ALIEN CLAY

A dissident is condemned to dangerous work on a distant world containing mysterious ruins from a vanished alien society.

Professor Arton Daghdev’s xenobiology research violates the orthodox principles of the governing Mandate, which dictates that science must support the idea that humans are the pinnacle of all evolution, everywhere. He’s also been secretly dabbling in more direct revolution—or at least, talking about it—but the authorities don’t know that. For his academic trespasses, he’s shipped off to serve as convict labor on the planet Kiln, where ancient ruins suggest there was once an intelligent race. His job is to find the remains of this race and furnish evidence of just how much like humanity it was. Instead, he discovers a world full of metaspecies—communities of symbiotes who have united into single organisms—and a sullen population of convicts who cannot trust each other enough to pull off a successful uprising against the sadistic commandant and brutal guards. The symbiotes of Kiln seem anxious to add humans to their collection; unfortunately, such attempts usually lead to madness and/or death for the human. But a catastrophic encounter with one such group of life-forms provides Arton and his fellows with both insight into the race of the builders and a possible way of winning liberation. The biological puzzle of life on Kiln depicted here is fascinating, reminiscent of biologist/SF author Joan Slonczewski’s The Children Star (1998). The biological aspect of the story is a tool to support Tchaikovsky’s primary message, which is a vivid illustration of how suspicion can undermine both an authoritarian regime and any potential resistance to that regime. In this novel, a lack of honesty and poor communication can literally kill. But at the same time, all talk and no action is no path to success, either.

A savagely satirical take on the consequences of repressive doctrine and the power of collective action.