A PICTURE IS WORTH Soul Food

FUTURES SCIENCE FICTION A PICTURE IS WORTH Soul food.

BY BETH CATO image that caused profound harm. The “What happened?” yelled a man on the humans’ exploration module had taken a street. n Klatok’s brief time on Earth, one thing picture of a collective of Klatok’s kind. To “Power’s out, duh.” had become clear: humans had no human eyes, the group resembled long, “My cell’s not working!” came a woman’s comprehension of the damage done by tapered humanoid flames massed together. voice from a balcony below. “How wide- Itheir kind. spread could this be?” Klatok had accepted the onerous Klatok kept their counsel and burden of their mission with a fervent ate. Bit by bit, they felt their essence desire to deliver justice. After weeks on become more whole as parts of their Earth, they were no less committed to soul returned. their cause, yet mourned how the com- A sequence of electromagnetic ing cataclysm would delay humanity’s pulses accompanied by physical JACEY BY ILLUSTRATION enlightenment. Even so, the event assaults had just obliterated much of must happen. The immortal souls of the planet’s advanced technology. The Klatok’s kind must take priority. databases that had captured shards of But first, a final stop at the grocery soul had been eliminated — for the store. most part. Klatok understood that “SUPER CELEB PREGNANT some data would remain preserved. OMG,” screamed the bold print of the How much of that information would newspaper headline. Klatok studied it include lost souls, they had no way of as chocolate-chip cookies and thick- knowing. The volume of souls bound cut potato crisps whirred down the into paper images was impossible packed conveyer belt at the checkout. to assess as well. Full unification for “I know, can you believe it?” asked the afflicted was unlikely unless the the woman in line behind Klatok. “I whole planet was scorched clean, but think that woman’s been pregnant in that The very existence of that image fractured Klatok had voted against that extreme. same tabloid, like, three times this year.” the souls of those depicted. As the pictures Klatok’s kind would face many deep spir- “A remarkably fertile specimen,” Klatok had continued to be distributed, manipu- itual and societal dilemmas in the coming said, preferring neutral politeness on the lated and analysed on the Internet, their cycles, but together they would endure and sensitive subject of difficult gestations. souls had continued to fragment. grow. “Party tonight?” the cashier asked as the Klatok felt their own soul become less as Humans would suffer as well. Perhaps bagger packed up the mass of snack foods. they rolled their cart beneath security cam- this time of darkness and reflection would Klatok sidled over to pay. Their cre- eras at the store’s door. enable them also to emerge stronger and ated human husk had been challenging to Klatok’s kind had no concept of photogra- more enlightened. Maybe they would treat acclimatize to, but the ability to experience phy or pictures. Such things were anathema. their Earth with more kindness, and with- an extraordinary range of salty, sweet and Until that indirect contact with a robotic hold from petty cruelties along the line of umami flavours had been a delightful perk. ambassador from Earth, they had no idea SUPER CELEB PREGNANT OMG. “A party. Yes. Of a sort,” said Klatok. their holy essences were so fragile, so suscep- Loud pops and wailing sirens added music They noted that the woman next in line tible to an attack that threatened to interrupt to the purpling sky. Several plumes of smoke had tossed the tabloid on the conveyer. The 1,000-year cycles of celebration and rebirth. rose to veil the first visible stars. Klatok headline still bothered Klatok as being both The entirety of their society was unravelling, poured crumbs into their mouth and licked petty and personal. Worst of all, that paper as were some of their souls, Klatok’s included. their lips clean. — and every other one at the checkout — They watched a clock within their mind. Perhaps by the time Klatok’s kind had thoroughly ignored the very cause of Earth’s Almost time. resolved their theological questions, humans forthcoming peril. Evening swirled the sky in pink and would be ready for direct contact with an When Klatok had arrived in human guise, orange. The grid of illuminated trans- alien species. Klatok would make sure there they found surprisingly few newspapers and portation avenues spread out before their were no cameras present this time. Their media outlets had addressed the subject of apartment balcony. Klatok sandwiched a kind learnt from past foolishness; Klatok their kind. Indeed, most discussion — and chocolate-chip cookie between two salt voted to preserve humanity with the hope the devastating photograph from Mars — and vinegar crisps, and bit down. Tartness, that they, too, would learn. had proliferated on what humans termed sweetness and saltiness exploded bliss upon Any creatures capable of creating deli- ‘the Internet’. Much of that talk doubted the their tongue. ciousness such as chocolate-chip cookies truth. “It’s just photo manipulation, a fake,” In the same instant, the lights of human and salt and vinegar potato crisps had surely many humans had sneered. civilization blinked out. earned a chance at redemption. ■ A fake. Klatok had Klatok ate more and studied the scene for NATURE.COM struggled for days posterity’s sake. Although this event would Beth Cato resides in Arizona. She’s the Follow Futures: to understand how help their kind to heal, they understood the author of the Clockwork Dagger duology @NatureFutures human beings could grave cost that humanity would soon bear, and the Blood of Earth trilogy with Harper go.nature.com/mtoodm so readily doubt the in ignorance. Voyager. Her website is BethCato.com.