Black Genesis

Voltarian Translator’s Preface

With all due respect to the Royal Censor, one man’s fact is another man’s fiction. Fortunately, being the Robotbrain in the Translatophone I don’t qualify for that quandary.

Also, to the degree I’ve never visited this place called Earth (which would be hard since it isn’t there), I can’t personally vouch for anything that I was given to translate. All I can do is take what is said and make the best of it.

As Lord Invay points out, Earth does not exist on any astrochart and I have confirmed that. Since Soltan Gris (the narrator of this story) is a confessed criminal and well worthy of doubt (besides, anyone whose heroes are Sigmund Freud and Bugs Bunny also has other problems), I did not rely on his account that Earth is about 22 light-years from Voltar. I thoroughly searched all astro-charts in my data banks, concentrating on everything within 2000 light-years out, but nothing was found to match his description. (Come to think of it, I have no idea why I should have an Earth database if there is no such place. I’ll have to work on that.)

The subject of light-years brings up a major problem I had translating portions of this into Earth language.

There is no accepted vocabulary for hyperluminary phenomena simply because Earth scientists insist that there is no such thing and that nothing can travel faster than light. (This is the same group who also gave Earth other memorable nonsense like the “edge of the world” and the “sound barrier.”) Thus, while most Earthlings have perceived the hyperluminary life-color that in Voltarian we call “ghrial,” they don’t have a name for it since it can’t be reproduced as a shade of nail polish. So I went with “yellow-green” as that is its luminary harmonic. (It is also the word most Earthlings use to try and describe it. Their problem is that they continuously have valid perceptions and experiences that they invalidate and so they get stuck in a very strange view of the world. Reality is apparently determined either by majority vote or government grant, with the latter holding veto power over the former.)

Similarly with other basics like space, time, energy, motion and self, Earth scientists pursue these concepts like the dog chasing its tail or the man trying to jump on the head of his shadow. None of them — dog or scientist — have caught on as to why the objective eludes them so mysteriously. So I relied on the current vocabulary and made the best of it. (I hope no one back on Voltar catches me talking about “electron rings” or I’ll be laughed out of the Machine Purity League.)

As to characters, as Lord Invay said in the first volume, Royal officer Jettero Heller and the Countess Krak do exist. Soltan Gris (the narrator who gives me all my circuit-aches) is listed as a General Service officer but there is no further record of worth.

For others who appear in this volume, I’m providing a Key to describe them as well as a few additional items. I had to rely on Gris’s prison narrative, which isn’t easy.

(Gris’s American Southern drawl, spoken with a Northern Voltarian accent, has to be heard to be believed.)

From there, you’re on your own! There’s only so much a Robotbrain can do!

Sincerely,

54 Charlee Nine

Robotbrain in the Translatophone