The Diego Diaries: Requiem in Pace (dd6 274) HERE WE GO!
-0-Courtroom
Coln stared at Jarro. What can you tell us about your findings regarding the Council as individuals and as a group?"
Jarro considered that. "They operate as an authoritarian group, making decisions together. They've parted out their responsibilities, each of them having a piece of the overall process. One of Twelve is the Convener, Two manages as Auditor, Three, Authenticator, Four is the Moderator, Five, the Enumerator, Six is the Enactor, and Seven is the Curator. Eight functions as the Disseminator of information and other things, while Nine handles all functions related to his role as Inquisitor. Ten is the Evaluator, Eleven is the Mediator, and Twelve is the Castigator.
"They have divided up their responsibilities and oddly enough, assigned them, it would turn out, to those in their group for which nothing they would do would pose a personal or ethical conundrum. Twelve is the Castigator. He's the one who applies the punishment. His data from evaluations and interviews shows that he has nearly no sense of empathy nor mercy for those to whom he has to punish, considering what he does the Will of The One. He's as devoid of emotional connection to others as anyone I've ever treated or evaluated. I hope you note that I've treated and evaluated some of the worst individuals our society has ever produced. Nine is of the same mindset which suits his role as Inquisitor. He not only doesn't have concern for others, he rather rates high in my professional opinion as a sadist. All of them are to lesser or greater degree but he's especially indifferent to others and thus, attacking even children and creating harm and havoc is right up his alley. I say so because questions posed including children received the same response. He sees no difference to them in carrying out even orders that will harm them."
"What can you tell us about each individual from your evaluations and examinations?" Coln asked.
"They're of the same brand of thinking. It's interesting that they divided up the task of leadership into component parts and gave them to others in the group to carry out. Though they're all responsible for the end result, some of them are given a more direct leadership role than others. One is the overall leader. He formulates the agenda and puts forward all of the direct leadership and goals of the group. Even though they're a committee with functions, One is the default leader of this faction. He's cold, focused, ruthless, secretive, indifferent to a great degree in the ideas of rights and inherent privileges that all living things possess, and isn't afraid to act in his and his group's own best interests no matter how contrary it is to others. He's the guiding dominant force in this group, though they'd like you to believe that their group is a collective, that all decisions are made by the group as equals. They are to an extent but he's willing to override and massage a decision to fit his plans. I would hasten to add this. Nothing about that observation mitigates what they've done individually and as a group. He carries no more blame and them less because of this.
"Two is the Auditor and manages the plans forward. He also is responsible for data and achieving what they do. You will find his glyph on every page of their data no matter how trivial. It's impossible for me to convey just how attentive they all were to the most minor detail. No one in this group can say truthfully that they didn't know what was happening since they all signed off on everything, from what they served that orn in the rec room of their command center to the greatest decisions including recalls. The data, thanks to Two, will show that. He's obsessive to the point of mania.
"Three is Authenticator. He rubber stamps everything. Only his signature is singularly on more things than Two and One. He read everything. He never changed any of the documents that we scanned, a selection out of the mass of things found with them, making any of the terrible things they did change course. He was a company man, as the humans say. Nothing was ever thus far noted in our searches changed from the course it ran by him .
"Four is the Moderator. He was the general secretary of the group, if you will. You had to pass him to reach everyone. Nothing that went in ever came that way without his perusal, nor did it leave without his approval. He ran the meetings from the business end of things and kept records of the minutes, findings and who spoke about what, when. He's methodical, devoid of emotion even for this group and sees nothing wrong with his job, what he did in it and what came of the outcomes of their decisions. He's as much an emotional cipher as the others.
"Five was the Enumerator. He formulated the policies at the order of the group, putting things together to allow them to make decisions. He was the researcher, the legal secretary and the one who had access to all materials related to their law, history and religion. He was their resource for information and gathered it as ordered. He put together the presentations that Eight and Eleven put forward. He's cold, efficient and lacking in empathy, though to a lesser degree than some of the others. His job required him to read books and acquire knowledge that made no difference in why a mech should be put to death. His effort and conclusions then ensured it happened. He presents himself as a 'functionary' of the leadership, not a complicit individual in what is at best a criminal enterprise."
"Objection," Blackstone said. "I would prefer that editorial comments be stricken and that the evidence be presented as professionally and unemotionally as possible."
Prime thought a moment, then looked at Jarro. "I concur. This is very fraught, Doctor. We are seeking insight here. Please help us as calmly and clearly as possible."
Jarro bowed slightly. "As you wish." He looked at Blackstone. "My apologies, Counselor."
Blackstone who looked strained nodded. "Thank you, Doctor. Please continue."
Jarro considered the others. "Six is Enactor of the group. That is, when a decision is made, he's given charge to carry it out. It could be as trivial as making sure that the lights come on and as devastating as recalls. There is no action taken that he isn't given the responsibility to fulfill. He states that he's merely carrying out the orders of the Council and that anything that isn't lawful in that framework isn't his responsibility. He puts it back on the others, especially One. I found him to be devious, scurrilous in his willingness to point blame to others and of a very weak character. That surprised me because they function as a group so closely that to find one willing to throw the blame on the others and attempt to excuse himself from his share was a strange deviation from the others."
Jarro watched the group but they showed no emotion at the news. He considered that,then made mental a note to tell the guards to video the group tonight to ensure safety from reprisals. "Seven is the Curator. He manages the infrastructure of their group, the databases, artifacts, the Taxonomy itself. Two, Three, Four and himself, Seven, have access to the Taxonomy in a data managerial basis and are charged to its upkeep. He makes sure it and everything else is. He's part of the group that finds reasons for their actions in case anyone challenges that. He's dedicated to the work and considered himself an academic because of it, that his part of this is merely academic. The others bear the actual responsibility to make things happen in his thinking. He sees himself as part of the group that maintains what he calls "the memory of things".
"Eight is the Disseminator of the group, that is, he makes sure that everyone is informed and that the orders of the Council are made known to everyone in the group or those in the servant class that need to know them. He reads all of them, no matter how trivial or terrible, and gets them to those who will carry them out. He makes no changes and we haven't found any evidence thus far that he objected to anything he was given. He's a very dedicated member of this group and considers it his religious duty that everything is sent out to be enacted upon. Even those things that were short of recall show no deviation in his behavior. They bear his glyph and apparently from that, his approval.
"Nine of Twelve is the Inquisitor. He's cold in his outlook, immersed to a degree that I feel is pathological regarding his religious views and everything that's asked of him is couched in that world view. He believes thoroughly that The One approves of them, that One of Twelve is in contact daily with The One and that they carry His blessing. He believes that Dai Atlas and the others would approve of his actions and that of their group. In the breakdown around the expulsion of the Quintessans, the older individuals like Dai Atlas formed the Knights of Cybertron, hoping for peace and possibilities. When it was evident it wasn't coming, they left to find Cybertopia and resurrect Cybertronians as what they first were, the peaceful race that no one ever let us be. There are many stories but Nine believes that they would approve of their actions, somehow."
Prime glanced at Prowl. "Please put in a call for Dai Atlas to come here. I will give both of you access to speak to him ahead of time and if you find virtue in your conversations, he will speak."
Both counsels nodded. Blackstone looked thoughtful and Coln looked pleased. Ratchet who was watching wondered what advantage each just thought they were delivered when Jarro continued.
"Ten is Evaluator. His job is to look at plans and try to discover their effectiveness both before and after they're implemented. He knew every order and either approved, or not, everything that this group does. They part out all things to someone who's given the authority and responsibility to carry it out. It's rather ingenious for the division of labor but it also includes everyone at every step of the way in everything they did. Ten considers himself a technician or worker bee. He looks at the possibilities of what's being considered, sends his ideas and recommendations to Two as Auditor and Five as Enumerator, then it goes back to the group for a discussion and agreement before being sent to others in the group to make it happen. He's a 'functionary', a cog in the machine. I don't believe he means it in an evasive manner. I just believe he's that banal.
"Eleven is Mediator. He acts as their ambassador. If there were indeed tech transfers to other groups and aliens, this mech would be the intermediary. He's the public face of the group in all transactions no matter how big or small. He would also mediate factions and disagreements in the group. He believes that there's an argument to surmount any problem. I asked him if that would apply to genocide or the Tyrest Treaties and he nodded. He didn't, however, elaborate. He said that I'd have to ask their enumerator for the details. They have no deep and personal standing in the things they've done. It appears with Eleven that its all just business. It's all just the Will of the One. None of them were shy about attributing this to following their religious path. All of them did that.
"The last is Twelve and his job is Castigator. If someone is going to get hurt, it comes from his orders. He's given the job of what they call 'defending the faith and the body'. He's indifferent to suffering. He sees zero value in the worker class as they all do but he, more so. He is the one who delivers the punishment no matter how large or trivial. He views anyone who stands in the way of their faction as the enemy. He sees nothing wrong with recalls. He sees it as the Will of the One, as a way of … what was it he said?" Jarro paused a moment to access the exact phrase. "It was a way of 'decluttering'."
The room was funereal as those listening digested that bit of news. Jarro continued.
"They have many attributes in common. They're cold and ruthless in the pursuit of goals. They have no problem dividing living sentient beings into a couple of categories. One set is predicated on the idea of 'useful versus not useful'. The other major one was 'dangerous to their purposes or not dangerous'. Understand, there is a lot of thought that went into their behavior and actions, lots of it rational and even if its cold and alien to us, it makes sense to them. They exhibit a number of cult-like features. A cult has about six major features that are common to almost all of them. They include an authoritarian leadership, exclusivity, isolation, opposition to independent thinking, a fear of being expelled from the group, and threats that if they leave, something terrible will happen to them.
"This leadership is the very definition of authoritarian. No one could do anything that wasn't sanctioned by it. Considering that the worker class that came with them was born and raised with this group, they were literally generational prisoners who were emotionally, physically, and psychologically unable to escape this relentless and malignant exploitation. They're the very definition of exclusive. I've dealt with many who believe they have the only truth available but none of them ever put it into practice to this degree. Their willingness to couch their ideas and demands around that of The One, to make their victims feel that the very Pantheon sanctioned this is appalling but symptomatic of such a system.
"Their escape from Cybertron was an effort to survive the mobs coming for them and tracing their movements through their own data, they never lived near a Cybertronian group again. They self isolated to protect themselves from reaction. They were the end all and be all of what happened and was thought truthful. Some of their workers still believe that The One will punish them if they don't hold to the teachings that were forced upon them by this group for the entirety of their lives. They fear independence, of thinking about their own needs and wants because of The One punishing their 'bad behavior', and most of them are in care with some in the Processor Hospital on holds. They don't know how to function without being told what to do. They believe they will die if they don't do their jobs. They don't believe that the recall of their colony was a bad thing. They're the victims of a cult and the consequences have been devastating."
"What else do you know about them and their mental condition? What else is there to know about them and how they could do this?" Coln asked.
"A sociopath has no feelings and regard for anyone. Their needs are the only ones that matter and if others suffer so that they can be met, then that's alright with them. They see only themselves in the mirror, only their purposes count. Most sociopaths can make their way without telegraphing themselves easily. But some don't, won't or can't hide it. I don't believe they suffer delusions or irrational thinking. Though we believe their ideas are irrational and some even criminal, they aren't delusional or irrational definitionally to me. They think out what they do as a group, plan it almost obsessively in detail and carry it out without remorse. They lie when it suits them, fall into patterns of blame … The One wants this or even point the finger toward others like Six did. They have no shame. They see nothing wrong with their logic, their actions or beliefs and their concern for others, such as I've discerned it, stops with their classification.
"Those who are not of an 'evolved' format don't deserve consideration beyond that which the Taxonomy allows. They learned nothing when they were overthrown. They continue to this orn the actions that led to such misery on Cybertron and their ouster. I don't believe they get it. They have no normal world view by which to assess themselves. They hold rigidly to the Taxonomy, their view of their religion and the aspects of The One that they acknowledge while ignoring the others … the obligations we have to one another because of The One's love and concern for us. That being said, they don't exhibit mitigating factors in my estimation that would bring into consideration lesser culpability such as diminished capacity." He glanced at Prime. "Understand, they didn't give us any cooperation while we did the evaluation but we know a lot by their writings, their anti-social behavior with us and their organization."
Coln sat. "Thank you."
Blackstone stood. "You say you understand them and can make a judgment on their ability to recognize their behavior or not. Yet, you say repeatedly that you didn't get cooperation. How can we trust your opinions?"
Jarro thought a moment. "First, we're all very experienced and know a great deal about this type of personality from the past and our efforts to help others in similar conditions and circumstances. We're all very highly qualified to discern. They also gave us enough to know what we're seeing. I'm not going to hide that they fought being studied, but we're very knowledgeable. We also, Rung and I, agreed to evaluate them separately. We knew they wouldn't cooperate so we did this separately and have reached our conclusions on our own. He can tell you what he discerned and you can compare. My biggest finding was that they were organized, delineated work that created what has been discovered and did it to an enormously high degree of efficiency. If they were disturbed or mentally incapacitated in some way, they would've had enormous difficulty holding together as a group and doing what they're accused of. Those who are disturbed don't play well with others. This group is the epitome of getting a job done together."
"What degree of delusion do you detect in their beliefs regarding their religious world view and the idea that The One and the Pantheon would agree with their actions and ideas?" Blackstone asked.
"That's a good question. You can look at it several ways. They either believe what they say or they're using religion as a shield. Most religiously delusional individuals tend to be sloppy in their actions, their zeal often taking over where discretion might have worked better. Heretech is a good example of that. Not all, but many function to this or that degree, something that is easily noticeable. These individuals are very organized and another important factor is that the framework they built served them rather spectacularly. They benefited magnificently from their point of view and it served them well.
"They overran Cybertron and if history is to be believed, one billion of our people were recalled before they were overthrown and escaped. That's part of the historical record. They learned nothing of their own history but where they lived, they lived in a greatly enhanced circumstance compared to others. I believe from my findings and interviews that they believe their views but they also use them for control and personal benefit. What my colleague, Rung, discerned about that from what the group would tell us is his to say."
Blackstone nodded. "Then you really aren't certain on this issue."
Jarro thought about it. "I'm certain to the extent that they allowed me to learn. I believe my findings are accurate."
"Thank you," Blackstone said as he sat.
Coln stood. "I would call Doctor Rung to the stand."
Everyone looked around until a small old timey mech stood up, one who had big round optics. He walked to the stand and was sworn in.
-0-TBC 2-15-18 edited 3-4-18