Chapter 1
Chapter 1, Enslavement
Sundown was approaching when Horizon returned and they all retired to Harhar’s huge shelter. In the great room a fire burned with the smoke gently rising to the exhaust hole above. That fire was the only source of light in the great room, so shadows were constantly moving adding to the feeling of anticipation felt by all.
Along the walls were a water trough, some hay, oats, various grasses, and lots of fruits. Harhar was not hungry and she settled in her usual spot near the fire.
Leslie and Yazhi were famished. The latter grabbed handfuls of the fruit, walked across the room, leaned against the wall near a large table, and watched her friend dig into a skillet of chili beans cooked with cauliflower and brown rice in red curry. Spooning a large serving onto a plate Leslie blew a kiss to Harhar, exclaiming, “You knew we were on our way here, didn’t you. This bean dish is my favorite. Thank you!” Harhar looked at Leslie and just nodded.
When the meal was finished Harhar neighed, threw her head back, and got up commanding everyone’s attention. She looked around and walked up to each of her friends and family and gently nudged them to get comfortable. It was near ten p.m. Walking back to her honored place near the fire, she began, “I’m going to start tonight with the story of our ancestors from the beginning of time. I have told you many times of this miracle, but you know how important it is to remember how we are all here together. It has not always been this way.”
Harhar continued, “In the beginning God created heaven and earth. The earth was without form and empty, with darkness on the face of the depths, but God's spirit moved on the water's surface. God said, 'There shall be light,' and light came into existence. God saw that the light was good, and God divided the day between the light and the darkness.
“God named the light 'Day,' and the darkness He named 'Night.' It was evening and it…”
Suddenly, Yazhi stood up and turned toward the door. Then each of the horses’ ears pointed in that direction. Leslie got up and said, “Who is it?” Harhar said, “We will soon be joined by Billion and, I am so happy, by Chiron. This is indeed an awesome gathering.”
Horizon jumped up to the highest perch in the great room and screeched loudly. “I told them. Chiron was visiting with Billion, so I told them both what was about to happen and that they should gallop here as quickly as they can. I left them before they could reply, so I didn’t tell you when I returned in case they decided not to come. You know how skittish centaurs can be. Chiron is not an exception although maybe a little less than most. I am sure he had to be convinced by Billion.”
Both Billion and Chiron glistened with sweat. They had galloped the entire eight miles. They were breathing heavily and seemed to be on the brink of collapsing. Marty and Luna brought a large pale of water and a deep ladle for Chiron. Drinking much of the pale's contents as Marty and Luna rubbed their backs with damp cloths, Billion and Chiron calmed down.
The shelter was now abuzz with excitement. As usual, Yazhi and Leslie were the most animated. After Yazhi greeted Billion affectionately, she and Leslie crowded the honored guest, cornering him and peppering him with questions. “Where have you been? We haven’t seen you for at least six months. Chiron, are you still a confirmed bachelor? Your adventures are legendary. Tell us a tale of mystery and intrigue.” Chiron backed up a little, but he knew that he was with friends and he looked at Yazhi and Leslie with a rather smug expression. He said, “Let’s talk more later. Okay?”
Suddenly, there was a loud crashing reverberating sound filling every corner of Harhar’s shelter. Leslie actually fell on his behind and covered his ears. “Oh Harhar, I forgot about your Tam-Tam. I am behaving terribly. Forgive me Chiron.”
Harhar looked around. “As I was saying, this is our origin story or at least that is what I was starting to tell. Since I know that you all have heard me talk of the beginnings of our world many times before, let me jump ahead to that moment when everything changed.
“This tale goes back only about ten millennia and everyone thought that a mass extinction event was about to happen.” Harhar was now in the center of her shelter and slowly gazed at each of her friends and relatives, looking at each directly as if she could see right into their very soul.” She had them, all were transfixed. They couldn’t look away even if they wanted to, which they didn’t.
“At that time, the Earth was dominated by man, that is homo sapiens and they were doing a terrible job of caring for our planet and the treasures it contained. This was at the beginning of the twenty-first century. At the time, there were many signs that the Earth was about to experience a new mass extinction event and that this time homo sapiens would be one of the species to die out. It was recognized that there had been five previous mass extinctions. What was different, at least to the thinking of mankind, was that this was the first time that any species was aware of their own demise.
“The choices were limited. All of them depended on technology, worldwide cooperation, and optimism and all of those depended on humility. The technology existed. Worldwide cooperation seemed to come in spurts but when it was there, optimism flourished. When it was not there, optimism waned. What certainly was not there was humility.
“Who can tell me why humility is important?”
Horizon screeched and dove down, landing at Harhar’s feet. She leaned her head back, clicked her beak and said, “Humility is that balance between, at one end, dominating over all others and, at the other end, never stepping up to contribute to anyone’s benefit. It is a balance because you have to have enough confidence and courage to offer others your talents, but you also have to believe that even when someone else does not think or act as you do, they have the right, indeed the obligation to share that with you. You also must be willing to listen to others and allow them to act as they believe is right as long as it doesn’t endanger someone.”
Harhar looked pleased. She swished her tail, lifted her head and softly nickered, “Very good Horizon. You are absolutely correct. Who can tell me the names and consequences of these extremes?”
Chiron stepped forward, pumped his right arm and exclaimed, “I can. I and my fellow centaurs have lived it. The extreme of dominating all others is called arrogance. The other extreme is called self-debasing. When arrogance is allowed for some there will be self-debasing for many of the rest. That imbalance is how it was for most of our existence. Arrogance results in marginalization of those being dominated, loss of confidence for them, and inevitably bad decisions and actions. What is common to both extremes is fear. For the arrogant it is the fear of loss of status. For the self-debased, it is fear of the loss of freedom and even loss of life. We centaurs will never allow ourselves to be marginalized again!”
Chiron swished his tail, puffed his chest, and turned around proudly going back to his place in the circle.
“That was very good, Chiron, very good indeed.
“Clearly, the humans, Leslie’s ancestors, were worried. There were three choices. Both of the first two choices would lead to a quickening of and a new direction for evolution. That evolution would involve all living matter on Earth and there would be many unintended consequences, some good, some bad. The first was to change the building blocks of human life by editing genomes using a technique just developing at that time called CRISPR. The second was to allow and facilitate the melding of human and machine through Artificial Intelligence, realizing the predictions of science fiction for humans to become cyborgs. The third was to simply develop the vehicles, life support systems, and propulsion capabilities to allow mankind to emigrate from Earth to other places in the universe.
“All of these choices were possible, but CRISPR was the dominant choice. Now, Leslie, can you tell us why? Remember what I said, that there would be unintended consequences.”
Leslie blushed. He wasn’t comfortable taking the lead in front of a group, even this group that was so loving to him. “I don’t really know what CRISPR is. I can tell you that my dad tells me that I need to be thankful that we live now and not in the past. He said that in the distant past we were not able to talk directly to each other and that humans actually believed that other species could not talk and that if they did, they would not have anything useful to say. I can’t imagine not being able to talk to Yazhi or any of you. I’m not sure I believe my dad.”
Harhar reared up and came down hard on her front hooves. She snorted and exclaimed, “You better believe it. Your father was right! But, why CRISPR and not cyborg through artificial intelligence or space travel?”
Chiron started to move forward, but Harhar signaled for him to stop. “Marty, you are my foal, what have I taught you?”
Marty stepped forward. “Mom, I am not a foal anymore, but I know you think I am. I do remember your lessons. The humans believed that the technology to travel in space for long periods would take decades to perfect. They also rightly realized that only a tiny slice of the world’s population would be able to take advantage of that endeavor. They did continue researching and finally did send a few hundred on an expedition. It was thought that if other alternatives did not work, at least this group might be able to seed a new world. To their credit, they expected the journey to take generations and they took with them plants, including trees, insects, including bees, and animals, including their pets and non-pets, such as many birds. There were both land based and water based animals. The class of animals they brought with included only herbivores and that included the humans themselves. They did, however, take DNA samples of most carnivores, so that when they resettled, they could introduce them to the environment. We don’t know if those explorers ever found a new home as they soon were out of communication range. I hope they did succeed.”
Marty lifted and shook his head and then continued, “There was great distaste among humans for the evolution of humans to cyborgs, although many believed that it was only a matter of time before machines would become self-aware and that there was nothing that could stop that. That was feared because a self-aware machine-being could decide that humans were not needed and that they only represented a hindrance to the machine's interests.
“That left CRISPR. At first it was only hoped that, since climate change would inevitably lead to the Earth becoming uninhabitable, CRISPR could be used to give humans the ability to thrive in environments that were too hot, too cold, too polluted, too dry, or too wet, or otherwise deadly to humans. It was also preferred because it would allow humans to retain their souls and their esoteric pursuits, such as fine arts, sports, music, and many other things that a non-feeling cyborg might think of as non-essential. Finally, it led to a final conquest over diseases and the extension of life. Thank God, though, the aging process proved impossible to completely eliminate.”
Harhar stepped forward again, interrupting Marty. “That was very good, Marty. I will take it from there. By the way Marty, you will always be my foal.
“The thing that you all must remember is that homo sapiens are a species, indeed this is true for all species, that cannot be controlled by rules. That is actually a good thing since normal protocols of research are by themselves not imaginative or bold enough to allow for the use of CRISPR or other biological tools to produce positive unexpected benefits. Rather, such rules are intended to prevent the use of these technologies to produce things that are purported to be undesirable. For example, it was thought that it would be untenable to recreate dinosaurs with enough intelligence and dexterity to dominate the Earth to the exclusion of human beings.
“However, because CRISPR was already being perfected, it was inevitable that someone would use it to achieve something not sanctioned or even imagined. Something like that happened when a doctor in the Far East used CRISPR to endow a newborn with immunity to the HIV virus. That doctor was roundly criticized for what some called ‘playing God’. It was successful and others took note. Next a person that was not even recognized as a scientist had the bright idea that it could be used to give their pet dog the ability to clearly vocalize what was called human speech. That, much to the consternations of the authorities, caught on and it didn’t take long before the same techniques were applied to other pets including horses. Next these same other species were given the ability to understand complex abstract ideas. In other words, they became just as intelligent and self aware as homo sapiens. All of this took place in a tiny slice of time, maybe 100 years.
“So the stage is now set. CRISPR is being used to swiftly change human beings, but most did not think that it could happen fast enough. It did not address the question that motivated much of this radical thinking, which was climate change and the impending extinction event that could have made the Earth inhospitable to human life.
“What then happened next triggered a sudden change in the thinking of humans; a global pandemic, a plague, a coronavirus called COVID-19 that killed in less than nine months over a million people and threatened millions more. This started to happen shortly before the beginning of the year 2020 and then CRISPR quickly advanced. There was no cure for COVID-19. There was no accepted treatment. There was no vaccine. The people simply got better or they died. Eventually, by the next year a vaccine was developed. It worked pretty well, but not always. It took another year before a reliable vaccine was available.
“The first year the pandemic could only be controlled by physical distancing, the wearing of masks, and extensive testing, both for the disease and the antibodies that built up in the blood streams of survivors followed by contact tracing. Local and national governments issued orders for their citizens to isolate themselves from each other by area wide quarantines of all citizens with trips outside of the homes being highly restricted.
“And then the miracle. In little more than a month, because both travel and industry were severely curtailed, the effects of global climate change visibly improved. The air and water was measurably cleaner. The longer the pandemic crisis continued, the more apparent it became that global climate change was reversible. Infections from the virus waned and then reared up again. Most people forgot the improvement to the climate, but not all. Some became convinced that this improvement could be sustained with the proper controls and changes in behavior. This resulted in the willingness of the people to accept the implementation of policies that could make these changes sustainable.
“Feeling cooped up, a strong desire for reconnecting with the outdoors and a desire to connect with people and creatures personally, blossomed. Having been forced to use electronic media for all communication for twelve straight months, humans were finally ready to say enough is enough with stimulation of only the sense of sight and sound. Restrictions were eased. When infection rates exploded, quarantine measures were reinstituted. People wanted to smell and touch and taste something other than their own cooking. They took long walks with others. They talked with strangers they met along the way and they became aware of the spaces that others needed. They stopped and listened to birdsong. In short, they were starting to give up the simulation in favor of the real and they found out what was truly important for themselves and for everyone and everything.”
At the same time as restrictions were being enforced another tragedy suddenly reappeared. Certain events happened that forced people to confront another pandemic, a hidden pandemic that had plagued mankind since civilization started. That pandemic was systemic discrimination. It took the form of an invisible caste system that consigned people by physical traits and ranked their human value primarily by how they looked and by how they related to each other and nature spiritually. The most obvious victims of this system were people of color, that is people who were not white, and the lowest ranking was given to those that were identified as black. When some so-called black people were indiscriminately murdered by law enforcement, the general population rose up in protest. At the time the leader of the most powerful political system was promoting policies to inflame actions and more bad behavior. People fought this trend and before a civil war could begin they removed this leader. The new leader reversed the toxic rhetoric and eventually people started to cooperate with each other. This did not solve the plague of inequity, but conversations started and almost all in time realized that much more could be gained through harmony.
Harhar paused. She took a deep breath and blew out softly from her nostrils while shaking her head slowly. “You know what happened next. Humans were no longer satisfied with confinement to controlled environments, but as industry restarted and the air and water started to become polluted again, they rose up to demand the end of global pollution. They were convinced that the changes they could see and taste during the pandemic were sustainable and they demanded measures to promote good stewardship of the Earth.
“Laws were passed. Agreements were forged. Cooperation became expected. Goals came into reach and were met. Climate change was being reversed. People started to believe that all was right with the world. But it wasn’t.” Harhar could see that Chiron was getting restless and she knew why. “The world was becoming like the Garden of … “
Chiron could not take it any longer. He jumped up and screamed “NO IT WAS NOT!”
Harhar feigned shock because she knew why Chiron was so upset. She walked right up to him and got in his face. Even though Chiron was over six and half feet tall, Harhar was as tall at her withers as Chiron at his head and she was massive, weighing over 3000 pounds to Chiron’s 2000. She was now using that to her advantage. Staring down Chiron, he quieted to a soft trembling. Harhar spoke so softly that everyone had to strain to hear her, even Chiron. “Okay Chiron, what is wrong? What was the missing piece? What still had to be learned? You are upset. You have every right to be. I want everyone to hear you out and Chiron, now let it go. Scream it out.”
Harhar backed off. Chiron jumped to the center of the shelter and quickly spun around, not really meeting anyone’s eyes but getting the attention of all. He flailed his arms, grabbed his pole from the pack on his back and buried it into the ground. He screamed again “NO IT WAS NOT!” Turning to face Harhar he said, “You said it yourself. Mankind still had not learned HUMILITY. Humans always think...” Chiron blushed and looked around at his friends, especially Leslie. He started again, softer, “Humans used to think that they were the center of the universe. They thought that whatever plans they made were good for everyone, were good for all species, plant and animal alike and to prove their power, they enslaved all life, even some of their own. They recognized that this was wrong. They even told stories of the evils of slavery and the triumph of ending it. They recognized, as we do now, that freedom and redemption are God given rights for all, but they still enslaved. They still refused to see the value of all life. If a horse couldn’t walk properly or couldn’t do the work they wanted, they didn’t retire him or her. In their words, they ‘put it down’. IT! They trivialized their companions. their quote unquote friends. It was enslavement. Even in the wild, they thought of so many of us as nothing more than source material for their so-called art or subjects for their medical research or even medical myths. Rhinoceroses and Elephants were brought to extinction to supply arrogant men with so-called aphrodisiacs. The only life that was sacred was their own.”
Chiron was now laboring, on the brink of exhaustion. Harhar stepped forward, put her arm on Chiron’s shoulder and whispered something in his ear. Chiron backed off, taking his place in the circle and kneeled down.
“Indeed, Chiron, mankind was guilty of all that and more. It is very late. Let’s retire. This has been an inspiring and exhausting discussion. We can resume it tomorrow evening.”
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