the stagnation was due to Dak-Hiliah women gaining unprecedented influence in the empire. He ordered that Dak-Hiliah men reclaim their manhood, and that Dak-Hiliah women learn their place.”
“Oh boy.” I sat at the conference table while I listened. There wasn’t anything I thought I needed to jot down yet.
“Shindray decreed that by subjugating their wives men would eradicate the compassion, indecision, and hesitance that had made the empire weak. Men were to see women as enemies who sought to destroy their character. If they didn’t fully subjugate their mates they risked failure in their public lives.”
“What exactly did Shindray tell the men to do?”
“He wrote three treatises over the course of fifty years. In the first he defined the new roles of women in Dak-Hiliah society. They were to be mothers, housekeepers, and caregivers who would remain confined to the home.”
My brow rose. “Was this as drastic a change as I think it was?”
“Records show that most women of the period worked outside their home. Women of the time period comprised 30% of the Dak-Hiliah military.”
I shook my head in disgust.
“There was catastrophic economic turmoil due to the loss of nearly half the workforce. The demand for robots grew at a rate that could not be sustained in the earliest decades. Both men and women expressed their extreme displeasure with the new rules, but followed them, nonetheless.”
“Why?”
“By disobeying the druid in the holiest seat you forfeit your reward in the afterlife and displease the gods. Displeasing the gods has historically led to widespread destruction and chaos. The Dak-Hiliah understand that the druid in the holiest seat will periodically be possessed by a malevolent god. It is during these rare periods of history when the Dak-Hiliah’s faith is tested. It is a test they must not fail, no matter how difficult. That is the only way to ensure the continued favor of the gods.”
I sighed. “Okay. Go on with the history.”
“Men were prohibited from having idle conversations with their wives. All discussions had to be limited to matters pertaining to the children or household. Husbands and wives were to sleep separately, eat separately, and limit intimacy to sexual intercourse. Husbands were to beat their wives severely for many possible infractions such as leaving the house or initiating prohibited communications.”
“Damn.”
“There was an outcry for the rules to be reversed. Shindray ignored it. After three years of enduring the new rules Dak-Hiliah women banded together in protest by only giving birth to male offspring.”
“How did they do that?”
“Dak-Hiliah women have an ovary of eggs that can only be fertilized by male coded sperm, and an ovary of eggs that can only be fertilized by female coded sperm. Their ovaries normally release both eggs simultaneously. However, the women can suppress the release of eggs from one ovary or the other at will.”
“Wow.” I wondered how humans could possibly be made compatible for breeding.
“A previous druid in the holiest seat had stated that it was the will of the gods for women to choose the gender of their offspring. Shindray could not contradict this. He responded instead with an even harsher treatise that denied school-aged girls an education and forced unwed adult women into arranged marriages. The women remained steadfast in their protest in return. After 15 years with almost no female births the council made it illegal for women to produce male offspring. At first the penalty was a public beating. Later, women who had more than three male children were publically executed. This did not stop the protests.”
“Good for them.”
“The decline in Dak-Hiliah women, and the population in general, caused the imposition of breeding cycles with artificial gestation on the remaining Dak-Hiliah women
“Oh boy.” I sat at the conference table while I listened. There wasn’t anything I thought I needed to jot down yet.
“Shindray decreed that by subjugating their wives men would eradicate the compassion, indecision, and hesitance that had made the empire weak. Men were to see women as enemies who sought to destroy their character. If they didn’t fully subjugate their mates they risked failure in their public lives.”
“What exactly did Shindray tell the men to do?”
“He wrote three treatises over the course of fifty years. In the first he defined the new roles of women in Dak-Hiliah society. They were to be mothers, housekeepers, and caregivers who would remain confined to the home.”
My brow rose. “Was this as drastic a change as I think it was?”
“Records show that most women of the period worked outside their home. Women of the time period comprised 30% of the Dak-Hiliah military.”
I shook my head in disgust.
“There was catastrophic economic turmoil due to the loss of nearly half the workforce. The demand for robots grew at a rate that could not be sustained in the earliest decades. Both men and women expressed their extreme displeasure with the new rules, but followed them, nonetheless.”
“Why?”
“By disobeying the druid in the holiest seat you forfeit your reward in the afterlife and displease the gods. Displeasing the gods has historically led to widespread destruction and chaos. The Dak-Hiliah understand that the druid in the holiest seat will periodically be possessed by a malevolent god. It is during these rare periods of history when the Dak-Hiliah’s faith is tested. It is a test they must not fail, no matter how difficult. That is the only way to ensure the continued favor of the gods.”
I sighed. “Okay. Go on with the history.”
“Men were prohibited from having idle conversations with their wives. All discussions had to be limited to matters pertaining to the children or household. Husbands and wives were to sleep separately, eat separately, and limit intimacy to sexual intercourse. Husbands were to beat their wives severely for many possible infractions such as leaving the house or initiating prohibited communications.”
“Damn.”
“There was an outcry for the rules to be reversed. Shindray ignored it. After three years of enduring the new rules Dak-Hiliah women banded together in protest by only giving birth to male offspring.”
“How did they do that?”
“Dak-Hiliah women have an ovary of eggs that can only be fertilized by male coded sperm, and an ovary of eggs that can only be fertilized by female coded sperm. Their ovaries normally release both eggs simultaneously. However, the women can suppress the release of eggs from one ovary or the other at will.”
“Wow.” I wondered how humans could possibly be made compatible for breeding.
“A previous druid in the holiest seat had stated that it was the will of the gods for women to choose the gender of their offspring. Shindray could not contradict this. He responded instead with an even harsher treatise that denied school-aged girls an education and forced unwed adult women into arranged marriages. The women remained steadfast in their protest in return. After 15 years with almost no female births the council made it illegal for women to produce male offspring. At first the penalty was a public beating. Later, women who had more than three male children were publically executed. This did not stop the protests.”
“Good for them.”
“The decline in Dak-Hiliah women, and the population in general, caused the imposition of breeding cycles with artificial gestation on the remaining Dak-Hiliah women
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