Domestication is the process of pacifying a species and bringing them under the rule of the affini. It ranges from dismantling of previous governmental structures to the literal domestication of members of the species. Domestication often involves the use of copious amounts of xenodrugs, but always involves the Haustoric Implant if the subject’s body is compatible. Provided there was a cotyledon program run beforehand, this should be the case in the vast vast vast vast vast majority of cases.
Usually, somewhere between 25%-45% of a given species population ends up as pets. Most of these will be volunteers, but in the initial stages of cultural domestication many florets will be from segments of the population that violently resisted the Affini Compact, or those that pose a serious risk to others or themselves without compassionate ownership.
She had completely underestimated how powerful the Affini obsession with florets was, how all-encompassing. It wasn’t just preventing extinctions and taking as many florets as they felt like — it included all potential florets as well, regardless of whether they wanted to be florets or not. They believe that it’s their responsibility to make every living being in the universe happy, one way or another. How had she not seen it? All the details were there. Her brain simply hadn’t joined them up properly.
There was no way out of this. There was never any negotiation possible beyond a polite fiction, because the Affini would never settle for anything else than absolute power to spoil Solstice rotten.
- Cass Hope, in No Gods, No Masters Chapter 15 by Kanagen
The primary drive of the Affini Compact is to domesticate every civilization and species in the universe. They got good at it. The goal is of course to bring peace and happiness to all the cute little sophonts they come across. They have guidelines for first contact with new species developed due to the vast number they've already encountered before ever finding the Terran Accord.
The affini always offer a choice and negotiation. The choice to willingly become a protectorate, versus being forcibly domesticated for their own good and the good of others. Negotiations are timed, the civilization gets more time for good behavior and less time for bad. The starting time limit is determined similarly. The affini win either way because if you run out of time from bad behavior you get a nice strict premade treaty with few/no concessions; and if you get lots of time from good behavior the affini get to do lots of paperwork and negotiation, getting everything they want anyway.
(Note: "bad behavior" essentially means "not doing what the affini want" and "good behavior" means "doing what the affini want", so the only way to get a long negotiation is if it's one where you're essentially negotiating how to give them what they would otherwise be taking.)
For example, the Spectrum Jellies joined the Compact willingly and kept a large amount of their own self-governance. The Terran Accord resisted until the affini arrived on Terra and forced the government to sign the Human Domestication Treaty. The cute Terrans managed to negotiate the right to choose the color and shape of the flag!
In the meantime, the Office of Transitional Neoxenoveterinary Archeobureaucracy will collect every bit of information, data, and documents that a civilization produced. This is to ensure proper record keeping. Once every prior document is recovered and accounted for, the office gets dissolved into the larger Compact bureaucracy. The Compact has a lot of data on all Terrans, because the corporations were kind enough to record everything about everyone's lives. The Compact knows who is a risk and who isn't, they also know your browser history!
When domesticating a civilization, feralism always crops up on some level, from a dispute with a small number in charge losing power or a cultural belief in individualistic freedom that ignores the needs of the self and society around them. Professing feralist ideologies will at the minimum get an individual closely monitored, acting on them will get a sophont domesticated.
"Exactly as the term would indicate, Ms. Gale. Domestication is the primary purpose of the Affini Compact. To be explicit about it, in broad terms, we take in adorable sophont species who struggle to care for themselves, like humans, and use our overwhelming technological and resource advantages to eliminate resistance to Affini control in order to ensure they are properly cared for. But most importantly, on an individual basis, domestication refers to the process by which we use our expertise in biomedical engineering and xenodrug development to turn sophonts into happy, docile and loving pets for their Affini owners."
- Kistia Esera, Second Bloom, in Nurture & Acquisitions Chapter 6 by AsphodelVeil
When a sophont is a danger to themselves or others, they get domesticated into a cute pet! This is not a punishment, but a means to help little cuties be their best selves. Alternatively, cute sophonts can volunteer to become pets! Just like on the civilization scale, good behavior means you get to negotiate terms in the contract! Affini can have more than one floret at a time, and a floret can have more than one owner at a time.
For voluntary domestications, sophonts can meet and get to know an affini in a naturally developing relationship and sign a contract when both parties are ready. Alternatively, sophonts can go to their local domestication office and the lovely affini there will walk you through everything to get put up for adoption. Steps including filling out your preferences for an owner if you have any.
The Human Domestication Treaty stipulates that rebel terrans (those actively perpetuating feralist ideologies and endangering themselves and others) are required to be domesticated… except many terrans aren't willingly rebels or never were a danger to themselves or others. Affini tend to be very lenient with surrenders, and harmless rebels and often times let them serve a wardship before being released as a reformed citizen. That is assuming they do not want to be domesticated, and the affini is trying to respect their wishes. Alternatively the Bureau of Xenosophont Wellness and Care performs wellness checks on civilians who are endangering themselves through self-harm or self-negelct, which can also result in domestication.
Once a contract is signed or a sophont is forcibly made a floret, the affini use xenodrugs, Haustoric Implants, their own biorhythms, and a number of other methods to turn their floret into a sweet little happy pet who is loved and cherished and incapable of harming another sophont outside of recreational activities like sports. Florets range from entirely dependent on their owner to practically full autonomy as permitted by their owner.
Affini do not deliberately abuse/neglect their florets . They typically respect the wishes and desires of their florets and their non-floret, non-affini citizens so long as those wants/desires do not run counter to the fundamentals of their ideological goals (ensuring happiness, safety and well-being for everyone, maintaining the dominance of the affini compact, getting to pet cute sophonts).
That being said, they are masters (and mistresses!) of domestication, and affini are so attuned to domesticating that they basically have a sixth sense to tell the difference between a floret's want that should not be ignored, and a want they can ignore for some fun power play and hot narrative kink.
When domesticating a sophont voluntarily they sign a contract giving up their rights to become property of an affini. Forcibly domesticated sophonts might be presented with one just for fun, though it makes no legal difference. Some florets sign copies from time to time because it's cute and their owner finds it lovely.
Here is an example contract presented to a forcibly domesticated rebel(see HDG). Note that below term 7 of the contract, the additional terms are specific to the affini and floret's relationship. Additional biometrics are used to sign, usually a finger print. Contracts for terrans often use the same or similar wording, but the affini kink off of bureaucracy so longer, more elaborate, and flirty contracts are definitely used.
- Above all else, you, Elvira, must obey your Guardian, Akash Nele, Third Bloom in all things. This is for your safety, wellbeing, and care. ☐
- Your Guardian, Akash Nele, Third Bloom, owns you. You are her property. You do not have political rights in the Affini Compact. ☐
- You do have a guarantee of your wellbeing, as defined in Section 57 of the Human Domestication Treaty. ☐
- This guarantee of wellbeing does not preclude your Guardian from disciplining you, as outlined in Section 61 of the Human Domestication Treaty. ☐
- As the property of your Guardian, she may add, remove, or modify conditions of your wardship at any time for any reason within the limits established by the Human Domestication Treaty. ☐
- Your full name is Elvira Nele, Second Floret from this moment forward. ☐
- Below this line are additional terms that your Guardian, Akash Nele, Third Bloom, has stipulated. ☐
- It is unbecoming for wards to swear. You must limit your language as such. ☐
- You are disallowed any secrets not specifically allowed by your Guardian. You are disallowed to hide any part of your body from your Guardian. ☐
Sign here to acknowledge your understanding and acceptance of these terms
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