“This makes no sense. The database can’t be complete,” Miram said, shaking her head. “No culture just appears out of nowhere.”

“Nothing has ever added up about the Priminae,” Eric said. “From the beginning I didn’t know what to make of them. Genetically human, seemingly pacifists, but the weapons . . . lord, the power of their weapons . . . nothing made sense.”

“They aren’t, you know, sir.”

“They aren’t what?”

“Genetically human,” Miram answered, looking nonplussed. “You didn’t know?”

“I’ve been busy. I don’t understand,” he said. “Doctor Rame . . .”

“Was rushed. He looked for specific genetic markers that we associate with human,” she said. “Those are all there.”

“So?”

“What’s missing is the extraneous DNA that Terran humans share,” she responded. “Remnants from our evolutionary ancestors: reptilian, fish, avian DNA. We can track that DNA back to specific species in Earth’s history. The Priminae don’t share any of that with us. They look human, Captain, but they are not.”

Eric fell silent, considering that for a long moment. That shook his view of the Priminae significantly.

“So what does that mean?” he asked. “Some kind of parallel evolution?”

“Unlikely,” Miram said, shaking her head. “Though we honestly don’t have enough data points to truly be certain. So far we have two known intelligent species, assuming we discount the Drasin, and they both look human. Strictly speaking, it is possible that the human form is the inevitable end result of evolution, but given what we know and can prove about evolution, even assuming perfect Earth-type environments, a mirror-image evolution should be next to impossible.”

“So what does that leave?”

Miram shrugged. “Guided evolution?”

“Not familiar with the term. Do you mean by God?” Eric asked.

“Possible, though I have difficulty believing in the idea of an interactive God,” she said with a frown. “At least if we’re talking about the Christian god.”

“You have something against Christians?” Eric asked mildly.

“No sir. However, the Judeo-Christian god is atypical in our cultural history,” Miram said. “Most ancient gods were just . . . us, but more so. Thor, Ares, Kali: these are all people with godly powers. Even the modern incarnations of those religions share those traits. Those gods have flaws, limits. Yahweh, Jehovah, Allah: that god was different, unique really. A single deity that incorporated all the disparate gods before it, a supergod if you will.”

“I’m really not following,” Eric admitted.

“The supreme creator has an inherent . . . problem,” she said. “By definition, such an entity must exist outside our frame of reference. You can’t create the universe if you’re part of the universe, so I have a problem with the idea of such a creator getting involved on a personal level.”

“You don’t have a problem with the other gods?” Eric asked, genuinely curious.