Arthur Clarke - Rama Revealed

“The structure opposing God’s design is overwhelming,” Big Michael added. “In order for God to succeed, not only must life and intelligence evolve from raw subatomic particles made into atoms by stellar cataclysms, bat also this life must reach such a level of both spiritual self-awareness and technological capability that it can actively transform everything around it.”

So God, Nicole thought in her room, remembering the discussion, is the ultimate designer, the ultimate engineer. He or She or It shapes the moment of creation in such a way that, billions of years later, living beings attest to the wonder of creation.

“There’s a part of this I still don’t understand,” Nicole had said to the two Michaels and Simone near the end of the evening. “Why must God create so many universes to conduct this experiment? Once the existence of a harmonious outcome has been verified, doesn’t the task become easy? Can’t the initial conditions for that universe simply be replicated?”

“That’s not a difficult enough problem for God,” Saint Michael had responded. “God wants to know the extent of the zone of harmony in the hypersurface of creation parameters, plus all the mathematical characteristics of the zone. Besides, I don’t think you yet appreciate the scope of God’s problem. Only a minuscule fraction of all possible universes can end up harmonious. The natural outcome of the transformation of energy into matter is a universe with no life at all, or, at best, aggressive, temporary living creatures who are more destructive than constructive. Even a small region of harmony inside an evolving universe is a miracle. That’s why the whole enterprise is such a challenge for God.”

Big Michael had then jumped up again. “What God is looking for-is a universe which, before it dies in the Big Crunch, has achieved total harmony. That’s not just every living species from every world working together for the mutual good, but every subatomic particle of His creation actively participating in that harmony. For a while, I myself couldn’t comprehend the full grandeur of this concept. Then Saint Michael told me about a species that makes living beings out of rock and dirt, as our biblical God did, by transmuting and rearranging the elements. Total harmony requires that advanced species like us use our technological tools to transform inanimate and nonliving things into creatures that contribute to the harmony.”

Nicole remembered that she had announced, at about this point in the conversation, that her mind was overloaded and she wanted to go to bed. Saint Michael had asked her to wait just a few more minutes so that he could summarize what he felt had been a slightly disorganized discussion. Nicole had agreed.

“Going back to your original question,” Saint Michael had said, “each of the Nodes is part of a hierarchical intelligence gathering information throughout this particular galaxy. Most galaxies, including the Milky Way, have a single superstation, which we call the Prime Monitor, located somewhere near their center. The set of Prime Monitors was created by God at the same moment the universe began and then was deployed to learn as much as possible about the evolutionary process. The Nodes, the Carriers, and all the other engineering constructs you have seen were in turn designed by the Prime Monitor. The entire activity, including what has been going on since the first Rama spacecraft entered your solar system years ago, has as its objective the development of quantitative criteria, for use by the Creator, that will enable subsequent universes to conclude in glorious harmony, despite the chaotic tendencies of the natural laws.”

Nicole had not been able to say anything for over a minute. “This conversation has been absolutely mind-boggling,” she had finally said, activating her wheelchair. “And now I am completely exhausted.”

But not so exhausted that I can sleep, she thought. How could anybody sleep after having had the purpose of the universe explained? Nicole laughed to herself in bed. I can’t imagine what Richard would have said after that discussion. A good theory, perhaps, but how does it explain the African dominance in the World Cup between 2140 and 2160? Or is the meaning of life no longer 42? She laughed again. Richard would have appreciated Saint Michael, no doubt, but he would have had hundreds of questions. We would have made love as soon as we returned to the room and then talked all night…

Nicole turned over on her side. The ramifications of what she had heard that night were overwhelming. But was any of it really true? Nicole understood that she would never know for certain. It is a beautiful, stirring concept, she thought. As Nicole drifted off to sleep, visions of universes exploding into being danced in her mind’s eye.

Nicole woke up refreshed and I with a surprising amount of energy. She started to push the button beside her bed, but decided against it. Instead she struggled into her wheelchair. She rolled over to the windows and pulled the curtains.

It was a beautiful morning outside. There was a little creek off to her left, and three children, probably between eight and ten years of age, were skipping stones across a small pool in the creek. As Nicole gazed out the windows at the perfectly simulated fields and trees and rolling hills, she felt temporarily young and full of life.

Maybe I should let them repair me after all, Nicole thought. Replace all my damaged and worn-out parts. I could live here, with Simone and Michael. Maybe I could even teach my great-grandchildren a thing or two.

The three children left the creek and raced across a green field to where the horses were enclosed. The boy ran the fastest, but he barely beat the smaller of the two girls. The trio laughed together and called the horses over to the fence.

“The boy is Zachary,” Big Michael said from behind her. “The two girls are Colleen and Simone. Zachary and Colleen are Katya’s children, Simone is Timothy’s oldest.”

Nicole had not heard him enter the room. She turned around in her wheelchair. “Good morning, Michael,” she said. Nicole glanced back at the window. “The children are all gorgeous.”

“Thank you,” Michael said, walking over to the window. “I am a very lucky man,” he said. “God has granted me a fascinating life with unbelievable riches.”

They watched in silence as the children played. Zachary mounted a white horse and began to show off. “I was sorry to hear about Richard’s death,” Michael said. “Patrick told us the story yesterday. It must have been horrible for you.”

“It was,” Nicole replied. “Richard and I had developed such a wonderful friendship.” They faced each other. “You would have been so proud of him, Michael. He was a different man in his last years.”

“I suspected as much,” Michael said. “The Richard I knew would never have volunteered to place himself in jeopardy, especially to save the lives of others.”

“You should have seen him with his granddaughter Nikki, Ellie’s little girl. They were inseparable. He was her ‘Boobah.’… He found tenderness so late in life.”

Nicole could not continue. A sudden heartache overwhelmed her. She drove over to the bedside table and took a drink from the bottle of blue liquid.

She returned to the window. Outside, the girls were now on horseback also and some kind of game was under way.

“Patrick told us that Benjy had grown into a fine adult,” Michael said, “limited in some ways, of course, but quite remarkable considering his basic ability and the long periods of sleep. He said that Benjy was a living tribute to your talents, all of them, and that you had worked with him tirelessly, never letting him use his handicap as an excuse.”