As Above, So Below

by Richard Lawther

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  Well, there you have it, Gerry. Like I said, it’s old stuff. I hope it helps, anyway. The subject matter links nicely onto my next point:

  As I said before, I’ve just come back from a major conference. For a while now, there have been some strange developments taking place on Good Ol’ Earth. You humans are at it again! just when we think we finally understand you guys, you suddenly send down a curveball. Your problem is that you’ve evolved too damned fast! – I don’t mean that personally, Gerry.

  You may or may not have heard of the new drug, DK61-12 – its full name is thio-dia-arylcylohexylamine, but it’s more familiarly known as diaketamine. Well, this drug presents some rather strange properties. Firstly, it shuts down the language centre of the human brain. Secondly, it triggers the permanent activation of the thalamic antenna! (This second fact is known by only a handful of humans). Now, given your present nature, the sudden re-emergence of telepathy – after all this time – would be disastrous.

  We really thought you’d done it this time, but, once again, we underestimated you. It seems that the thalami, on discovering the antennae, withhold this information from the conscious mind. Why are they doing this? – that’s a complete mystery; it goes against their instinct – which is to relay information to the various parts of the brain. The thalamic “brains” are communicating with each other, behind the backs, as it were, of the cerebral cortex. No conscious telepathy is taking place.

  Don’t take a sigh of relief, Gerry – there’s more:

  The thalamus is not a complete brain, it is simply a component part of the brain. When it begins communications, as far as we can tell, it quickly merges its own identity with those of the others. Now, the only reason this is happening is because the conscious mind is not along for the ride, if it were, its sense of self would prevent any merging of awareness.

  So, the newly telepathic thalamus effectively becomes part of a larger network. This – if it has a mind of its own – lies independent of the hosts’ consciousness. The implications are worrying, not just for you, but for us, too. Over twenty thousand individuals have taken diaketamine since it was first discovered ten years ago. Twenty thousand thalamic brains are submerged into one identity. If they truly have formed an independent mind, the resulting agency could have enormous mental powers – and it would be quite unique in our galaxy. I reiterate, we don’t know for certain that such an entity exists. If it does, it’s not talking to us, and we have tried to communicate.

  But we are finding indirect signs: There appears to be a growing coherence at large within humanity’s subconscious – and not just within that of the diaketamine-taking thalamic hosts – but all humans! Whatever is going on, the answer, if there really is one, lies within your dreams...

  Humans! You certainly keep us on our toes, well, you would – if we had toes.

  One last thing, Gerry, just to be on the safe side, don’t mess with diaketamine.

  So long, Gerry, keep in touch.

  Yours

  ~~@##@**@@^^..@~##’’~. ‘~~

  PS. I’m going to be busy for the next couple of months, there are more conferences planned at Pleiades, and I have to visit the galactic centre to witness the explosive death of a super-giant star; and then I’ll be tied up in Mexico for a while – conducting more routine abductions. But I hope to be in Leeds in July – Catch you then.

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