Camilla |
Phoenix, the de facto representative of the Bonobians, falls into the category as a jaded hedonist, as well as their diplomat and participating scientist. They started out small and simple, or large and simple, developing and implanting a gland? that did two things; rewire the brain to accept aesthetic pleasure as a physical stimulus, and also, for shits and giggles, make Bonobians some of the most overendowed sentients in the Mess. This latter problem, the overendowment, led to a mixture of reactions from denizens of the Mess, and complaints from Bonobians that they were simply too -large- to accommodate smaller partners. Subsequently, the gland is undergoing a redesign.
The idea is to enable the Bonobians to experience as many forms of pleasure as possible, in as many ways possible. Anything that increases the net utility and/or pleasure experienced in the Mess, or 'goodness' of the Mess, is a plus. Anything that does the opposite is a minus. To this end, the Bonobians seek professions in positions where they can do the most good. They enjoy themselves and others, and in the process, maybe make the Mess a little better. For the most part, they tend to avoid conflicts and altercations. They're happy to solve problems, they love to solve problems, but they absolutely hate instigating them and avoid doing that at all costs.
In summary, the Bonobians are Bottom's hedonists and problem solvers. They like sex, drugs, and perhaps some more sex after that. Anything and anyway they can make things more fun, in an organic, sensual sense (rather than the charmwarp abstract sense), is good. And the purest form of that pleasure is orgasm.
The Bonobian community is not that large, at most a couple of dozen members, all housed on the Orion, accessible via n-space gate in Bottomwarp's public square.
The plan is to try and adapt, experiencing different kinds of organic pleasure, making themselves more malleable and flexible to adapt to changing demands of the flesh. At the same time, they're opening up a little on the mental front, to try and be able to change and alter more easily.
To this end, they're rewriting the Bonobian gland with new code, making it more of a Bonobian symbiote. It still functions as a gland, an implanted new organ in the belly, but now it's dynamic, able to respond to the host's directions and whims, altering the host's body on the fly. Some more work, and some basic mental alterations will be possible as well. Phoenix has demonstrated this first ability a few times, to some.
I'm just not sure how to, yet. I don't know about the future of the Bonobians; I jumped in much too fast with them, naïvely. But I do want to make them work, if I can, and make them a part of the Mess.
Also see: The Orion