The Space Opera Working Thread

reply to post by cindymars

Ok no prob.
I'll stick something up about ol Chumley.

Prof RabbitYes, I agree it would be hilarious to point Chumley in the general direction of the Studious man, but, alas, I wouldn't wish Regallian *windies* on anyone.

As for the *merge* - I just feel really uncomfortable having Ship perceived as anyone who would wish so much to merge with another she'd compromise everything she is and the lives of those who depend on her.

Plus, it doesn't line up at all with her history.



[edit on 6-10-2009 by silo13]

reply to post by silo13


I mean merge as us and them, the Pen and the Yydryl.

I also think that if it can work for the best of all concerned,
that Seeker be able to move back and forth easily between the 2 vessels.

Should I make a filler/conversational post or something?
Is there something I should say or do prior to your next post. Something funny and simple.

[edit on 6-10-2009 by cindymars]

reply to post by silo13


The reference to Asher being one of Yydryl's "kind" is metaphorical. Yydryl must think in the quantum, otherwise it would not be able to do the things that it does.

Seeing as Yydryl is essentially a living quantum brain, it has much in common with Asher. That's all I meant by that.

Also, Asher has no direct connection with Yydryl any more than he has a direct connection to say for example, the Penelope's computing array. He's merely the ghost in the machine, he can move back and forth seemingly at will.

Let me repeat that Asher isn't human. He has no motivation to 'infiltrate' the Yydryl and the Yydryl knows it. If the ship didn't want him around, he simply wouldn't bother it. Quantum brains have no reason to compete.

As long as we're talking about Yydryl, why does everyone refer to the ship as a "she"? I agree completely that it is a living, organic being, but unless your trying to insinuate that it has "lady parts" (I'm trying to be P.C. here), it's not a she.

It's on the same level as referring to god as a "he", it just doesn't make much sense in my opinion.

I'm sensing that including this particular NPC in my writing might have offended some who had other plans for it. My thought was that it would behave differently toward Asher than it would to anyone else because Asher doesn't have much in common with most living beings anymore.

I thought we were working on some sort of merger here? I'm only doing what I thought would be the quickest and easiest way of bringing the two crews together.

reply to post by SeekerOfAUTMN


I agree with you.
I want us to come together.
Our use of SHIP being a she is just our personal preference that its personality which it has ,identifies as female.
We have plans, in that direction.
That is just my take on it.

Originally posted by SeekerOfAUTMN

As long as we're talking about Yydryl, why does everyone refer to the ship as a "she"? I agree completely that it is a living, organic being, but unless your trying to insinuate that it has "lady parts" (I'm trying to be P.C. here), it's not a she.

Of course Yydryl is a "she", much the same as my car, computers, and my buddy's boat are all "shes".

Besides, at present Yydryl is more "womannned" than "manned", referrring to crew characters.

I'm afraid neno may be embarking into Amazon territory here.

We all know what happened to the explorers of the Amazon...

reply to post by SeekerOfAUTMN

As long as we're talking about Yydryl, why does everyone refer to the ship as a "she"? I agree completely that it is a living, organic being, but unless your trying to insinuate that it has "lady parts" (I'm trying to be P.C. here), it's not a she.

Back story.

There's been innuendo Delia is Ship in *being form* - females *parts* and all.
This story line is being developed slowly but surely - still not obvious to the readers, unless they're paying very close attention.

Also, Ship has referred to herself as she on three occasions - two while speaking with Silo in Ships Center and once, in her *being form*.

And as Ship is sentient, and it's her choice, and she's made it, she, is in fact, a she.

Originally posted by SeekerOfAUTMN
reply to post by silo13

 

As long as we're talking about Yydryl, why does everyone refer to the ship as a "she"? I agree completely that it is a living, organic being, but unless your trying to insinuate that it has "lady parts" (I'm trying to be P.C. here), it's not a she.

Yes you are correct, people generally assign personalities to inanimate objects, particularly cars and computers. Males generally give female names (about 80% of the time) Females gender bias is about even, some male names some female.

You will notice I have given "Sheila" a female persona, for a speaking computer the voice used will gender type the persona. This has been done in Sci-Fi since the early years, many "male" computers have been typecast in a negative light, HAL is an example from 2001. Female computers tend to be more neutral or robotic (Star Trek LCARS)

As for Yydryl I bow to the creators as to the persona however the storyline thus far leads one to a feminine aspect. Perhaps this should be outlined, as a one and only "type" ship could Yydryl be an androgyne?

[edit on 7-10-2009 by prof-rabbit]

Originally posted by silo13
reply to post by SeekerOfAUTMN

 

And as Ship is sentient, and it's her choice, and she's made it, she, is in fact, a she.

Loved your last post, esp. re the "boys will be boys"

Perhaps this should be outlined, as a one and only "type" ship could Yydryl be an androgyne?

Perhaps we could look forward to some Yydrylettes! all feminine of course!

reply to post by prof-rabbit


Let me dig back through the posts to find the Yydryl origins.

Gimme a few and I'll post them here - maybe you can help me (please) to outline her past a bit more?

Originally posted by silo13
Studioussssss you out there?

We really need to know what you want to do on the Yydryl before we can go on.

I'm still here.

It looks like I'm going to be hiding from Neno and his companion the...um how do I say this... "excited" President of the UEF.

reply to post by prof-rabbit

Ok, Penelope - meet S.H.I.P - Ship for short.

‘Silo, I’m one of the first intergalactic ‘live’ vessels designed by LAB. I’m the prototype for S.H.I.P to be precise.’

‘Ship,’ she went on, ‘stands for Symbiotic Homophoric, meaning self specifying, Intergalactic Propulsion System, or Ship.

Intergalactic because I wasn't designed for dimensional travel but I wouldn't rule it out, I‘ve come a long way since I slipped the space dock at LAB.

So there ya go - Ship’s a Girl.

The Orion Empire, as it so happens, was having the same problem. After many lost vessels due to pilot vs. ship interactive error they were growing increasingly frantic to come up with a more flexible form of Starship and at the same time searching for a design that would effectively cut down on mechanical failure, repair time, increase interfacing and to reduce dependency on live crew members.

When the O.E approached LAB they stressed it was imperative LAB come up with a Ship design could interact seamlessly with various life forms as the physical ‘uniqueness’ of individual Captains and crews made it difficult for the Rigelians to have a standard type vessel.

Ahhh, so even if she isn’t Asher’s *kind* - she would interface seamlessly with him I see - but not so readily - not at all... (Unless She's got an ulterior motive for being so, accommodating to Asher).

What the O.E didn’t know was what they'd asked LAB to create was already flying. S.H.I.P.
I’d passed my maiden voyage and for years had been making cargo runs with technicians aboard - but LAB still considered me too immature to spring on the O.E so they kept me a secret.

(Lots more info here but I’m cutting this down to a minimum)...

‘Then came the test flight.‘ Ship cringed but once again her voice revealed none of her internal strife.

‘To say the flight went badly would be a gross understatement. Save me the embarrassment of recounting the incident and allow me to sum it up simply by saying the pilot did not submit a favorable report to the O.E which is now the Orion Alliance. Subsequently between the negative recommendation by the test pilot and LAB’s refusing to sell me at a lower cost the deal was never consummated.’

Bummer then, cool for us now.

‘Silo, there were no regulations on S,H.I.P.S until after the O.A test pilot flew with me once, just once.

Since then the O.A has come down so hard with regulations pertaining to 'live vessels' I doubt you’ll ever see a ’free flyer’ like me again. As for the other two like me? They were completely destroyed.’

She is - unique.

‘I was rejected by the O.A, and not just rejected, they wanted me scrapped. LAB intervened. Now, since they can’t destroy me they send me out when a Captain needs a ‘specialized‘ vessel. In other words one that’s expendable.‘

‘And to answer the question you asked before concerning the Captains? It’s a coincidence Silo. Yes, I’ve matured where I don't require a Captain any longer but missing Captains and crew on the Yydryl? It’s just a coincidence.’

‘Coincidence?’ As much as I didn’t want to admit the possibility it was becoming obvious Ships refusal to submit to authority might have something to so with the disappearance of Captains and crew of the Yydryl.

Ok, this is what I mean about it going so against the Yydryl’s character to practically slip into bed, so to speak, with Asher.

She just doesn’t do that kind of thing.

She ‘s gone so far as to nearly, almost nearly admit to killing off authority figures and the Captains.

So, beware.

What comes to mind at this point? The interaction between Asher and the Yydryl can be summed up in the old saying - ‘Come into my web said the spider to the fly...’


[edit on 7-10-2009 by silo13]

reply to post by silo13


Well we will have to write her a change of mind.
Or whatever it takes to work with each other.
SHIP cant help that she is a serial killer. Joking
We have not decided she did it, have we?

It is a womans perogative to change her mind and her clothes.

Originally posted by Studious

I'm still here.

It looks like I'm going to be hiding from Neno and his companion the...um how do I say this... "excited" President of the UEF.

Well, as far as neno goes, the situation has changed, what with the UEF getting itself all blowed up and all, so there really isn't any prosecutorial power in the mayhem we have now.

Other than neno, of course. He's shown himself willing to be a creative problem-solver, which ain't always a good thing.

What I have to figure out now is how to get Studious off the docket. Just dropping the charges might be a little weak, without a resolution of some sort. It simply won't do for Studious to continue trying to erase the Penelope crew through an over-developed sense of justice, particularly as we have war on 2 fronts now, openly against the Ophiuchi, and clandestinely against NI.

Which means your NI buddies need resolved too.

Conversely, if there's no system in place to gig Studious, then there isn't anything in place to gig "war criminals" either. Like neno and Asher. Actually, Asher is pretty much "un-gig-able" in his current state. What are they gonna do, pull the plug on the universe, and re-boot it?

leaving neno still in danger of hell-fire and damnation, all by his lonesome.

I wouldn't worry about Bransom. She appears to be developing to be all about Power, Politics, Parties, and Manipulations (couldn't think of a 'p' word to cover it on short notice). Most politicians are, aren't they?

Anyhow, she's not along to capture any fugitives, and could probably care less. She's far more likely to drop neno in the grease, through her peculiar brand of "diplomacy".

Yydryl crew - feel free to use Bransom as you will. Be forewarned that if you throw her at neno, he's gonna duck, and his reflexes are still pretty good, for an old guy.

I'd hate to think what he'd have to do to get her on his side in the "war criminal" matter. It would probably only START with eating a lot of crow...

reply to post by cindymars


I submity that the "coincidental dissapearances" of the Yydryl captains may have more of a relation to people exercising, or attempting to exercise, authority over Yydryl than it has to do with authority issues in general.

If I were Asher, I wouldn't EVER try to tell a 'female' what to do...

Oh, and back to Studious: Ms Bransom's 'attack' on neno wasn't necessarily a reflection of her proclivities, it was more in the nature of something to throw him off balance, thereby gaining an advantage. It was only a weapon in her arsenal, not a statement of purpose.

Her tactic appears to have worked - for the time being.

Some notes from Yydryl's original design should be remembered.

Weapon System Technical Data:
Deep Range:
- High-Intensity Proton Demolisher -

- Thorn Charges - 2000 Yggdrasil Pods have been grown on the Yddril. These pods produce balls of corrosive acid that are discharged from the pod at the speed of sound.

- Pinpoint Annihilator - Mainly used for attacking small targets. The annihilator launches a cluster of 3 homing missiles that will follow the target until they or the target are destroyed.

The following is important because it tells us how the base of Yydryl was formulated.

- The Yddryl was formed from a plant species native to Rigel. The particular species itself is vine-like. The tendrils of the ship will grab, entangle, and crush any vessels within their reach. These cannot be controlled.


That would make docking impossible.

Next it has been a little too easy previously to cut into Yydryl.

Defense Systems:

- The plant species that forms the Yddryl has been genetically modified in many ways. The "skin" of the ship has been altered so that its density is 3 times that of diamond. This makes the ship's body near indestructible.



We should consider those things perhaps with a view to expressing the developing maturity of SHIP and her control over her own systems.

reply to post by prof-rabbit


Thanks tons for adding that in.
It's one of the things covered under her broad brush painting of the *changes* since she as last attacked but I'd not gone back to Deson's notes yet as there are more there too.

But yeah, she's *matured* beyond a lot of it - in other words she can control the tentacles, etc.

Thanks again!

Also - Cindymars - No, we haven't decided what Yydryl is up to concerning the missing Captains - I'm still not all together sure what the cocoons are all about but I'm in HOPES Studious will cover that - or get us pointed in the right direction with that (using that Shapeshifter of his).

I mean there was a time when we were going to find them and blowtorch them.

Maybe that's what will happen when I go to the Center as requested and we can add in that info for the Penelope crew???.

BUT - no, I don't think the Yydryl had anything at all to do with the loss of the Captains. She would have said so. She's made it clear it's a coincidence and again has no reason to lie.
Problem with authority or not she wouldn't out and out kill as she's proven too many times already (with the U-mans from the Penelope as an example) that she's bent on preserving life.



[edit on 8-10-2009 by silo13]

I concede to Ship being a she. It makes sense that it would wish to choose a gender, the same as Asher would still refer to himself as a "he" regardless of his lack of... ehm... "man parts". (yes that sounds worse than it is, still trying to be politically correct)

As far as Yydryl allowing Asher in as easily as she did, maybe she was lonely? Or perhaps she had ulterior motive? In all honesty, there's not much she could do to harm Asher, she could lock him out, but he really has no intention of giving Yydryl a reason to do so.

Anyway, just got a post up, hope it keeps things moving.

Hi Ya and Happy Monday CindyMars!

If you want to answer the Penelope I've got to get to Ship's Center.

Got a few things to take care of before the Penelope Crew get's here.


Edit: Non applicable after the great post by Neno...



[edit on 12-10-2009 by silo13]

I edited my story post to allow the possibility of reaching accomodations with Studious, in light of the current interstellar situation.

Soon, we should have Studious, Asher, and neno aboard the Yydryl. I think that's about 3/5 of Penelope's current active compliment.

Maybe we can get this thing moving in another direction now. Anybody for springing Antar from the Dark Lord's Atlantean clutchs?

Is Antar for it?

I'm rather cross with Miss Bransom for insisting on opening another diplomatic mission without dealing with the diplomats aboard Penelope, from the surface of the planet we are now orbiting... again.

What do you suppose THOSE diplomats are thinking, finding themselves back home with no diplomatic actions, and the UEF in tatters?

What's gonna happen if Miss Bransom suddenly realizes they're not aboard Penelope any more, and decides to inform neno that SHE'S in the driver seat now?



[edit on 2009/10/12 by nenothtu]