised an eyebrow.
You’re good at that creepy-sexy thang, said Lorcan. Listen, the truth is simple. Being evil feels good.
You mean that certain evil acts provide a temporary sense of release, such as avenging a perceived slight?
No. I mean that evil, as its own entity, feels good. You don’t have to define evil at all. It’s the act of transgression, the joy in decadence, in dissipation, in one’s own ruin.
It doesn’t make any sense to take joy in one’s own ruin – except when overwhelmed by guilt. But a person capable of feeling guilt has a sense of moral reasoning.
Call up the Matriarch’s library. I could give you Baudelaire, but let’s be more hardcore. Find de Lautréamont, Les Chants de Maldoror.
It takes only a minute for me to obtain the file, less than that to absorb it – it’s a brief text.
What do you think?
It’s appalling.
Honestly.
It has a certain…fascination…
It’s beautiful.
Yes.
It’s full of hatred, disgust and despair, and it’s beautiful.
I never noticed it before – or perhaps we simply failed to take it into account – but Lorcan is beautiful.
Of course I am. Tara loves me.
Tara loves him. Tara loves…the pull of transgression. How else could she embrace a life-form so alien to her? For whatever reason, the purveyors of malice encourage the transgressive act. But it is only through the transgressive act that evolution is achieved. Then why is evil so maligned?
Because it’s not safe, said Lorcan. Because transgression transforms, and you can never be certain if, the next time you look in the mirror, you’ll see the face of God, or the face of the devil. It requires a willingness to step beyond morality, beyond wisdom, and accept the ultimate risk to achieve the ultimate reward.
There’s a certain sense to what you say. It would explain the reason why throughout human history, minor occultists have been vilified for practicing harmless rites whereas serial killers are labeled as merely diseased.
It depends, said Lorcan. Some murderers, like Jack the Ripper, are trying to achieve transcendence through the ultimate transgression. Others, like General Panic, are merely banal sociopaths.
General Panic was an idealist. She believed herself to be doing good.
Our statements aren’t contradictory, Lorcan riposted.
And yet, her actions were malicious. She thought herself to be good, and yet clearly, she did evil.
You’ll never understand if you keep thinking of evil as the opposite of good, like black and white. Evil and good are more like dog and felinoid, haline and spicepepper. They’re contrasted so often we forget that they aren’t opposites. They each have an ontological status in their own right.
It explains how good – that is, nontransgressive – people can enforce harmful laws. Their actions are not malicious, merely short-sighted.
And it explains why so many people thought evil in their day were later celebrated as geniuses. De Lautréamont. Aleister Crowley. But it’s no sure thing. Jack the Ripper was not a genius. His transgression turned out to be merely destructive.
Is that why you’re writing poetry?
My poetry sucks.
The SongLuminants liked it.
That’s because they recognized it for what it was – a joke. And the joke was on us.
When Cüinn gets through with those galaxies, it won’t be.
II. I’ve never thought about it, said Callum. I didn’t know I was supposed to have an opinion. But to say it’s evil doesn’t feel right. Not in my gut.
That’s exactly why I wanted to interview you. You are a personality naturally attracted to transgression, but not necessarily to evil.
That stuff that Lorcan said doesn’t make sense to me. I’m not in love with my own destruction. I’m not dissipated. I enjoy being subjugated. That’s different. It’s just a different form of love. If you want dissipation, ask Chase.
That’s an interesting suggestion, thank you. So your desire to be abused doesn’t originate in any sense of self-hatred?
Hell no! In fact, when I can bear more pain for Tara’s sake, I feel proud. A dissipated person is weak, but I’m strong. I may not speak out for myself, but it’s not from fear or weakness. It’s a path I’ve chosen. Sometimes it takes a lot of strength to be silent.
Strictly speaking, you haven’t chosen it. The Mover chose it for you. As the Mover has chosen all our paths. Nevertheless, I see that you are incapable of evil.
I wouldn’t say that. If Tara told me to hurt someone, I’d do it. And I’d be responsible. “I was only following orders” is a coward’s excuse. I’d do it, and accept the blame for it, all for her sake.
By human standards, then, you’re morally ambiguous. But by Cu’enashti standards, you’re of the highest moral character.
III. You should just leave it to me, said Cillian. Last time out, you got messed up bad. You should leave the difficult situations to the professionals.
Are you saying that you could’ve handled the situation with the nullet better than I did? Although you have more physical strength, I doubt you could’ve dodged in time. Only Mickey would’ve had the reflexes.
Mickey would’ve seen it coming. And Valentin might have managed it, too. We’ve never really put him to the test. Not that I want to see him in a situation like that if I can help it.
Mickey would’ve seen it, even distracted by the false-Tara?
Mickey would’ve had the best chance. That’s why he does the undercover gigs. To be honest, I don’t have much confidence in you. Anyone who takes Lorcan seriously has got to be fucked up.
The Mover created him for a purpose. His voice should be heard.
I and I created him as a test to destruction that failed, which is why we’re all still here. He’s redundant at this point.
Like Lugh was redundant? And Lorcan had helpful things to say about the nature of evil.
Why do you have to make everything so difficult? Evil is simple. Somebody hurts somebody else with malice and no provocation. That stuff Lorcan told you is just compost. It romanticizes something ugly and petty. Serial killers are evil. So are people who beat up their grandmothers.
So an abused child who takes out the abuse on another is evil, and the SongLuminants, who erase species without malice, are not?
You think too fucking much, you know that? You’re like some bleeding heart judge, making excuses for a criminal, when any decent person would just say lock ‘em up and throw away the key.
Intriguing. According to the most common theories of moral development, you’re at a lower stage than I am.
Don’t make me punch you.
But why would the Mover not wish to engender the highest stages of moral development?
I just told you. Are your roots going soft? The average person doesn’t understand a word you’re saying. And the admiral of the fleet had better have a pretty fucking clear idea of right and wrong. I don’t need to be a fucking philosopher.
Is that why you read literary theory?
Get mulched.
Are you even sure that the dichotomy between right and wrong is equivalent to the dichotomy between good and evil?
That’s it. You’re on my list, right between Lorcan and Suibhne, of people to ignore completely. I’ll just get even with Esau on my own.
Revenge is wrong, and quite possibly evil.
Why don’t you explain the finer points of that to Constantine? Or maybe to Ross?
IV. Jamey approached me in my investigation. At first, I thought that as a perpetual victim, he might have some new insight. But that wasn’t it at all. He showed me a mental image. And another. And another.
Not things that we remember, exactly, but Jamey knows of them. I can access information about them easily through the Matriarch’s library. The collection consists of thousands of years of cast-away Earth history, rescued and digitized – although if I actually travelled to Skarsia, I could touch some of the books. Some of them are wood-pulp paper. I don’t think I want to do that.
Evil? Or mere ignorance? Rag paper is expensive. Why would humans, in their rudimentary sentience, accord a tree more priority than a field of flax? Would the SongLuminants distinguish between a human and a monkey?
This line of reasoning leads me to believe that I should disqualify the entire category of inadvertent atrocities from being considered evil. The SongLuminants would not. They are a practical people, dismissive of intent. Their only question is “Is this species more dangerous than it is useful?” Still under consideration is whether such practicality, devoid of compassion, can be considered evil.
Jamey’s images are of three plants, species I have never seen before: Cephalotus folliculari, Centaurea maculosa, and Cuscuta pentagona.
Cephalotus folliculari, also known as the moccasin plant. A carnivorous species of the “pitcher plant” variety, although classified as an advanced rosid and more closely related to apples and roses than to other pitcher plants.
Carnivorous species?
There are plants on Earth that digest animals for nutrients. We didn’t know. These plants were never brought in the genetic ark to the Domha’vei.
I cannot conceal my horror and disgust. A carnivorous plant, and related so closely to such noble trees. And then I realize that the Cu’endhari nau’gsh is also a carnivorous plant. How often have I supped on sucksow?
Centaurea maculosa, the spotted knapweed. Again, never brought to the Domha’vei, for reasons which become immediately apparent. Considered an invasive species, knapweed roots produce a toxin, (-)-catechin, which effectively poisons the native plants, leaving the area clear for infestation by the quickly reproducing and unpalatable to herbivores knapweed.
Chemical warfare. We didn’t know. How could we have known? We had been shielded from this knowledge by the human colonists, who wisely left such horrors at home.
The third plant, Cuscuta pentagona. Like the other two, never brought to the Domha’vei in the genetic banks. It is known as the dodder vine or…vampire plant. Existing wholly without roots and little chlorophyll…
Without roots? A plant without roots? I feel my stomach churn.
…this parasitic plant attaches itself to other plants, most notably the tomato…
Tomatoes I recognize. They are a jovial plant. Although they are not known for their intellect, they lift their leaves cheerfully in the garden sunlight, producing tender and savory fruit. The seeds are easily – and desirably – disposed of when preparing an innumerable amount of tomato products including salsas, ketchups, confits, vembekks and pasta sauces well-adapted for a traditional Cu’endhari diet. In short, the tomato is a good neighbor.
And this dodder vine would attack an unsuspecting tomato?
After attaching itself to the host, the dodder produces haustoria that penetrate the vascular system of the host plant. Over time, the dodder wraps around the stem of its victim, choking it…
I had seen quite enough.
But Jamey showed me one more image – this time not from the Matriarch’s library. It was a nameless thing, and the vision of its prickly blue leaves made me reel with atavagistic horror. It was buried deep, a species memory. A plant that existed here, on Dolparessa, long, long ago. When the Cu’endhari developed sentience, they…removed it.
Like we removed the Microbials. If the SongLuminants are evil, then so are we. But before contact with humans, plant species were simply ignorant of the concept. And now…I have bitten the apple, and discovered my nakedness.
V. When I came upon Chase, he must have sensed my discomfiture. Wanna smoke? I’ve got some primo Lammian highweed, he offered.
I’ll pass, for now at least. But isn’t it irrelevant that you’ve “got” anything? We are currently existing in an imaginal space. You could have anything that you wanted.
That’s not as much fun, though. The score is half the deal.
Ah! The transgressive impulse.
If you say so. You know, you look like the kind of man who would do opium. Black Opium-27 is the best – or the worst, depending on how you look at it. But I could kinda see you in an old school opium den, with one of those crazy pipes.
I want to keep my head clear, so that I can understand.
Amigo, if you keep your head clear, you’ll never understand.
I consider.
If you think drugs are evil, then you must think Tara is even more evil for making them.
Not in an absolute sense, no. I see nothing wrong with indulging in an alcoholic beverage, or perhaps a touch of Sparkle amongst friends. I can even countenance the usage of psychedelics for psychological and artistic exploration. And I can understand the development of addictions that originate in the avoidance of pain, be it physical or emotional. What I cannot understand is dissipation.
Dissipated. Yeah, that’s me. I’ve just thrown myself away, basically. But then again, how many mystics spend their lives trying to get rid of their sense of self? Ego. That shit Ailann has gotten into lately, enlightenment. You can’t get enlightened with ego in the way. So you can be like Callum, and serve, and do austerities, or you can be like me and get lost in pleasure. It’s tantric.
My understanding of the subject is limited, but I believe that you are oversimplifying a very complicated school of thought. However, tantric practices do involve the use of transgressive acts to break through rigid patterns of thought and action. I’ll have to look into it more deeply. I doubt, however, that you are utilizing the mechanism of pleasure for any sort of self-betterment.
Geez, are you a fucking Puritan or what? Dude, we’re trees. Normal trees stand around enjoying themselves all the freaking time. Only human beings worry about that self-betterment crap.
The concepts of good and evil are irrelevant to trees. It was only through the agency of the transgressive leap, crossing the boundary of species, that we found ourselves in human form, confronted with this conundrum.
Yeah, humans blame it on us, too.
What?
They have this old story that they learned about good and evil by eating an apple.
Yes, of course, the Eden myth. But…what that says to me…is that the concepts of good and evil only exist when you shift beyond your own point of view. Animals, incapable of moral reasoning, are also incapable of evil. They cannot change perspective.
If you’re right, then there’s what – thirty-four of us now? We’ve got to be one of the most badass motherfuckers* that ever lived.
I think I will sample that opium after all.
VI. Why didn’t you ask me? said Ailann. Or even Aran? I think the opinion of God would have to count for something.
I answer to a higher Mover, I say. I have been called to the dark side. I am the first apostate priest of Archonism.
Lord love a tuber. That’s the opium talking. Look, if you ask me, this whole idea of evil is a bad one. It’s a convenient rationale for marginalizing people you don’t like. I believe that all sentient beings have intrinsic worth. They make mistakes, they come into conflict, but all life has meaning.
The problem with you, Ailann, is that you’re too fucking good. And I specifically didn’t ask you.
You know I wanted to kill Cillian.
I raise an eyebrow.
Lorcan is right. You are good at that.
Thanks, I think. But having started your screed, you may as well continue.
I was convinced that Cillian was evil, and I wanted to amputate his branch before he could emanate. Tara forbade it. Tara was right. I often disagree with Cillian’s methods, but we couldn’t have survived without him. He can make the hard decisions I can’t. Anyway, the whole experience taught me humility.
Humility. Is humility a useful quality in a god?
Very. Why do you think there are so many stories of gods that choose to live as humans?
So that they can understand what it means to be…
Mortal. Like you did the other night. What is it that you said? The mortal coil is like a snail-shell, so much a part of humans that they don’t even realize its weight.
I feel that weight. It would be so easy to collapse under it.
Dissipation?
Perhaps. And yet, in that moment, I felt like I had never before known what it truly meant to love Tara. I felt like a thousand years would not be enough to express the feeling.
You’ll be fine, said the Living God of Skarsia. Just stop worrying about evil, and start worrying about love.
*Literally “One with a perverse desire to have intercourse with a cloned goat imbued with his parents’ genes” – trans.