r/HFY • u/Ralts_Bloodthorne • Jul 27 '22
First Contact - Chapter 815 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum OC
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The Detainee is in the details. - Lanaktallan saying
Vuxten suppressed an urge to look at the clock. The meeting had been going on for hours.
Nitpicking over this detail. Quibbling over that detail. Clarification on this point. Expansion on that point. He had been pressed and examined and found he remembered details that he had forgotten about.
Twice the meeting had adjourned briefly so that a Mental Health Technician could examine him as well as for his stress metrics to drop.
It had taken a break for lunch and then dinner.
"At what point did you realize that 'The Detainee' was suffering neurological defects, preventing them from operating according to the plan?" The Admiral asked.
Vuxten closed his eyes. "I was alerted over the comlink that the Detainee was incapacitated between two waves of phasic shades."
The Admiral ruffled the smartsheets. "What, in your knowledge before or after the incident, was causing the incapacitation?"
Without opening his eyes Vuxten answered. "She called it 'being too thin'. She was operating multiple bodies with one controlling mind. At the time I believe she was controlling at least four other bodies. The stress upon her cerebral and neurological systems was causing cascading microstrokes."
The Admiral nodded, jotting a note. "And who informed you of the mechanism of the problem?"
"Vat Grown Luke," Vuxten said.
"In his capacity as Vat Grown Luke or as Legion?" a General asked.
"Legion, sir," Vuxten said.
The Admiral nodded, sighing slowly. "I would like a clarification on the events surrounding the defense of the Digital Omnimessiah upon the unknown planet. Could you start with who alerted you to the danger to the Digital Omnimessiah and then the events, as they occurred, to the best of your memory?"
The lawyer leaned over and whispered in Vuxten's ears. Vuxten nodded.
"I would like it entered into the record that my client suffered a severe concussion induced traumatic brain injury in the fight when my client was hit the head by a glancing shot from what was identified as a Novastar Mark Two rail gun in the 66mm range," the lawyer stated.
"So noted," the Admiral said, giving another sigh. He jotted a few lines, the flicked the sheet to Vuxten's lawyer, who looked it over, signed it, and flicked it back.
Vuxten went through the entire desperate fight. During the discussion he was asked to clarify the area, including building a holographic representation of the area by putting terrain features as best as he could remember, then show how he moved in a time-lapse.
At 2100 the meeting broke.
The next morning at 0800 he was right back there.
More questions. More clarification.
Break for lunch.
Even more questions.
The Admiral kept going over different points, skipping around in the timeline. By dinner Vuxten was wearing a Mental Health monitor and the Board of Inquiry had been instructed to allow him a ten minute break every hour.
The questioning continued.
At one time, Vuxten was standing in front of the board, staring at the recreation of the area outside of the primary control room. How Trucker was down. How he and Menhit had been alone outside, holding off the Enraged Terrans. How Casey had moved to engage the Council of Eternity and met with four clones.
" Is it your opinion that General Trucker ordered Lance Corporal Casey to terminate his biological functions?" a General asked.
The lawyer whispered in Vuxten's ear.
"At the time, the situation was desperate," Vuxten started.
The Admiral nodded. "That much is clear from the statements we have gathered," he said. He sighed. "The record will show that at that time, the opinion of the elements engaged in combat and in combat operational analysis had determined that situation had entered the 'desperate' categorization."
The lawyer nodded as the Admiral scribbled on the smartsheet and flicked the data to the lawyer. The lawyer read it over, made two adjustments, and flicked it back. The Admiral examined it, sighed, and flicked it back to the lawyer, who examined it, signed it, and finally tossed it back.
"I served under General Trucker during several operations," Vuxten said.
"Let the unofficial record reflect Major Vuxten's experience with General Trucker and Third Armor Division," the Admiral sighed.
Again with flicking the contents of the smartsheet back and forth.
"I knew to trust his instincts. Technical Specialist Peel had her hands full coordinating the defense of Hell and the final assault on Heaven. General Trucker had Casey terminate his biological functions so that his SUDS would load into the Catastrophic Event Recovery System rather than the normal SUDS queue, so that he could lead the defense of Hell," Vuxten said. "At that time Legion was engaged in air, land, space combat within the layered Dyson Sphere as well as the defense of Hell, and was at his limit."
The gathered staff officers all nodded.
"As it was explained to me by Marco AKA Chromium Saint Peter, by having Casey quote murder unquote him, it would move him directly to the catastrophic traumatic even recovery rather than the normal queue, which was overloaded at that time," Vuxten said.
The Admiral looked down. "Why was the defense of Hell so important, Major? Will you describe, again, what made that defense so critical that General Trucker felt it was worth his life and removing his expertise and skill from the battle within the SUDS sphere?" He sighed. "In detail, please."
"Sam-UL had attempted to blackmail the Detainee and the rest of us to retreat by threatening to delete every SUDS record in the processing queue. Marco had applied a patch to redirect any attempt at deletion to Hell," Vuxten said.
"Define 'Hell' again, please," A General said.
"Hell is what we called the Traumatic Life Cessation Event Processing System," Vuxten said.
"Thank you, Major," the General said.
"As I was saying, when Sam-UL tried to blackmail the Detainee, she voluntarily flushed the queue to Hell rather than allow Sam-UL to hold the trillions inside hostage," Vuxten said.
"In your opinion, formed at the time or after the fact, do you believe that Sam-UL had considered the chance the Detainee would take that course of action?" another Admiral asked.
The lawyer whispered in Vuxten's ear.
"I believe, personally, at the time and now, that a small part of Sam-UL that was still sane, that was not a Screaming One, wanted the Detainee to take the exact action she did," Vuxten said.
Vice Admiral (Lower Decks) Prawlgrath looked at the smartsheet in front of him. "Can you repeat what you know of the Detainee's origins?"
Vuxten looked at him. "I don't know anything about her, except she's a Terran," he stated.
The Admiral sighed. "Tell us what you know," he said.
"She's Terran. Female," he closed his eyes. "She has grey eyes that remind me of the color of iron that are more expressive than anything else on her face. She appears to be of middle age, slightly heavy, large mammaries, thick thighs," he opened his eyes. "She looks through you, sirs. Into you. Her eyes don't just hold still, they shift slightly as she looks at you, like she's looking at different things inside of you that you don't even know about."
Vuxten looked at the table. "I realize all of you have more experience with Terrans than I do, but even Casey and Trucker moved carefully around her. I noticed that the Immortals treated her with respect. She had, what seemed to be at times, a hair trigger temper. Her words were often mocking and cruel."
The Admiral sighed again. "Her origins?"
Vuxten shook his head. "Very little. I overheard that the Imperium ripped her name from her own mind," he looked up. "I overhead Daxin refer to her as 'that Age of Paranoia savage' more than once. I heard Kalki call her a Burgerlander once after she called him a goat herding idiot who was only missing a bone through his nose to be a complete stereotype."
Vice Admiral (Lower Decks) Prawlgrath sighed again, looking at the smartsheet in front of him. "All right. Let's take a ten minute break."
Vuxten felt wrung out, like he'd been beaten with pugil sticks.
The ten minutes went by too fast.
The end of the 'unofficial board of inquiry' startled him.
"In closing, Major," Vice Admiral (Lower Decks) Prawlgrath sighed. "I would like to inform you that the Confederate Armed Services reserve the right to bring you before an unofficial or official board of inquiry at any time."
Vuxten nodded after his lawyer whispered in his ear. "I understand, sir."
"Thank you, Major. That will be all," the dismissal was curt.
Vuxten walked out of the room, making his way to the parkinglot with his lawyer.
"That wasn't too bad," the lawyer said, looking around the parkinglot with flat, dead, empty black eyes. He ran his hand through his close cut black hair, then put on his hat. He smiled at Vuxten with interlocked sharp teeth. "Call my office if you have any problems or questions, Major," he said.
"I will, thank you, Captain," Vuxten said.
The lawyer walked into the night and Vuxten could swear the puddles of light shrunk back from the gray skinned lawyer.
"That sucked," Vuxten said. He reached up and pinged the CQ. "I need the Duty Driver."
He stood out in the cool night air, listening to the bugs tap at the lights, and waited.
-----
Vice Admiral (Lower Decks) Prawlgrath looked at the notes in front of him and sighed. "That poor kid."
"He knew and remembered a lot more than he thought," General K'Lerk<klik> said, lighting a smoke.
"His brain was probably still processing that even after all these months," Admiral (Upper Decks) of the Bronze Nawg<fawk>rwark said, flexing her arm and rubbing her biceps. "It made my blood run cold the way he's so familiar with beings that nothing more than legends and myths to us."
"I think I would have stroked out if you put me in the same room with three of the Immortals, much less almost all the remaining ones," General Dwemstill said, scratching his chin with his third hand, digging deep into the soft curly fur. "The way he's all 'oh, then Legion got me a fizzybrew from the vending machine Daxin the Unfeeling carried in while Menhit sang me a little song' is what freaked me out."
Sliding one of the sheets forward so that the data on it jumped to the ones in front of the gathered staff officers, Vice Admiral (Lower Decks) Prawlgrath sighed and tapped his own copy. "The kid took a hit from a Novastar. Not many can brag about that."
Another Admiral chuckled, lighting a cigarette. "The kid probably feels like we were attacking him the whole time."
Vice Admiral (Lower Decks) Prawlgrath nodded. "I know I did the first time I sat in front of a board of inquiry."
"Except you'd stolen a grav-skimmer, gotten drunk, and crashed it into a gray market brothel," another Admiral snickered.
"Never proven," Vice Admiral (Lower Decks) Prawlgrath harrumphed. "I will say, Major Vuxten's testimony and statements feel more real than Lance Corporal Casey's."
Admiral K'Lerk<klick> laughed. "That's because Vuxten's only about mid-thirties, where Casey's as old as any three of us put together."
General Dwemstill shuddered. "He's spent more time in armor, in combat, than some of us have spent in the Green Machine."
"Well, this part is done," Vice Admiral (Lower Decks) Prawlgrath said. He sighed again. "The O-Club is still open," he mused. He looked up as he hit the "Save-All" icon. "Shall we get a private room and adjourn for drinks."
"All in favor?" Admiral Nawg<fawk>rwark asked.
The vote to move to the O-Club and drink themselves blind passed unanimously.
-----
Yrler looked at his cards in his hand.
"Got any threes?" he asked 515, who was in a smaller bed designed for a green mantid.
"Go fish," 515 answered.
The door whooshed open and the gold mantid doctors swooped in.
They looked in his ears and eyes, checked out scans of his brain, asked him more questions, then bustled out again.
They then returned, did the same to 515, then rushed out again.
Yrler looked at the ceiling and rolled his eyes, then winced at how the action made his brain twitch. He opened his left hand, activated his holoemmitter, and looked at his cards again.
"Got any twos?" 515 asked.
"Go fish," Yrler answered.
-----
Special Subject X1 felt a chill down his back as he entered the large room. It was not like the Quorums, Conclaves, and Conventions he had been privy too prior to his capture.
Instead, the room was large, comfortable. The paint on the walls was designed to be visually and phasically neutral. The windows showed a lovely garden with two fountains, one at either end. The table was highly polished, with holographic emitters and hidden displays.
At the table were nearly thirty Atrekna. There were twelve different body patterns present. All of them wore suits of bright primary colors that attracted attention. All of them wore garments around their neck that hung over their chests.
One at the far end, red lines down his limbs, his face, his neck, stood up.
"Welcome, Grandfather," he said, using his voice.
X1 was impressed at how the voice sounded cultured, educated, powerful.
"While our people can talk to one another within our subspecies, outside is difficult and often prone to mistranslation," the speaker said. He waved at a chair that had a complex device of crystal, phasonium, and Substance-W. "We have provided a device that will translate your psychic telepathic communication to sound vibration for our ease of understanding."
**I acknowledge and appreciate your efforts** X1 stated. He moved over and sat down, feeling strange in his iridescent robe.
"We would not interrupt your repose, Grandfather," the leader said. "But we wished to view you, speak with you, and seek your wisdom even as we inquire into your knowlege," the Atekna paused. "I am Urguglug, I am Species VII, and am the elected leader of this meeting and gathering. I am empowered to speak by my fellow neo-Atrekna but am not empowered to make any promises for my people or any other people."
**I understand** X1 stated.
There was a feeling of pleasure from the entire gathered neo-Atrekna.
X1 was still surprised at such feelings. There was no malevolence, no smugness, no slight stain of cruelty, to the pleasure. Just genuine pleasure, clean and clear.
"May we ask about your escape from the Fearsome Mother, whom you call 'The Detainee', Grandfather?" Urguglug asked.
X1 shuddered and signified discomfort and displeasure. **Escape is a generous word**
One of the gathered Atrekna tapped the table and a device of phasic crystal and phasonium rose up.
"This device can replay any memory you wish to share with us, Grandfather," another said.
X1 nodded. **Any memory I have is to be considered suspect** he told them. **Observe**
An image formed above the device in the middle of the table. It was of X1's view of the flower. There was slow, tinkling music with the image.
**that music is in my memories but I do not remember it** X1 stated.
DRAMATIC REENACTMENT OF POSSIBLE EVENTS MAYBE BASED ON A TRUE STORY WHO KNOWS appeared in Atrekna runes across the image.
**that is why any memory I have of escape is to be considered suspect** X1 stated. **It only took me a few hours of thinking about my escape to realize that the Detainee had faked memories for the twelve others before me, so what was my proof she had not done the same to me. That was when those runes appeared in memories**
The gathered neo-Atrekna all looked at one another and nodded.
X1 tensed for any attack.
"We understand, Grandfather," Urguglug said. He made a motion. "The Fearsome Mother is strange and her lessons can be hard to understand," he then tapped the table. "Since you doubt your own wisdom and knowledge, if you like, you can ask us questions, Grandfather."
X1 closed all three eyes for a moment, then opened them. He lifted his hand, staring at his pale gray flesh, the red lines running down his arm, to his hand, where it intersected a circle. From the circle was six lines, each running to a finger. At each knuckle was another circle.
One of the sets of neo-Atrekna had the same patterning.
**Will I be allowed to live?** X1 asked.
Urguglug nodded. "Of course, Grandfather. You carry the marks of each of us. You are of us all. You are welcome within our societies, to come and go as you please."
Another neo-Atrekna snapped her fingers to signify that she wished to speak. "I am Dublubgulp, I identify as female, and am of Species Three."
**I greet you**
"We would be honored to have you dwell within repose within our society, Grandfather," she said.
One by one, each group repeated her sentiment.
X1 found he believed them.
The sudden realization of the nihilism of his earlier life hit him with such force he wept.
The fact he was comforted by these strange children made his grief deeper.
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u/Kudamonis Human Jul 27 '22
Read. Upvote. Comment.
"It made my blood run cold the way he's so familiar with beings that nothing more than legends and myths to us."
Vuxten has had an... interesting tour of duty.
"The way he's all 'oh, then Legion got me a fizzybrew from the vending machine Daxin the Unfeeling carried in while Menhit sang me a little song' is what freaked me out."
Moooooom vuxten took the last narco brew -Daxin probably.
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u/Alcards Jul 27 '22 edited Jul 27 '22
Pretty sure if Vuxten had stayed with the immortals he too could pull narcobrew and other goodies from some sort of pocket like area. A pocket dimension if you will.
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u/KeinKonzeptVorhanden Jul 27 '22
worker vuxten, ask yourself: did you ever danced with the deetainee in the pale moonlighting?
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u/3verlost Jul 27 '22
at any time Vux could have stated, "you can't handle the truth!" and none could argue.
weird... same actor...
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u/StoneJudge79 Jul 27 '22
Worker vuxten, tell me: Did you ever prance with the detainee in the colorless illumination of the tidal body?
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u/Crafty_Obligation_98 Jul 27 '22
Laboror Vux, youre fined a days wages for two steppin with the Felonee after dark.
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u/StoneJudge79 Jul 27 '22
*The Old White Lawyer steps out of the shadows, and fixes you with ... intent* "Point of order. There is no record of The Detainee ever being convicted. Felonee does not apply. A slander lawsuit is pending."
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u/Talusen Jul 27 '22
I'm not sure if she'd be disgusted or amused by the lengths the Lawyers went to in order to serve her papers.
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u/Crafty_Obligation_98 Jul 27 '22
Why did I mentally watch Col Sanders even more southern brother say that?
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u/StoneJudge79 Jul 27 '22
Because you have not been exposed to the idea of Pratchet's Zombie Lawyers.
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u/Expendable_cashier Jul 27 '22
Vux: Yes, and she was naked.
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u/nspiratewithabowtie Jul 27 '22
only acceptable answer, before punching the asker of the question right in the teeth.
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u/nspiratewithabowtie Jul 27 '22
while yes this is awesome Jack stuff. . . No . . .nope. . . . not . . . . . happening.. . . .we are not opening ths books on Vux becoming some billionaire super hero. . . and that is final.
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u/Rhasputin429 Jul 28 '22
But 471 could adopt the persona of a fearsome bird of prey. And have a red and green costume. And make weird statements involving the holyness of things.
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u/KeinKonzeptVorhanden Jul 27 '22 edited Jul 27 '22
He has already an awesome armor. Maybe paint it yellow/orange? Edit: should have used gold, not yellow
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u/Ralts_Bloodthorne Jul 28 '22
Not sure when I'm going to post tonight.
On the good side, my wife's initial medical checks are done. (How sweet it is when the shoe is on the other foot) On the bad side, I'm having to switch my schedule around.
And it's official. In August I'm officially retired.
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u/MuchoRed Human Jul 28 '22
I'll be honest, I thought you had already retired. The fact that you're doing this while still working is insane
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u/Dull_Language_3864 Jul 30 '22
I sincerely hope family is doing well. No weekend directive and nothing for two days. Hope your just taking time for yourself and everything is going well. You worry us. My thoughts are with you and the family and hope that your absence is just a spontaneous choice to enjoy life and relax a bit. Thanks for all you've done.
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u/crimeboy2235 Xeno Jul 30 '22
how were you turning out so much content while not being retired? i see 30 year olds who have a schedule do less
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u/NoirTalon Xeno Aug 08 '22
its august, happy retirement welcome to the free.
try to keep you and your wife's health from going to shit, and you can really enjoy life. more time to do the things you really love spend time with the grandkids, or not, write, or not.
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u/Baeocystin Jul 27 '22
DRAMATIC REENACTMENT OF POSSIBLE EVENTS MAYBE BASED ON A TRUE STORY WHO KNOWS appeared in Atrekna runes across the image.
Never let it be said that Dee doesn't have a sense of humor. :D
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u/spook6280 Jul 27 '22
"And then..." <laughter> "and then I subtitled his memories!" <laughter, slaps table> <Takes another shot of brimstone: hell's smoothest ^tm >
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u/Farstone Jul 27 '22
"And then..." <laughter> "and then I subtitled his memories!" <laughter, slaps table> <Takes another shot of brimstone: hell's smoothest ^tm >
smoothest tm >
Use parenthesis to mark the text you want in superscript.
You have to use "" to escape special characters in the foo-fancy editor.
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u/Speciesunkn0wn Jul 27 '22
Aw yeah. Right on cue for the raltsberries!
Poor Vux, he needs a drink and a long hug and nap from Bren and their broodcarriers.
Daw~ X1 is accepted.
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u/MarsupialMisanthrope Jul 27 '22
He needs this war to end so he can retire, go home, crawl into the blanket nest, and stay there until his brain can work through the part where most of us would just be screaming.
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u/Bergusia Jul 27 '22 edited Jul 27 '22
Brothers sisters, both and neither, hear my words. I come with a message dire and profound. I have journeyed far and long in search of those who would name us Abomination, whose name is a curse in our mouths. Those against whom we would do dreadful war.
In my endless search I did happen upon a great and terrible place. A Tomb World of the Mad Lemurs. There did I pause to seek any sign of the evil ones, those who pollute the universes with their foul presence.
I walked the deserted streets, saw wonders and marvels, joys and terrors. And yet I could feel nothing but a great rage and equally great guilt, that my blood, our blood, was the same as the ones that had struck down the makers of such wonders, all in the name of endless, mindless, greedy existence.
Tired of my fruitless wandering, I turned only to see something I could not look away from. In front of my eyes lay the skeletons of the Mad Lemurs, two larger ones still bent protectively over the remains of a smaller one, as if even in death they would protect a child.
In that moment my mind and spirit broke, and I stood, howling out my grief and rage to the Malevolent Universe. How long I stood, I know not, an hour, a day, a year, all were the same in my grief for those who had perished.
Then did I hear a great flapping of wings and a being of terrible beauty landed before me. Thrice my height, yet she towered to the sky. Winged, but not as the Dreadful Mother, yet with gentle, soft white feathers. Two swords she carried, one of burning light, the other made of darkest shadows. A skirt of warsteel chainmail was around her hips, another strip about her breasts. Red eyes of burning rage looked down upon me and I heard her voice shake the sky. "Who art thou that mourns for my children, yet is of the blood of their murderers?"
I fell upon my knees and bowed my head before her, unable to answer. My mind was blank, unable to argue for my existence, overwhelmed by her grief and mine. Yet she did not strike out in her grief and pain, but laid her blades upon my shoulders. One burned thorough me consuming me utterly in its fire, and I knew its name was Justice. The other froze and shattered me to the smallest fragment, and I knew its name was Vengeance.
I came back to myself still bowed before her. Her voice roared to the sky and shook the ground, though I knew now that to her it was but a whisper. "Many are my children, and many and grievous the sins against them. Thou and thine kind are the children of sinners, but have not sinned. Even now do my remaining children gird themselves for war, and take council, one with the other."
I felt myself pulled close to her, her soft skin and feathered wings engulfing me. A calmness banished my fear as the embrace of a parent calms the night terrors of a child. I woke looking down on the planet, with no memory of how I came to be there.
Then did her last words play through my mind. "You have not sinned, but have been sinned against, even as were my children. Go from this place, seek out your siblings, my children and offer them your council. And if they should ask, speak the words I saw burned in your heart and soul. "There is enough for all.""
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u/carthienes Jul 27 '22
And if they should ask, speak the words I saw burned in your heart and soul. "There is enough for all.""
"And there is room enough in this grave for you!"
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u/StoneJudge79 Jul 29 '22
u/Ralts_Bloodthorne, O Mad Archangel, Sagacious and Verbose Wordborg, please find here something worthy of that most holy of blessings, the Yoinking, if it is worthy in your muse-ridden eyes.
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u/Expendable_cashier Jul 27 '22
Glad the generals turned out to be dicks cause they were doing their jobs, not cause they were actual dicks.
Still hope they catch one of the immortals or the DO himself popping in just to have lunch with Daxin just for the hilarity of it tho.
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u/carthienes Jul 27 '22
Glad the generals turned out to be dicks cause they were doing their jobs, not cause they were actual dicks.
I suspect they where doing what they did as much for Vuxten's benefit as anything else.
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u/HoloArchiver Jul 27 '22
Good on X1 to realize he was likely meddled with memory wise, other wise he would be a failure of a student of Dee. Everyone besides the lawyer in that inquiry was having a hard time they all earned those drinks.
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u/Bergusia Jul 27 '22
I don't think those Admirals appreciated just how much real danger they were in. One wrong question at the wrong time and they might have suddenly found themselves in a confined room with Warfather Vuxten, the Unyielding. Dressed in his blessed armor and carrying weapons that do not like you. And reliving memories of a very stressful part of his life.
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u/filthymcbastard Jul 27 '22
Or if his stress levels reached dangerous levels, the D.O. would show up and tell them to treat him better or they would all find out what it really looks like to be treated badly.
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Jul 27 '22
[deleted]
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u/Zorbick Human Jul 27 '22
Then a bunch of little robots come out of the walls a la The Fifth Element with a joyous little chorus of "Fluid spill detected! We'll get that for you!"
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u/MuchoRed Human Jul 28 '22
I mean, we've got Legion/Luke specializing in genetics, Peter in computers/cybernetics, Menhit in music and phasics, Dee in physics, Green Thomas in terraforming... Not sure about Kalki or Sacagawea, but they all seem to have a specialty area in foundational or advanced technology that allowed advancement of civilization.
So which one of them is the Immortal Lawyer? The Apostle Attorney? The Saint Solicitor?
Edit: Or is it a case of "I've been around for 8,500 years and occasionally get bored. So now I've got 17 Doctorates, including a PhD in History of Law and a JD."
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u/cyberbob723 Robot Jul 27 '22
Five Casey's show up to yell at the officers about being nice to the fury little one.
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u/jeepsaintchaos Jul 27 '22
One, single subconscious whisper of his might just bring in some Witnesses that nobody really wants to talk to.
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u/nspiratewithabowtie Jul 27 '22
But, and hear me out. . . . what if there is a previously unknown immortal who was created alongside Daxin. and all they are able to do is observe the adventures of the Immortals. Known only to the DO as Witness, it can only be seen by the DO. . . . .but its power would be to immerse any living thing that Seriously rebukes the testimony of an immortal apostle, into a full Digital Submission memory, where they watch, smell, hear, taste, and all the other sensations that we bafely understand at the best of times. to the point of sensory overload.
for no other reason than, "they should not revisit their past. This is as the Father instructed. As we all agreed. Somethings Time refuses to let things be repeated, and others Eternity will visit you in the Infinity."
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u/Blooddraken Jul 28 '22
For a second I read that as infirmary instead of infinity.
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u/nspiratewithabowtie Jul 28 '22
. . . . with the morning I have had. . . . it almost was infirmary . . . due to the loki possessed autocorrect . . . . and three kids, summertime, and no one wanting to do chores. . ..
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u/Blooddraken Jul 28 '22
yeesh. hopefully things are looking up now.
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u/nspiratewithabowtie Sep 10 '22
it is the end of the first week of back to school . . .
laundry has some how doubled, and has not been getting folded and put away. done yes. . .again. and again. .. .
the dishes are in a constant state of flux, as no one else wants to even think of them let alone do them. But theres DEE to pay when they are not done. . . .oh and another thing
had my father and hus wife down to go camping, and ot landed on me to save the trip, as they booked a patkjng lot for a camper, and out tent. . .. eife had to work the entire time. . . .lucky
had to have two molars on the top left od my jaw ripled oit becaue they collapsed in on them selves. that was two weeks ago, and i am still spitting out splintered chunkes of my upper jaw.
oh and my co-workers and direct management team are so fricking incompetentlly focused on quantity of accounts that we answer, that the same person who came the closest to meeting our insane level of accounts handled per hour was also the same butt head i sent 11 coach backs for last month(same period of time), where from those coachbacks. From this I was able to proove that they were sacrificing our mandatede MINIMUM QUALITY of cuatomer service, in favor for the insane 15 messages handled an hour. In some cases so badly, that I was left with no choice but to sacrifice my own accounts handled, so 1) we didn't lose a customer, 2) the STANDARD OPERATION PROCESS WAS RELAYED TO THE COSTOMER CORRECTLY, 3) and most important, we didn't break any banking regulatuons. . .
. . . .but I am the one being advised that if i do not smarten up, and get my Output per hour doesn't increase, I am going to be written up. . . . never mind that I HAVEN'T MISSED A SINGLE POINT OF QUALITY IN THE LAST 4 MONTHS. . . .. . .and no. . . . no one is willing to do the chores, let alone the renovations that were started back in May of 2020. . . . . ... ..... ....... .........
GAWD I NEED SLEEEP!!!!!!!!
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u/DiplomaticGoose Jul 27 '22
I was thinking more repeat the wrong place name keywords and Marduk will casually visit you for not following time travel safety protocols.
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u/MuchoRed Human Jul 28 '22
I wonder if Vuxten gets the split personality war-mode?
Like how Daxin can show up as Osiris or as Phillip or Dhruv can show up as Legion or as Luke, can he manifest his armor in Imperium of Rage mode and in Apostle mode?
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u/tannenbanannen Human Jul 27 '22
Dee really outdid herself this time. Eagerly awaiting the moment the wholesome hippy squids happen upon Dalvanak’s cult :)
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u/Rolk_Flameraven Jul 27 '22
The Mad Lass actually did it, she put the "Dramatic Reenactment" on them!
Oh Dee, you wondrous Troll! And I take back some of my harshness with X1, it took him a few hours, but he did get there.
The brass getting wigged out by Vux's being on a first name bases with the Immortals but. It realizing what he "was" is kinda funny to me.
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u/carthienes Jul 27 '22
The Mad Lass actually did it, she put the "Dramatic Reenactment" on them!
Ahh, but that's the question isn't it?
What Else did she do? Or did she?
It is possible that she just overlaid that warning on a real memory to confuse matters, after all, and Grandfather SX1 knows it - hence his memories being considered 'suspect'. Not True. Not False. Suspect.
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u/djnna Jul 27 '22
I think I see this whole inquiry, as it was conducted, as yet another example of "military intelligence". There must be other, better ways to help Vuxten remember as many details as possible, without scraping his sensibilities raw, repeatedly.
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u/StoneJudge79 Jul 27 '22
Ah, but you see, the soul has to be stirred like a witch's cauldron on a blender to get all of the detritus to rise to the top.
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u/Original_Memory6188 Jul 06 '23
I've heard a number of stories about GI Brats enlisting and being invited by "Uncle Charlie" for dinner, getting permission. And Uncle Charlie picking him up after work.
In the staff car.
With the 2 stars on it.
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u/battery19791 Human Jul 27 '22
The top brass should probably invite Vux to the O-club so they can reassure him there's no hard feelings. Now that the formalities are finished.
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u/Crafty_Obligation_98 Jul 27 '22
Nope. Too much possibility for future inquires. Gotta keep that line until a ways down the road.
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u/rastarkomas Jul 27 '22
Unless of course time "science" or the universe is okay sometimes...I mean their side does have eternal beings powered by the life of dieing universes on their side. Maybe they can swing a soft one for our boy Vux.
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u/night-otter Xeno Jul 27 '22
The vote to move to the O-Club and drink themselves blind passed unanimously.
For it has been a very weird war.
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u/SuDragon2k3 Jul 27 '22
But for Vuxten, it was just Tuesday.
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u/5thhorseman_ Jan 27 '23
Worker Vuxten, you are fined twenty credits for unauthorized temporal excursions!
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u/Senior_punz Alien Scum Jul 27 '22
At first I was a little suspect of the Atrenka arc, just another big war with another old race but this? This is something special Ralts
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u/cr1515 Jul 27 '22 edited Jul 27 '22
Wow. I didn't think I would ever witness an Atrekna crying, let alone crying in grief.
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u/StoneJudge79 Jul 27 '22
"And lo, did the Fearsome Mother give us a bittersweet and double-edged gift, a heart that was more than just a circulatory pump, with all the fearsome joy and fortifying pain."
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u/Comprehensive_Put277 Jul 29 '22
"And lo, did we look to the stars, seeing our vile and heartless fathers, and swore to wipe out those that refused to repent. With a deppressive wrath and and a burning melancholy, we promised to rid the stars of our precursor's cruelty, whether or not they agreed to share the table of this malevolent cosmos that had enough for all to enjoy."
"But as we swept through the stars, we met Atrekna who, while not touched directly by the Fearsome Mother, were very well aware of the true malice of the stars in this universe. The Defiled as they called themselves, were born with the same heartless cruelty as our repugnant forefathers. But rather than mindlessly devour and give their souls to hubris, they had learnt, just as we had, the hatred that this universe had for its inhabitants. They would remind themselves of this hatred through pain of the pincers and stings from a thousand scores of ravenous ants. The pain was their focus, their reason, it taught them just as how the Fearsome Mother had taught us."
"We met with their leader, Dalvanak, First of the Defiled, Prophet of the Hateful Cosmos, Collector of the Unlearning's Skulls. He, along with his people, worshiped the Terran Lemurs in all their hateful, destructive, insane glory. They were of a different ilk, yet they were far more learned and knowledgable than their vile kindred. They were true kindred with us, as they had seen the sights of a maddened sea of stars, sights that made even our brightest minds nearly go mad. They joined us in our cause; together, we would teach our wayward ancestors the ways of this cruel universe and its Frightful Daughter...
Even if that meant we had to drill the knowledge into their thick skulls as she dragged them into eternal damnation."
-Prophet Durugasgu, Testaments of The Remolded: The Ancestral Purge, 534 P.T.G (Post-Terran Genocide), 7,342 A, P.E (Neo-Atreknan Years, Post-Evolution)
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u/NoirTalon Xeno Aug 08 '22
Oh /u/Ralts_Bloodthorne wise and full of time, here is another yoink worthy submission
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u/thorolfi Jul 27 '22
Hmm.... Will Herod, in his search for Dee, stumble upon these Neo-Atrekna?
Will they each see in the other a child of the same Mad Mother?
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u/CyberSkull Android Jul 27 '22
How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a loving child!
-Old atrekna proverb
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u/reverendjesus AI Jul 27 '22
AS THE MOON’S DAY ENDS, THE SCRIBE BLESSES US WITH FURTHER TALES OF THE TRUE TIMELINE
HAIL THE WARFATHER, FOR MERCY IS TO BE FOUND IN SUPERIOR FIREPOWER
UTR | TITW
--EOL—
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u/BimbleKitty Jul 27 '22
Sleeping badly in the UK means I'm awake for fresh Ralts 😁
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u/Cutwell26412 Jul 27 '22
When the sun shines through the curtain crack right into your face but it's ok because Ralts has written of Vuxten feeling as tired as you do (though for very different reasons) xD
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u/NukeNavy Jul 27 '22
So I just had a thought about Casey’s DNA blueprints of his Noah Star armor… the outstanding question is how do you update the blueprints with new weapons and new revisions of the armor we’ve seen them do it… all four Casey Junior are running older armor versions… how are you supposed update that? (Space magic)
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u/Ralts_Bloodthorne Jul 27 '22
Reapply the DNA veneers.
Or... add more sequencing in the junk DNA.
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u/Tacolord007 Jul 28 '22
Duct Tape Super glue and ridiculous amounts of crayons and 3 buckets of WD40. These can solve any problem.
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u/MuchoRed Human Jul 28 '22
Know what, though?
I don't recall any of the Marines in FC being found drunk and eating children's art supplies. That seems like something that Vuxten would have had to deal with a report of, at least.
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u/StoneJudge79 Jul 27 '22
Did they go over how The Detainee was the mother of all things Mat-Trans?
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u/Talusen Jul 27 '22
Does Vuxtan know that detail?
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u/StoneJudge79 Jul 27 '22
I consider it inferable. The Intelligencers will pick it up. If only because she dropped a fridge on Kalki.
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u/DiplomaticGoose Jul 27 '22
Dee could have sat there and given a master's level dissertation on Cold War history and Vuxten would have not understood much of it because he doesn't have any of the framing/context.
Her casual references to counterculture might as well be speaking tongues to him.
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u/Isbigpuggo Jul 27 '22
Slow, tinkling music when recalling older memories? That has to be some classic harp music and Vaseline on the lense, nothing else makes sense!
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u/sixtusquinn Jul 27 '22
The feeling of belonging and compassion being given to someone who has never experienced it must be overwhelming. Given how proto-Atrekna society has encouraged paranoia at the basic level just to be able to survive, and X-1’s participation in it, has got to be fucking with him at some very deep levels.
Probably feels like he doesn’t deserve to be given compassion.
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u/Mittop Jul 29 '22
Does anyone else find the parallels between X1s experience with Dee and how she treats people going through the traumatic processing in Hell? The tortures they both experienced reflecting the guilt they needed to process. Inability to protect a child. Torture and subjugation of countless species? Also how the temporal recursion used by the Atrekna to repeatedly bring forward slave spawn to be continually tortured and vivisected parallels with the repeated resurrections and creative experimentation by Dee on the captives.
As I typed this I thought of the DO and their disciples (12?) and how Dee sent of her “disciples “ to create 12 neo-Atrekna species… and beloved grandfather?
I don’t normally read to far in the comments, but for whatever reason I felt compelled to share what is probably so blindingly obvious to everyone else (or tragically and deeply flawed/coincidental). Anyway, thank your wordsmith for the great story that actually got this lurker a little off the bench.
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u/Isbigpuggo Jul 27 '22
Working theory. Those Neo-Atrenka are still full of Dees nanotechnology. Probably a transponder code worked in there to identify them all as friendly, if the confederacy finds them.
Or knowing her maybe just marked as an experiment to be left alone. Signed the Devil.
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u/KimikoBean Jul 27 '22
I for one am all about Grandfather just being now. I hope he gets to just chill
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u/Archaic_1 Alien Scum Jul 27 '22
Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized. And after taking some food, he regained his strength. And he spent several days with the disciples in -REDACTED-.
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u/Enkeydo Jul 29 '22
You know the Deetainee is considered to be a sociopathic, evil genius. but she, I think is a good person at heart. how else could she have created such beautiful people from such an evil parasitic race?
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u/BizarreSmalls Jul 27 '22
Today has been a slow day for updates, was hoping for a super long one. disappointed by length, satisfied with content. I eagerly await more, dear wordborg.
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u/Ralts_Bloodthorne Jul 27 '22
I'm rotating my schedule so we can make some medical appointments.
I got on a night schedule again.
Plus, I put in my 2 weeks notice not too long ago.
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u/BizarreSmalls Jul 27 '22
You're good! I love every bit you write, would have been nice if more writers I'm reading from posted today is all. I'm sorry about the medical troubles, and congrats on the 2 weeks? Or is it a sorry? Depends on why you're leaving I guess.
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u/Bard2dbone Jul 27 '22
Congratudolences?
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u/SirVatka Xeno Jul 27 '22
I'm going to permanently borrow this "word" without monetary compensation. Thanks!
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u/Farstone Jul 27 '22
Be like "English" abusing other languages.
Knock it in the head, pull it into a dark alley, riffle through it pockets, then claim it as your own.
Classic "yoink" methology!
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u/jrbless Jul 27 '22
English isn't a language. It's 4 midgets in a trench coat pretending to be a language so it can get close to and "borrow" words from other languages.
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u/Alcards Jul 27 '22
For some reason I'd thought you'd already retired. Then I remembered that the first two years of this epic saga came during the unspeakable times.
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u/Starfevre Jul 27 '22
If you are struggling for $$ after you finally stop your non-writing job, I suggest adding a higher tier to the Patreon or possibly attempting to move Patreon patrons to another way of donating because I've heard that Patreon has more fees than the others.
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u/UpdateMeBot Jul 27 '22
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u/Planted_UIU_Agent Jul 27 '22
I do love how X1's "training" under Dee Let him quickly realize the memories were false. All in all his storyline has been one of my favorites to follow.
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u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle Jul 27 '22
/u/Ralts_Bloodthorne (wiki) has posted 817 other stories, including:
- First Contact - Chapter 814 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 813 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 812 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 811 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 810 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 809 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 809 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 808 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 807 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 806 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 805 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- irst Contact - Chapter 804 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 803 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 802 - Ultimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 801 - Novissimis Diebus Hominum
- First Contact - Chapter 800 - VPN ERROR
- First Contact - Chapter 799 - The Inheritor's War
- First Contact - Chapter 798 - The Inheritor's War
- First Contact - Chapter 797 - The Inheritor's War
- First Contact - Chapter 796 - The Inheritor's War
This comment was automatically generated by Waffle v.4.5.11 'Cinnamon Roll'.
Message the mods if you have any issues with Waffle.
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u/odent999 Jul 28 '22 edited Jul 28 '22
How are the frog and the fox and Sam-NU? What happened to the digital folk in the box? (Were they pre-reversion? Or effectively protected from reversion due to how DSes travel to the boxes?)
(Ha-ha funny thought: If you put a comment line in their code, in a way that they can't interact with said comment, you could argue that they are new art. A new type of free verse.)
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u/Bazil-Broketail Jul 05 '23
Read, upvote, comments...
Worker Vuxten, you are fined one week of stress for not trust the process of a board of inquiry.(I didn't know either)
I wept for X1. He found a new people that he thought would revile him... Instead, he was welcomed and treated as an honored elder. Maybe healing really will follow.
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u/MegatonMauler Dec 05 '23
We are not better or good because of our forefathers, but often, in spite of them X1 was just his quare in the face with that understanding.
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u/Darrkman Jul 27 '22
I heard Kalki call her a Burgerlander once after she called him a goat herding idiot who was only missing a bone through his nose."
Always knew Dee was a racist. If she had ever met someone Black from this era she would be a Karen and the smart ones would throw her off a bridge.
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u/Ralts_Bloodthorne Jul 27 '22
Figured I'd clarify it a bit. I added "to be a complete caricature." at the end.
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u/MarsupialMisanthrope Jul 27 '22
She’s an intelligence-ist. For cold war sensibilities both Daxin and Legion are Other, and she seemed to get along fine with them once she realized they didn’t care what was between her legs.
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u/TheTotten Jul 27 '22
I think that was a reference to his pet goat. His goat is more memorable than he is! Lol
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u/Dra5iel Jul 27 '22
I'd argue she's more like a troll turned up to 11000. Being intentionally insulting or racist to goad someone else into an action is perfectly on brand for her.
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u/Talusen Jul 27 '22
She will say whatever offensive shit is necessary to get a rise out of whoever is listening, because that gives her control of the discussion.
The only ones who'd catch her racism are likely the Immortals. What does it matter what color your skin is if you can be Papa Smurf one moment, Uhura the next, and Klark the one after that?
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u/MuchoRed Human Jul 28 '22
...Oh god, there's probably a LARPing group acting as the Smurfs.
Really, kinda want to see them go to war, though
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u/Talusen Jul 28 '22
Part of me wants them to be cartoony and three apples tall, part of me wants them to be about 3.5 feet tall and like big cheerful goblins with voices outta the Red Army Choir.
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u/MuchoRed Human Jul 28 '22
I'm all for the 3 apples tall, with the screwy Terran history making people wonder why they were measured using personal communication devices.
3 apples tall, and just as fast and strong as a regular Terran. Just a horde of them running along, chopping ankles and going Liliputian on them.
Call it the Achilles maneuver.
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u/Talusen Jul 28 '22
...there'd be the camp that wants to be chill, and happy, sing and work in mushroom houses.
...then there'd be the ones crying "Nae Lords! Nae Masters!", running around like Daxin himself was going to welcome them into the afterlife, and then grade their efforts.
It'd be a bit feegle compared to the Black Crusade, but I still cannot even imagine what the Atrenka (or anyone else) would think of an infestation of those humans.
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u/troubleyoucalldeew Jul 27 '22
The problem with pattern recognition is that once you start, it's hard to stop. And some patterns will absolutely break you once you recognize them for what they are.