Xenopsychology (part 1)
Mr Zoat
Dedicated ragequitter
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Counterpunched
6 558 937.M41
"…job."
Tsua'm looks mildly concerned as we walk through the secure biological research facility. Given the nature of what's being studied here, there are a lot fewer members of the Fire Caste than would usually be the case. Instead, internal security is provided by stationary turrets and gun drones, though they're neatly slotted into charge stations or otherwise folded away at the moment. Similarly, the whole place is run by a A.I. with the personality engram of the lead researcher who founded it, an interesting solution to the problem of A.I. friendliness and the novel problem solving difficulties A.I.s sometimes have.
"Your efforts have aided the Tau Empire greatly. I am unused to humans with-"
I smile slightly as she uses the English word without really thinking about it. She can be remarkably insightful at times.
"-your disposition-."
I glance at her with raised eyebrows. "You mean not fanatical converts?"
"I prefer to be polite. I would call them-."
"Mon'gue'vesa."
She makes the choking sound that tau make when they're laughing. "No-." She elbows me in the ribs. "No, I would not call them that, and you should stop corrupting me with such ideas. You… Filthy heretic."
I put my right hand over my heart. "Won't happen again."
"The Empire exalts you above all other humans. You could ask for a world to rule, and you would be granted it. Instead, you ask for trivial things."
I shrug. "I like my work."
"I know that, but the Lar'shi Por'ar'tol are used to humans who are used to… A 'neo-feudal' structure. And yet you do not want land, or trade contracts, nor marriage into-"
I wince. "Please tell me they haven't-."
"-a notable family and no, after your reaction to the concubines they sent last time I was able to convince them that it would not be a good idea."
"Thank you."
That was a bit of a shock. A really… Awkward shock. Because they came from a human world where concubinage was a perfectly respectable profession for a noblewoman looking for promotion, which meant that they were from really well-connected families because Tsua'm isn't joking about how much the Empire likes me. Working out how to turn the women down without getting them shunned when they got home was a lot of work, but not a hard decision to make because they were still nuts.
"The humans of your age were different, I understand. But this is not corruption. Placing industries and peoples in the hands of trustworthy families is a perfectly accepted part of rulership in human society. And I am not looking at you and I know you are either wincing or rolling your eyes." I'm doing both. "It is difficult to rule such a large area of space. Sometimes, it is necessary to use stable systems rather than ideologically pure ones, as well you know."
"Yes, but…" I sigh. "Okay, there are a few things."
"Then tell me what they are."
"I… Can't."
"In the same way that you can't say your name?"
"No. It's… Some things, their nature is affected by how they're given. Like… No one orders fire warrior squads to undergo the bonding ritual, they do it when they all feel that their relationship has reached that stage."
"Of course. I see. Then I must decipher what you want without being directly told."
"I'm afraid so."
"That is marvellous!"
I frown at her as we arrive at our destination. "It is?"
She nods.. in a slightly awkward way because it's not a natural gesture for the tau. She sort of thrusts her head forwards slightly before tilting it. It makes her look a little like a chicken pecking at the ground. "If I can intuit your intention with such precision, then I will be worthy of promotion. I will be much better placed to curb the well-meaning actions of the Lar'shi Por'ar'tol as Por'Vre Lar'shi Tsua'm Raard."
I take a moment to consider the effects of promotion on tau social interactions.
Hang on.
"Is your mother still-?"
"AND WE ARE HERE!" She puts her right hand on the palm reader. "One to access, one to monitor."
"Acknowledged, Alien Psychology Envoy Tsua'm Raard."
Two armoured doors slide open, and she wastes exactly no time in striding through the one to the right. And I receive a reminder that just because tau have less close family structures when compared with humans, that doesn't mean that they don't sometimes get pressure from their parents.
Ho-hum.
I walk in through the left door, which closes behind me.
"Please don protective equipment."
I clench my left hand, construct armour appearing around me.
"Acceptable. The following advisories are to be relayed before contact. The contained specimen has: supertau speed, supertau strength, supertau endurance, supertau senses and tau-equivalent intelligence. Interior weapons are permanently active, and in the result of a confrontation your survival will not be prioritised. Please confirm that you understand."
"I understand."
"Acceptance noted." The interior door opens. "Have a productive day."
"Will do." I walk into the holding room, dismissing my construct armour. "You too."
The room is divided in two by solid bars, with the captive on the far side. She's dressed in clothing that's not really any different to tau casual wear, if a little simplified. The actual interior of the cell is bare… Ah, the tau version of rockcrete, with a small rug to either sleep on or just to keep off the cold floor. The only other object is a commode, and the only hole in the bars is the device for taking waste material out and allowing food in.
The woman herself has brown skin and -naturally- no hair. The ridge crests are relatively small and she's clearly used to avoiding letting people getting a good look at her teeth. Two arms, two legs, skin covering her muscles… You'd almost think she was human. She'd be the picture of good health, too, if she wasn't curled up in the middle of the rug and trying not to shake.
Very nearly human eyes are fixed on me.
"Good morning, Subject Two Five Seven Nine Four."
"F-f-f-f-amily. Why-? Why can't I h-hear them? P-promised…"
"Because we're not stupid enough to put a fourth generation genestealer hybrid somewhere without a null zone." I activate the room's holographic display, switching it between images taken from the facility's various other holding cells. "As you can see, they're alive and well."
The other surviving members of her cult. And not 'her' in the sense that she ruled it. We're fairly sure that she's just a regular neophyte hybrid rather than one of the 'specialist' forms that genestealer cults produce if they reach the 4th generation, but she has seniority amongst those that escaped the Imperium and surrendered to the Tau Empire.
So much that we don't know about genestealer-infected humans. So much we could learn from willing test subjects.
And so much trouble we could get into if this goes badly.
"Now." I smile. "Let's begin with the background."
6 558 937.M41
"…job."
Tsua'm looks mildly concerned as we walk through the secure biological research facility. Given the nature of what's being studied here, there are a lot fewer members of the Fire Caste than would usually be the case. Instead, internal security is provided by stationary turrets and gun drones, though they're neatly slotted into charge stations or otherwise folded away at the moment. Similarly, the whole place is run by a A.I. with the personality engram of the lead researcher who founded it, an interesting solution to the problem of A.I. friendliness and the novel problem solving difficulties A.I.s sometimes have.
"Your efforts have aided the Tau Empire greatly. I am unused to humans with-"
I smile slightly as she uses the English word without really thinking about it. She can be remarkably insightful at times.
"-your disposition-."
I glance at her with raised eyebrows. "You mean not fanatical converts?"
"I prefer to be polite. I would call them-."
"Mon'gue'vesa."
She makes the choking sound that tau make when they're laughing. "No-." She elbows me in the ribs. "No, I would not call them that, and you should stop corrupting me with such ideas. You… Filthy heretic."
I put my right hand over my heart. "Won't happen again."
"The Empire exalts you above all other humans. You could ask for a world to rule, and you would be granted it. Instead, you ask for trivial things."
I shrug. "I like my work."
"I know that, but the Lar'shi Por'ar'tol are used to humans who are used to… A 'neo-feudal' structure. And yet you do not want land, or trade contracts, nor marriage into-"
I wince. "Please tell me they haven't-."
"-a notable family and no, after your reaction to the concubines they sent last time I was able to convince them that it would not be a good idea."
"Thank you."
That was a bit of a shock. A really… Awkward shock. Because they came from a human world where concubinage was a perfectly respectable profession for a noblewoman looking for promotion, which meant that they were from really well-connected families because Tsua'm isn't joking about how much the Empire likes me. Working out how to turn the women down without getting them shunned when they got home was a lot of work, but not a hard decision to make because they were still nuts.
"The humans of your age were different, I understand. But this is not corruption. Placing industries and peoples in the hands of trustworthy families is a perfectly accepted part of rulership in human society. And I am not looking at you and I know you are either wincing or rolling your eyes." I'm doing both. "It is difficult to rule such a large area of space. Sometimes, it is necessary to use stable systems rather than ideologically pure ones, as well you know."
"Yes, but…" I sigh. "Okay, there are a few things."
"Then tell me what they are."
"I… Can't."
"In the same way that you can't say your name?"
"No. It's… Some things, their nature is affected by how they're given. Like… No one orders fire warrior squads to undergo the bonding ritual, they do it when they all feel that their relationship has reached that stage."
"Of course. I see. Then I must decipher what you want without being directly told."
"I'm afraid so."
"That is marvellous!"
I frown at her as we arrive at our destination. "It is?"
She nods.. in a slightly awkward way because it's not a natural gesture for the tau. She sort of thrusts her head forwards slightly before tilting it. It makes her look a little like a chicken pecking at the ground. "If I can intuit your intention with such precision, then I will be worthy of promotion. I will be much better placed to curb the well-meaning actions of the Lar'shi Por'ar'tol as Por'Vre Lar'shi Tsua'm Raard."
I take a moment to consider the effects of promotion on tau social interactions.
Hang on.
"Is your mother still-?"
"AND WE ARE HERE!" She puts her right hand on the palm reader. "One to access, one to monitor."
"Acknowledged, Alien Psychology Envoy Tsua'm Raard."
Two armoured doors slide open, and she wastes exactly no time in striding through the one to the right. And I receive a reminder that just because tau have less close family structures when compared with humans, that doesn't mean that they don't sometimes get pressure from their parents.
Ho-hum.
I walk in through the left door, which closes behind me.
"Please don protective equipment."
I clench my left hand, construct armour appearing around me.
"Acceptable. The following advisories are to be relayed before contact. The contained specimen has: supertau speed, supertau strength, supertau endurance, supertau senses and tau-equivalent intelligence. Interior weapons are permanently active, and in the result of a confrontation your survival will not be prioritised. Please confirm that you understand."
"I understand."
"Acceptance noted." The interior door opens. "Have a productive day."
"Will do." I walk into the holding room, dismissing my construct armour. "You too."
The room is divided in two by solid bars, with the captive on the far side. She's dressed in clothing that's not really any different to tau casual wear, if a little simplified. The actual interior of the cell is bare… Ah, the tau version of rockcrete, with a small rug to either sleep on or just to keep off the cold floor. The only other object is a commode, and the only hole in the bars is the device for taking waste material out and allowing food in.
The woman herself has brown skin and -naturally- no hair. The ridge crests are relatively small and she's clearly used to avoiding letting people getting a good look at her teeth. Two arms, two legs, skin covering her muscles… You'd almost think she was human. She'd be the picture of good health, too, if she wasn't curled up in the middle of the rug and trying not to shake.
Very nearly human eyes are fixed on me.
"Good morning, Subject Two Five Seven Nine Four."
"F-f-f-f-amily. Why-? Why can't I h-hear them? P-promised…"
"Because we're not stupid enough to put a fourth generation genestealer hybrid somewhere without a null zone." I activate the room's holographic display, switching it between images taken from the facility's various other holding cells. "As you can see, they're alive and well."
The other surviving members of her cult. And not 'her' in the sense that she ruled it. We're fairly sure that she's just a regular neophyte hybrid rather than one of the 'specialist' forms that genestealer cults produce if they reach the 4th generation, but she has seniority amongst those that escaped the Imperium and surrendered to the Tau Empire.
So much that we don't know about genestealer-infected humans. So much we could learn from willing test subjects.
And so much trouble we could get into if this goes badly.
"Now." I smile. "Let's begin with the background."
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