Digen Ryan Farris

Appears in: Unto Zeor, Forever, Mahogany Trinrose, renSime, and  Sime Surgeon --  http://www.simegen.com/sgfandom/rimonslibrary/surgeon/SURGEON1.html  Also OPERATION HIGH TIME -- http://www.simegen.com/sgfandom/rimonslibrary/oht.html
sime - channel - male  4+. A QN-1 on his First Transfer, Endowment erupts very late in life
Sectuib of Householding Zeor.
NOTE: Rimon, Del Rimon, Klyd, Digen, Klairon -- the same soul reincarnated, very different people as in each life they learn harsh lessons
Name is often pronounced:  Dye-Gen -- his name "in formal fullness" -- Sectuib Digen Ryan Farris, ambrov Zeor
NOTE: The Farrises are the only family that keeps the family name when pledging to a Householding
Description:  Short, black hair, sings like lead bell, dimple in middle of his chin when he grins.
Head of Householding Zeor, great-great-grandson of Klyd Farris, founder of the modern Tecton, Digen never questions the ideals of the Tecton until he meets Ilyana Dumas.
(Source:  Index card file, DIGEN RYAN FARRIS, Background)   "Never questions the ideals of the Tecton until he meets Ilyana Dumas."  As Head of the most prestegous Householding, was leader of all Householding channels.  Nearly died when 14 -- years of convalescence after lateral injury.  Left outer lateral scar -- ony sime to survive such a deep cut through nerves.  Needs great Donor to give him transfer without aborts. Digen's main problem with lateral injury is fatigue -- slow recovery time -- can still do all the things he could do before the injury.   His out-Territory Collectorium license was rescinded after his lateral injury. Came out of injury to be told his family had died.  By this time he is the subject of 15 biographies and many articles in English.
Many allergies (worse than most Farrises).  Has gone over 2 years without sexual sensitivity. Once survived celebate for 4 years.  At one point was shorted in transfer for 22 consecutive months.  Had lost his only two children to sudden deaths.  Has Special Dispensation from World Controller to study Gen medicine, since ordinary collecting and dispensing of selyn is beyond his abilities. First Sime to intern in an all-Gen hospital.  But his control allows him to work among Gen suffering in the hospital, and to do "fancy and exotic specialty functionals."  Has been a working channel for 14 years --- or knows the Intern's work for 14 years.  Has a vriamic control never before seen in a channel --- can withstand cutting Gens from recovery through injury.
Has been propositioned many times and had consented on several occasions, though never consented to those women who wanted social status or financial security. 
Sectuib in Zeor by default (others had died) --- had never Received Zeor.  After his accident, lost the notion that there is more to reality than the mundanely which reaches the eye -- unaccustomed to prayer.
Symptoms of Digen's chronic shorted state: loss of temper (throwing things), whole left side went numb.  Chronic cellular starvation and aborts before his working with Imrahan begins. 
Unsupervised sleep -- nightmares --- conditions of his convalescence, fearful of setting off a convulsion. Ronaplin glands very swollen from therapy.  Selyn filters more slowly across his lateral scar --- he has to compensate, and Im also learns how to compensate as well.
Prefers his women to be channels.
Doesn't seem to agree with Jesse Elkar's "religious attitude" --- "... it seems to help some people to lower the stakes by giving the responsibility to a Higher Power."
Changed over at 10 -- on that day on which his changeover began, Digen was standing on a windy hilltop and resolved to become the first sime surgeon.  (113 Unity, unpublished short pieces, "To Strike A Spark" and "To Light A Fire":  http://www.simegen.com/sgfandom/rimonslibrary/StrikeSparkLightFire.html)
(Source:  Index card file, OPERATION HIGH TIME  --http://www.simegen.com/sgfandom/rimonslibrary/oht.html)  Refered to as "Grandpa Digen," is 120 years old, family patriarch.  Mairis's great-grandfather.  "Too old to travel," but makes it to old copter port in rescue effort.  Crusading type:  has led "integration crusade" in the past, part of which was getting written image of sime as aloofy non-participant.  Takes OPERATION HIGH TIME over as his "last crusade."  Helps plan and contact people.  Quick intelligence and lightning grasp of a problem. 
(Source:  Index card file. SIME SURGEON  --  http://www.simegen.com/sgfandom/rimonslibrary/surgeon/SURGEON1.html)  Specialist ratings:  Changeover Pathology, Disjunction Therapy, Obstetrics, and both Gen and Sime Transfer abnormalities.  Underdraw falls in his jurisdiction. 
Youngest of Orim's children.  When he was 13, his parents, three channels and siblings went into a plague town.  Digen, their "darling" and youngest remained behind (one heir had to).  Would have followed on his own except that he suffered the lateral injury while they were away.
Digen is looking to  breed down the channel's sensitivity scale, not up as has been the Zeor tradition.  He figures he is as high as anyone should get, his own excellence is often regrettable to him (too hard to get a Donor).  Figures he should marry a Gen with no channels in family background.  Figures no female Farris channel should ever be required, asked, pressured (and maybe not even ALLOWED) to get pregnant.
(Source:  Index card file.  DIGEN RYAN FARRIS <story> -- Letters from Jacqueline Lichtenberg to Marion Zimmer Bradley -- January 8 and 15, 1976)  One of Digen's many flaws is sensitivity about his injury.  He will overextend himself to prove he is not a cripple.  He will not accept any quarter because of the injury unless he is at death's door.  At Rior his injury doesn't affect him, so he learns to accept it as a limitation.  Wreckless and tremendously overconfident.  Lucky.  Genius subconscious.
"...the clumsiest most fault-filled hero I've seen in years."  (in original opening).  Digen is pathologically humble -- he doesn't mind being low-man-on-the-pole.  However, he does expect others to play intern to his channel -- his opinion to be as well received as a doctor's of higher status -- he does not value status.  Has accepted his fallibility (doesn't feel humiliated at being wrong.)
Digen is RIGHT (about surgery) but can not GIVE (like giving wisdom) that rightness away -- he thought he could just SHOW in-Territory how surgery would work and they'd embrace it -- but it didn't work out that way.  Digen gives up the idea of taking surgery in-Territory; cost is too great -- destroys the conditioning, which is needed to live UNDER THE TECTON.
Keys to Digen:
(1)  Pathologically humble
(2)  Self-rejection / self-doubt
(3)  Depression
(Source:  Index card file.  UNTO ZEOR, FOREVER -- Third Draft)  Of all his specialties, changeover pathology had always been his favorite -- something special about saving a child's life.
Chronic shorting:  Long buildup of chronic Need where he achieved no satisfaction and was thus subsequently unable to achieve the pitch of Need essential to satisfaction.  He should feel a lot worse than he was (in Need).  Body has defenses against pain and disappointment.  Most primitive part of him knew this need was the sensation that led inevitably to frustration.  It would not permit him to feel fully until he had proved otherwise.  Would take him several good transfers to work through this.
(Source:  Index card file.  UNTO ZEOR, FOREVER --  Digen's Story)  Wants to become first sime surgeon to bring surgery in-Territory.  Goes to Gen schools.  At Westfield, meets opposition from Board and other doctors.  In Sime Center is shorted in transfer.  In charge of administration work of Changeover Ward and in-Territory Collectorium, performing only special channel's functionals.  Hospital:  He and Joel Hogan began in the Emergency Ward.   Skip Ozik, Ditana Amanso -- to surgery.  Taking part in lots of surgery -- his patients tended to survive.  Injunction against in-Territory surgery.  Must do surgery to save Hayashi -- Digen loses anti-kill conditioning -- strained too far, takes transfer with Ilyana  -- Lortuen -- technically junct.  Controllers try to capture him -- he foreswears Tecton and Zeor.  (Zeor is dead) and runs away to Rior in disgust.  Grows healthy, plays shiltpron.  Roshi demands that Digen pledge Rior.  Agony of indecision.  When Skip tries to take transfer from Joel, he knows he must take Joel and Im back -- but then hears about shaking plague epidemic.  Treats Roshi -- suddenly feels himself an abomination and can't stand Im and Joel, who represent Tecton. Also can't stand sensation in the channel (secondary system) part of himself, and aborts off Ilyana.  Treats Im for shaking plague, beginning to find his self-worth again -- puts Im off true -- comes down with plague himself.  Goes "under the knife" himself -- making himself totally defenseless.  He first sees "a great light" (in touch with creative power of the universe), then in a "vision" Receives Zeor, in the process finding his inner self.  When Skip Kills Joel Hogan, Digen decides and accepts he must go back to the Tecton, to continue Zeor, though the action could well mean his death and his heirs.   "Like surgery, the Tecton is a necessary evil, tolerable only because it is so transient."
(Source:  Index card file.  UNTO ZEOR, FOREVER -- Digen's view of the Universe)  MUNDANE for a channel!  Unshaken certainty that the universe was always impeccably logical, meticulously clean of contradictions, and infallibly just. 
Terror and doubt creeping in as he tries to decide between Distect and Tecton.  Can human sacrifice (Tecton channels and Donors) be moral?
Not a religious person -- doesn't seem to agree with Jesse Elkar's view of a Higher Power, and that death is not the end of the soul.
Under trach, Digen gives up TOTAL control to Im and Ilyana (totally defenseless) of both primary and secondary systems -- with his body beyond his control, his will floats free -- he feels himself in direct contact with the creative power flowing through the universe and submitted himself to it.  An intense white light turns on suddenly -- a living person touches him -- for an instant feels himself absorbed into the brightness and a part of it to infinity and beyond.  Later thought, ARE WE NOT ALL IMMORTAL?  (Didn't want to pray for anything  as trivial as life.)  Then Receives Zeor in a visit.
(1)  Knows his basest fear, and that everything he has done was to hide it from himself.  If he should ever Kill a Gen, he would relish the terror and pain.
(2)  Found he was afraid of what he would do if he held any real power.
(3)  Faced and embraced his nightmare image, his death.
(4)  Pulls Zeor (a ring in a jeweled chest) up from stinking foul muck and is drawn into it.
Wyner gives him a message for Bett -- as if these people still exist as entities in some form.  Ilyana speaks to him immediately after her death.
(Source:  Index card file.  UNTO ZEOR, FOREVER -- Digen's "ghost" / "Nightmare")  Feeling of someone standing close by his left side -- hyperconscious, sees a Gen image, blazing in outline only, within marbled darkness like a sime in Attrition.  It terrified him. (After he tracks Roshi and feels himself an abomination.)
First saw it when he awoke after his injury -- stood looking at him then vanished.  He felt the next time he'd see it, he'd die.
Meets it again during his search for Zeor -- embraces it and knows it for his own death.
(Source:  Index card file.  UNTO ZEOR, FOREVER -- Third Draft -- Digen's "vision")  In touch with the creative power.  "It filled him and overflowed, and tears of exquisite joy ran from the outer corners of his eyes.  The white light, so brilliant it could not be seen-by but only SEEN was there, somewhere behind his head, above his eyeballs.  The power touched him, and he knews the trembling fear striking a mere mortal in the presence of the pure essence of which existence is only one small manifestation.
He would never use the word, God, again.
They were in His presence always, and such power was too terrible even to be referred to.  He felt that no other mortal even knew the meaning of the word, awe, as he was learning it.  He wanted to let it reduce him to ashen fragments, but it would not let him be humble for his very substance was, also of the same power.
He had to prostrate himself in utter humility, and he had to stand with pride.  The two imperatuves warred in him, tearing him apart, and at the same time, he knew they were one and the same impulse.  Such contradiction could not be embraced by his mortal mind."