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tumblunni · 6 years ago

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Randomly thinking some more about that old game idea of mine that i just call Dark Pokemon for now, lol

Basically a monster catching game where they're treated as monsters? Normal people are all terrified of them and trainers get treated with a 50/50 mix of reverence and hatred. Because trainers are the only way that humans can try and exterminate the monsters, yet theyre seen as cursed people who dont even count as human anymore. Sort of a way to explain little cliches of the genre like kids being thrown out completely alone to travel the world, and you never really having any reason to revisit past towns after you beat the gym. I was thinking itd be a cool way to do it if the game started off seeming like a normal mon catching game and then before you get the big reveal of the darkness you can get subtle hints if you try and turn around and reenter the starting area. Because it goes against expectations it might be missed by a lot of players.

Also the towns are so small and the routes are so straight and narrow because thats how humanity builds society in a world of monster fear. 90% of the world is uninhabited wilderness where only monsters live. Human towns are sorta like sci fi dome cities without the scifi? Surrounded by protective salt barriers and charms and stuff. And if a monster even touches anything its considered cursed, so if one of them makes it past a salt barrier that town is abandoned and any people caught up in the chaos of the barrier's collapse are left to die just in case they've been corrupted. And the roads between the towns are manned by armed guards who are constantly vigilant to repair the salt barriers. But this means they have to live their entire life alone in these limbo spaces between society and the wild, and often most narrier breaches are caused by the guards getting paranoid from the pressure. You need to keep watch for monsters so any movement in the shadows could be one of them, right?? You get situations of roads being blocked off by some crazed guard who starts seeing people as monsters, or one of them pulling the alarm and getting a town falsely burnt down for being corrupted when the monster was really just a leaf blowing in the wind. Or the worst case scenario where nobody ever knows WHAT happened! You just find the road destroyed and the guard gone. It might have happened days ago and nobody knew until a merchant tries to travel between towns and discovers the only road of escape is gone and everyone is doomed to slow starvation. And you can still see the other end of the road just a few meters away, but the superstition is so strong that nobody will risk taking that single step into monster territory. You'll be cursed and that's worse than death, right? You don't want to turn into a trainer...

And then also nobody really knows what determines who's chosen to be a trainer. Inevitably whenever someone shows signs of powers the town will turn on them and make up any excuse that they somehow invited the curse by being promoscuous or athiest or something. And you need to be removed for everyone's safety! Thus begins the ten year old's journey walking the earth in search of a place they can belong...

Tho usually its not just kids, the protagonist and rival is a rare case. All your neighbours are torn between 'its so tragic it happened to kids' and 'they must be REALLY evil to get chosen despite their age!' And i think maybe the rival would be like a sympathetic gary type? Theyre so determined to be better than you because they think if they can prove theyre good then their parents will let them go back home. And this desperation leads them to make bad choices and reject the only friend they have left :( Also them being bad to their monster pals would feel more justified when they were raised in a society that says monster pals are evil and you cant let your guard down cos theyre just trying to tempt you. Listen to the assholes who dont care about you, because anyone being nice is a lying sinner!

Also i was thinking maybe you catch monsters with a magic song or throwing herbs at them or absorbing them into a jewel pendant or something else more magicky yknow? Maybe magical bandages enscribed with spell runes that wrap arpund them like a collar? And so trainers are divided up into weavers who make these catching tools, and then the actual kind of trainer who uses them to catch mons. Weavers are able to stay in human society and act like the pokeball shops, theyre sorta like a 'town witch' or something. Like 'we will tolerate your magic if you never actually make a contract with a monster'. But then of course catching monsters is necessary to defend against monsters, so weavers have to be allowed to make the catching threads and sell them to travellers. But only travellers are allowed to do that sinful mon hugging! But also hey sinful traveller will you please save us from our doom? Basically this is why most trainers work as mercenaries, all this bullshit means that you gotta be employed by some asshole who hates your guts just cos u need food to eat. But blablabla town limit of X days before you have to leave, etc etc...

Also i was considering an element of different towns having different mythology around monsters and trainers? So you never really know whats real or if all of it is bullshit. Every time you go to a new place theyre equally fanatically convinced that some new thing is the real sin and everything the last guy said is eeeeeevil corruption. Sigh! And a subplot i was thinking of is a town with very sexist mythology, where the roles of weavers and tamers are seen as one gender only. And the town weaver is this nice grandma thats trapped in an abusive relationship with a super misogynist gramps. And one of those cloyingly fake-softspoken "rational" sexists who's all 'im just trying to protec u, wrong gender roles are bad for your immortal soul'. And has a million "logical" explanations for why his bigotry is true. Like technically he's "valuing her as important" by not letting her leave the house or socialize with friends, because yknow "im a nice guy who's nice to you trainers, i know your job is important so shouldnt the weavers be working 24/7 to support you?" The frustrating feeling of starting to trust a guy cos he's not bigoted against your particular minority, but then finding out he's bigoted against someone else... Ugh. So ultimately in the end you can succeed at this sidequest and help the grandma make a pact with a cute fairy monster and kick his ass and leave. And possibly get into a cute and mutually healthy relationship with another grandma in another town, so you get to see that and have a bonus happy note to the sidequest, yknow? Also they give you a hug and bake u cookies. (The monster is wearing a cute chef hat!) And then you'd have a place to stay in that town that doesnt have the 'it gets more expensive every night to try and make you leave' bullshit of all the normal inns. And you get to see a cute animation of your monsters all cuddled up in bed too cos they dont force you to leave them outside in the Designated Monster Containment Cage.

Oh! Also randomly i was thinking of another way of foreshadowing! Like when you go to the first inn you dont know any of this stuff about people hating monster tamers and not trusting your tamed mons even if theyre tame. So you'd probably just think that you not seeing your monsters when you sleep is just the game's limited graphics or you keep them in some pokeball equivelant thing. But when you walk arpund the outside of the inn you can see a door to a basement cellar that's got weirdly heavy duty chains and bars even if you assume they store their valuables down there. And maybe when you heal at the inn it never restores your mons to full health, always 10hp away from maximum or something? Or other small hints that theyre afraid of going to the inn and your protagonist is wary about doing it even if you'd think theres no downside to healing. Or maybe you can see another monster tamer visit the place at one point and you can hear banging and growling from the basement...? Or see some of the chains have bite marks in the morning. And the townsfolk wpuld be all 'can you believe how much noise they made?' and expressing fear about monsters being in the town, though itd have to be written carefully to remain vague. But yeah 'lets mistreat these small animals because we fear them' -> they panic and cry for their one human friend in the world while theyre forced to sleep in a damp dark tiny room -> 'that just proves theyre inherantly violent!' Also the trainer is an ungrateful bastard for acting so sullen when they couldnt sleep from worry over their friends :(

But it wont be all depressing yo!!! All the darkness of the setting is dark but the monster pals are still just as pals! I give u grimdark world so i can give u a protagonist of kindness who fights the system and saves people in every town who eventually rise up and are swayed by their kindness into fighting The Old Ways and making a better world as the story goes on! Its like an adventure of creating the pokemon world? You try and sell everyone on the idea of trusting cute monsters instead of being so damn paranoid you inflict all these atrocities upon other humans and even yourself because 'sacrifices are necessary to keep the monsters away'. Fight the symbol of all bigotry!!! The evil team is Team Bad Dads And Politicians!!!

...sorry lol my story ideas are Weird.

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philippmichelreichold · 6 years ago

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#scifi #review this immortal by roger zelazny

Basically

This Immortal, known in an earlier incarnation as Call me Conrad, is one of Zelazny's heroic epics with no less than the fate of humanity at stake. The principal character, Conrad, is typical of most of Zelazny's heros. He is for all practical purposes immortal. Like Bugs Bunny, he does not go out of his way to cause trouble for others, but does not suffer abuse lightly. He plans carefully, trying not to act rashly. And he changes his feelings and views as he grows older and wiser. These traits lead, of course, to conflict. Conrad is retained to give a high caste alien from Vega named Cort Myshtigo a tour of earth for a survey. Because of the relationship between Vegans and humanity, this incites some resentment against the alien and concern for the future of humanity. The smart money has wagered that the way to save humanity is to kill Cort. Conrad makes it plain that he prefers to wait until he has enough information to decide, and spends most of his time shielding Cort from attempts on his life.

Irony

The novel contains a great deal of irony which is used to show mankind returning from the brink of extinction and beginning the process of healing its wounds.. Episodes occur in which the putative destroyer is the instrument of salvation. The first of these occurs in Egypt. Hasan has been hired by the Agency to protect Cort. But as is known or suspected by everyone except Cort, Hasan is also a Radpole agent sent to kill him. In the final ironic twist of this episode, Hasan saves Cort from a boadile while trying to kill him. Other ironies abound. Twice, those thought lost are returned and bring salvation with them. The first returned is Conrad's dog, Bortran. Bortran had gone missing years earlier and has been searching for his master ever since. After Conrad returns to Greece on this tour, Bortran crosses his trail. He catches up with Conrad just in time to rescue him from the Kouretes. Next to return from the presumed dead is Conrad's wife, Cassandra. While burning an old friend, Conrad and his party are set upon by the Beast of Thessaly. In a dramatic sequence worthy of Dickens, they battle the Beast until Cassandra plays Zeus and strikes the Beast dead . In a more prolonged twist, the Radpole is trying to kill the one Vegan who can save earth and set it free. Throughout the story Conrad repeatedly intercedes to stay his execution, opposing the Radpole which he had founded decades before. The final irony is in the very nature of the Kallikanzaros. Rather than being the instrument of the world's destruction as in Greek myth, he is to be its savior.

Symbolism

Symbols of loss, destruction and ultimate redemption strengthen the themes presented through the use of irony. Symbols of the destruction of earth's civilization include the spiderbats, the Kouretes, the Beast of Thessaly and the threatened dismantling of the Pyramids. The beginning of the restoration of civilization is symbolized by the return of Bortran and Cassandra as well as the destruction of the Kouretes, the Beast of Thessaly and the inroads being made against the spiderbats. Conrad symbolizes earth civilization itself. Cort refers to him as a sort of "ghost of place." The restoration of Bortran and Cassandra, essential to Conrad's wholeness as a person, support this symbolism. Also, Conrad's fungal rash, present at the beginning of the story, has been eliminated at the end. He still has his limp, but his healing has begun, and like the earth itself, he endures

Steve Troy calls This Immortal a "lighthearted romp." And it is. This in no way detracts from the seriousness of Zelazny's themes or nor does it reduce the effectiveness of his presentation. It does make the story more enjoyable. The twists and rescues do not merely heighten suspense and grip the reader. They also provide the framework for the irony and symbolism that carry Zelazny's themes of returning from the brink and of recovering from destruction.

QUOTES

My thinking is usually pretty good, but I seem to do it after I do my talking-- by which time I've generally destroyed all basis for further conversaton.

If heaven didn't want me then, I'm not going to ask a second time.

Vocabulary

adytum- "1 the innermost room or shrine in certain old temples, to be entered only by priests 2 a sanctum" (Excerpted from Compton's Reference Collection 1996 copyright (c) 1995 Compton's NewMedia, Inc.)

bouzouki-"a stringed musical instrument of Greece, somewhat like a mandolin, used to accompany folk dances and singers" (Excerpted from Compton's Reference Collection 1996 Copyright (c) 1995 Compton's NewMedia, Inc.)

caique- 1. a light skiff used on the Bosporus 2. a Levantine sailing vessel(Merriam-Webster Dictionary)

Cassandra- Conrad's new wife. According to Bulfinch's Mythology, "Queen Hecuba and her daughter Cassandra were carried captives to Greece. Cassandra had been loved by Apollo, and he gave her the gift of prophecy; but afterwards offended with her, he rendered the gift unavailing by ordaining that her predictions should never be believed." In This Immortal, Conrad disbelieves both Cassandra's accurate warnings of danger and her later prediction that things will go well.

chthonic- "1.designating or of the underworld of the dead and its gods or spirits 2.dark, primitive, and mysterious" (Excerpted from Compton's Reference Collection 1996 Copyright (c) 1995 Compton's NewMedia, Inc.)

Kouretes- "returns this line from the play The Bacchae by Euripides:" 'O secret chamber of the Kouretes and you holy Cretan caves, parents to Zeus, where the Korybantes with triple helmet invented for me in their caves this circle..." That is because the Curetes (the more common spelling) were spirits on the island of Crete who protected the newly born god Zeus when his mother Rhea hid him from his father Cronos, who would otherwise have eaten the baby. The Curetes danced around banging spears on shields to make a clattering din to drown out Zeus's cries.'" (email post from Joel [email protected] 21:11:42 EDT) ouzo- "a colorless Greek liqueur flavored with aniseed" (Excerpted from Compton's Reference Collection 1996 Copyright (c) 1995 Compton's NewMedia, Inc.)

Ozymandias- "Here are two verses from the poem Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822):

'I met a traveler from an antique land

Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone

Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,

Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,

And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read."

... "My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:

Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,

The lone and level sands stretch far away.'"

(email post from Joel [email protected] 21:11:42 EDT)

Piraeus- "seaport in SE Greece, on the Saronic Gulf: part of Athens' metropolitan area: pop. 184,000: ModGr name PEIRAIEVS" (Excerpted from Compton's Reference Collection 1996 Copyright (c) 1995 Compton's NewMedia, Inc.)

Satyr- "The Satyrs were deities of the woods and fields. They were conceived to be covered with bristly hair, their heads decorated with short, sprouting horns, and their feet like goats' feet." (Bulfinch's Mythology)

Skinner boxes- "an enclosure in which small animals, as rats or pigeons, are conditioned by rewards and punishments to perform certain acts in response to specific stimuli" (Excerpted from Compton's Reference Collection 1996 Copyright (c) 1995 Compton's NewMedia, Inc.)

syrinx- "pipes of Pan", upon which he plays. See:Syrinx; Encyclopedia Mythica for more information.

Characters

Bortran- Conrad's dog

Conrad- hero of the story, "Director of Arts, Monuments, and Archives," Radpol founder, and kallikanzaros

Cort Myshtigo- a wealthy Vegan journalist who wishes to write a book about earth

Dos Santos- hates Vegans, husband of "red wig"

Diane- the girl with the red wig, hates everyone, disfigured by a Vegan disease Radpol member

Dos Santos- hates Vegans, husband of "red wig" Radpol member

Ellen- George's wife, wants to go to Taler, freind of Conrad

George- scientist, entomologist, freind of Conrad wants to poison the spiderbats

Jason- Conrad's son

Hasan- Mercenary hired as Cort's bodyguard

Lorel Sands- earth director appointed by Earth Government onTaler, Conrad's boss and freind

Phil- poet laureate of earth, freind of Conrad

Procrustes- War Chief of the Kouretes (from Procustes in Myth)

My content creative commons attribution required share alike

image from ISFDB under fair use

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sundayswiththeilluminati · 6 years ago

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After the Warmind DLC, the major question on every Destiny lore nerd’s mind is, “What’s Rasputin's next move?” The lore tab for the D2 Sleeper Simulant represents our most current communiqué from Rasputin. So let’s take it apart and see if we can suss out his current state of mind.

AI-COM/RSPN: ASSETS//ARESN//IMPERATIVE Rasputin’s usual address line at the beginning of his messages. It’s sent by him (I’m amused he still refers to himself as AI-COM/RSPN, as if AI-COM still exists. It’s like introducing himself as a citizen of the Soviet Union), it’s an IMPERATIVE (meaning a command), and it’s sent to ASSETS//ARESN.

ARESN is a new designation; the message itself suggests this is an abbreviation for “Ares-North.” In context that must mean the Clovis Bray research base and Aurora Reach, Rasputin’s primary facility in the Martian ice cap where the Warmind DLC takes place. Previously this area has been codenamed POLARIS in Rasputin’s transmissions. Now that the ice is clearing, his operations are expanding, and Guardians are maintaining a regular presence there, Rasputin seems to have upgraded its designation.

IMMEDIATE EVALUATION DIRECTIVE This is not a direct order to do something right now (those are marked “IMMEDIATE ACTION ORDER”) but an order to evaluate the situation. Rasputin is gathering his many distributed parts to examine some target and make a decision based on what he finds.

This is a SUBTLE ASSETS IMPERATIVE (secured/CONFERENCE) “SUBTLE ASSETS” seems to refer to assets that Rasputin either keeps secret or controls indirectly. This message itself is “secured,” so it’s only sent to a certain group and meant to be kept secret, and it’s sent to “CONFERENCE.” Given context, that marking likely means just Rasputin himself. This command is meant for subtle assets, so whatever he’s doing is maybe meant to fly under the radar.

This is an INTERNAL ALERT. This is a message from Rasputin to Rasputin himself. Again, because he exists in a very large distributed network, Rasputin’s various parts must coordinate to make major decisions. He’s getting himself all together.

Hypothesize that incomplete analysis of subtle assets has compromised synergy potential of resource GUARDIAN pool. Heeeeeee. This line is Rasputin admitting he underestimated the Guardians. “Incomplete analysis” has “compromised synergy potential.” In English that means he misjudged the Guardians and because of that he hasn’t been cooperating with them to achieve shared goals as much as he could have.

Rasputin often refers to Guardians as “subtle assets,” perhaps meaning that in his mind the Guardians are under his authority and he controls them indirectly; alternately, he could mean that incomplete analysis of some other subtle asset he could have been using with Guardians has made them less effective. He also refers to the Guardians as a resource. He’s still fighting a war, and everyone available is a resource to be used to fight that war.

Re-engage non-transactional dispensation protocol. "Give the Guardians fun toys for free.” Rasputin is considering sending the Guardians a bunch of free weapons/armor/etc. so they can better achieve their mutual goals, because he’s finally convinced they’re useful.

Operation MIDNIGHT EXIGENT is NOT YET COMPLETE. Requested protocol deferred. Aaaaaand then Rasputin hits the same roadblock that’s been constraining him since the Collapse: MIDNIGHT EXIGENT. MIDNIGHT EXIGENT is the massive protocol Rasputin enacted at the end of the war to prioritize his survival over protecting humanity (interestingly he says MIDNIGHT EXIGENT is “not yet complete” - implying that MIDNIGHT EXIGENT has an end goal, and maybe an end date). If MIDNIGHT EXIGENT is still in place, Rasputin doesn’t think the existential threat is over. He still doesn’t consider himself safe.

Because of MIDNIGHT EXIGENT, Rasputin can’t reactive the “non-transactional dispensation protocol.” Rasputin doesn’t think he can afford to give the Guardians free shit. Why? He may be strapped for resources, or he may need the promise of such weaponry as a bargaining chip to get what he needs in return. The rest of the message makes me lean towards the latter.

Stand by for GALATEA REFLEXIVE to generate new function. More of Rasputin’s love of mythology. In Greek mythology, Galatea is a statue created by the sculptor Pygmalion and brought to life by Aphrodite. In this scenario, Rasputin is Galatea - the being crafted and brought to life by someone else. “Reflexive” means “instinctive” or “referring back to itself.” GALATEA REFLEXIVE is therefore likely a protocol for Rasputin to examine himself, consider self-improvement/self-modification, and consider what to do (”generate new function.”) He may be looking to re-examine his intentions and decide whether to act purely altruistically.

GALATEA requires suspension of MIDNIGHT EXIGENT. ...Except, uh oh, GALATEA also isn’t allowed under MIDNIGHT EXIGENT. That’s not a great sign. Rasputin has deferred introspection and self-examination till after MIDNIGHT EXIGENT is complete. Even under MIDNIGHT EXIGENT Rasputin already shows signs of guilt over his actions. If he executed a full GALATEA protocol he’d probably be nonfunctional with grief and guilt for some time.

Side note: if any of this were happening in a human we’d be severely concerned. Rasputin is preventing himself from thinking about his actions and his own state of mind because he can’t afford to right now, because it would cripple him while he’s still in danger. But that danger isn’t going away anytime soon. Rasputin does have emotions, much as he may conceal them. At some point that denial and compartmentalization will break down and he’s going to have to deal with what psychologists call “some seriously heavy shit.” I hope the City has a therapist for AIs, is all I’m saying.

ALERT ALERT ALERT event rank is SKYSHOCK: INSIDE CONTEXT. Being blocked on executing GALATEA protocol causes Rasputin to check if MIDNIGHT EXIGENT can be suspended. The first answer he gets is a SKYSHOCK alert.

SKYSHOCK seems to designate a major space-based threat to humanity. In his first message reporting the detection of the oncoming Darkness, Rasputin classifies it as SKYSHOCK: OCP. OCP means “outside context problem,” a phrase coined by scifi writer Iain M. Banks (whom Bungie loves, and for good reason). An outside context problem is something a civilization could not possibly have anticipated and has no frame of reference for. They usually end badly; Banks said a civilization “tended to encounter [an OCP] rather in the same way a sentence encountered a full stop."

But this time the SKYSHOCK event is INSIDE CONTEXT. It’s a normal threat Rasputin understands - probably the many hostile factions still present in the solar system (Vex, Cabal, Hive, etc.) Rasputin evaluates these threats and concludes both he and humanity still face lethal danger even though the Darkness itself is gone.

MIDNIGHT EXIGENT must remain active under deniable authorization. Given said lethal danger, MIDNIGHT EXIGENT must remain in place even though the enemy that prompted it (the Darkness) is gone. Rasputin doesn’t consider himself - or humanity - safe enough to risk lifting emergency survival-only protocols.

“Under deniable authorization” is odd. Rasputin doesn’t need “authorization” to do anything, and why does it need to be “deniable”? The best I can come up with is that he’s authorizing himself to continue MIDNIGHT EXIGENT, and the “deniable” part means he’s concealing that fact and if you ask him about it he’ll pretend he has no idea. He doesn’t want anyone to know he’s still prioritizing his own survival.

Execute emergency SKYSHOCK diagnostic. Having determined that a SKYSHOCK threat is present, Rasputin decides to further evaluate it, and to do so quickly. Rasputin wants to assess the hostile factions in more detail and refine his estimate of their threat level. He doesn’t have time to do it himself, so he’ll have to use the Guardians to do it.

STAND BY: Usually this line in a Rasputin message means “I am making a decision” and is followed by the results of that decision. In this case it’s used in an interesting way: what follows is not explicitly a decision on MIDNIGHT EXIGENT and the SKYSHOCK evaluation, but an apparently separate message sent in the clear. The header and footer transmissions are not repeated, so it’s still sent to the same recipients (Ares-North), but the two parts are marked at different security levels - unsecured vs. secured. The first half of this message is meant to be seen only by Rasputin himself, but the second half is public to all “assets” in Ares-North. Why would Rasputin’s decision on SKYSHOCK take the form of a broadcast message? We’ll see later.

This is an INTERNAL ASSETS INVESTIGATION (unsecured/BRAY) The first half of the message was sent secure and only to Rasputin himself. The second is being sent unsecure and to group “BRAY.” Who’s that? Probably not Ana, since Rasputin designates her “AUTHORIZED USER.” More likely it’s everyone around the Bray facility, and hence it’s unsecured so everyone can hear it.

We haven’t seen Rasputin send an INVESTIGATION order before. Perhaps this means he’s, again, taking stock? Is he investigating himself or something else? While it’s sent to INTERNAL ASSETS, it’s not marked as an INTERNAL ALERT, meaning it’s being broadcast to other people. Rasputin may therefore be directing his assets to undertake an investigation of some target.

Justification resource GUARDIANS may be utilized for non-networked ad-hoc operations during CTESIPHON CLARION. The grammar is weird here. I’m not sure if he means to say “Justification: resource Guardians...” or if he’s calling them a “justification resource.” But anyway, he says the Guardians can now be used for “non-networked ad-hoc operations,” aka public events. He also implies an operation called CTESIPHON CLARION is now going on. We’ve never seen that codename before. Parsing it out, Ctesiphon is a city of the ancient world that at one point was considered to be, well, the pinnacle of cities. “Clarion” means “clear” and/or “loud” and usually refers to sound.

So CTESIPHON CLARION may be Rasputin’s designation for this current period of open communication and cooperation with the Last City, or it may mean that he intends to investigate the City/Guardians and understand more about them. Either way he’s telling Guardians that as long as he’s on good terms with the City, they’re allowed to do public events in Hellas Basin. Wow. What an honor, Rasputin.

Reassign 4 percent of reclaimed CHLM assets to new directive: declare IKELOS- Confirmation that the Warmind Charlemagne was a submind of Rasputin, one that he’s now “reclaimed.” It may be that Charlemagne was cut off from Rasputin like the Cosmodrome fragments were, and that Rasputin only now woke back up and reconnected. Either way Charlemagne seems to have been reabsorbed and its assets are being redistributed by Rasputin. At the moment, four percent of said assets are going to the new directive IKELOS, which you may recognize from Destiny 1 as the protocol under which Rasputin developed and provided weaponry to the Guardians. Rasputin is now declaring IKELOS (restarting it) and states two goals:

Declare primary goal: military fortification. IKELOS’ first priority is to beef up the military strength of the Guardians and Rasputin’s own defenses.

Declare secondary goal: prolong ARES-NORTH occupation by AUTHORIZED USER and resource GUARDIANS. IKELOS’ second priority is to keep Ana Bray (”AUTHORIZED USER”) and the Guardians around the Aurora Reach facility for as long as possible. Rasputin wants the Guardians there. Why? Perhaps he’s finally decided that having Guardians around is better than not having them, and their presence makes it safe for Ana to continue her work.

But remember: these two goals are being declared in the clear. He knows Guardians will read this part. This message wasn’t issued alone; it’s Rasputin’s “decision” on how to evaluate the SKYSHOCK threat. Rasputin’s true, unstated goal in restarting IKELOS is to use Guardians to evaluate the threat posed by the various hostile factions. To do that he gives the Guardians some weaponry of his own construction which he knows all the properties of, and he uses the promise of this powerful weaponry to get Guardians into all these minor skirmishes to protect the area.

Rasputin says in the secure half of the message that MIDNIGHT EXIGENT has to continue “under deniable authorization.” Thorough evaluation of all threats is quite important to ensuring his own survival, but he’s not publicly disclosing that motivation for doing it.

Execute short hold for partial shutdown and reactivation. Last of all Rasputin says he’s going quiet for a bit. Given all the damage he took from Xol, he’s probably got a lot of maintenance backlogged. Him being occupied with self-repair explains why Ana is mostly speaking for him at the moment.

SO. To sum it all up: where is Rasputin’s head at right now? CTESIPHON CLARION indicates he is, for the moment, communicating and cooperating with the City/Guardians in good faith. Privately he admits he underestimated the Guardians and wants to help them unconditionally - but MIDNIGHT EXIGENT is still active and SKYSHOCK rank is too high to end it. Rasputin still doesn’t consider himself safe enough to back down from “survival at all costs” mode.

Publicly he restarts IKELOS to buff the Guardian forces in the area, with the secondary goal of having them stick around. He implies that granting IKELOS weaponry is contingent on a Guardian presence in Ares-North. Concern for his own survival under MIDNIGHT EXIGENT means that instead of giving resources away, he trades them for protection. That tallies with the public events you have to complete to get said weaponry - Rasputin rewards you for defending him.

However, secretly (”deniable”) Rasputin has another motive for restarting IKELOS and keeping Guardians in the area: he’s running a “diagnostic” on the nature and severity of the current SKYSHOCK threat. In other words, he’s gathering data on the Hive/Cabal in combat by throwing Guardians into fights and watching what happens. He has no intention of publicly disclosing this goal, since it’s related to MIDNIGHT EXIGENT and he doesn’t want anyone to know he’s still prioritizing his own survival.

It’s...not a great sign that Rasputin is already acting with hidden motives. But he isn’t acting purely selfishly either. The two stated goals of IKELOS likely are real goals, just of lower priority than threat evaluation. And this decision was made as part of re-assessing the nature of the current SKYSHOCK event. If the current SKYSHOCK severity rank is low enough, Rasputin can lift MIDNIGHT EXIGENT and start returning to an altruistic pre-Collapse configuration.

And Rasputin does seem to want MIDNIGHT EXIGENT to end. He repeatedly checks whether it’s still required before making the IKELOS decision, and keeps trying to do things that get blocked by it. On an emotional level, previous lore cards suggest he really doesn’t like the person he’s become under MIDNIGHT EXIGENT. He would like to stop being that person, and stop being in lethal danger, as soon as possible.

tl;dr What does this mean for his future actions? Rasputin has no intention of taking orders from the City, but he’s opened communication in good faith and intends to intervene in solar system affairs more frequently and directly. However, his own survival is still top priority, he’s still keeping his true goals and motivations secret, and his aid to Guardians comes with a price: he’s using the dispensation of IKELOS weaponry to maneuver Guardians into skirmishes with Hive and Cabal forces in order to gather combat data on those forces. Rasputin would really like to be an unconditional ally, but he still thinks he can’t risk it. In the end he’s the same he always was: a powerful ally, but one who’s playing his own game/fighting his own war, who can only be relied upon so far as the City’s goals align with his.

#Destiny #Destiny 2 #Rasputin #Warmind #Destiny lore #Warmind expansion #Warmind spoilers #overthinking is my superpower #ra ra Rasputin Mars' greatest war machine #words words words #I hope you like words #I DON'T EVEN GO HERE #but I'm overthinking it anyway!#I DON'T EVEN GO HERE except now I do

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grimdarkandhandsome · 7 years ago

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SUNLIGHT: INTRO

In the future, an investigative blogger asks me:

'Hey, excuse me. I just wanted to ask, what is Sunlight and how did you get started on this project?'

Oh, sure, i can give a quick answer to that. Sunlight is a scifi about school, space battleships, and imperfect communication between friends. The major character is Hannah, a young woman who signed up for the Navy despite the pressure to get a normal, healthy job. Most people in this setting think of the military as frivolous and obsolete, and it's actually not an exaggeration to say that Hannah has a nostalgic, adventure-seeking streak. Hannah, a recent graduate of Pilar Academy, is the leader of a Close Quarters Combat squad specializing in ship-to-ship boarding actions. She fights with a quad-hammer, strength harness, and magneto glove.

There are really a lot of characters and details in this universe. I used to maintain a wiki on Obsidian Portal about it.

The gist is that it's a set of stories about attending a slightly drowsy military academy, groups of friends unsure exactly what they want or where they are going, and finding love in a world of pointless and harmless violence.

I discovered Sunlight late one night on Tumblr. I was up at 0200 when their server went down, and when it came back up they were accidentally showing me tag feeds from a parallel universe. I stayed up and checked it out; this other universe has some cool differences from ours. They never got Minecraft, for example, but over there Starcraft Ghost is very successful series.

One of them is this series of action & strategy games called Sunlight. They're kindof like slightly less professional versions of Overwatch, as far as i can tell. Anyway it's really big and the series has been around since their 2008. There was even a movie that was somewhat well-received ... according to Tumblr anyway. The only site i’ve been able to access from that universe is Tumblr, so it’s not like i can check their version of Rotten Tomatoes.

The first game in the series, Sunlight, was the debut game of VileMilan Studios (never founded in our universe). It was a FPS with a focus on equipment customization and team play. The art design budget was limited and there were really only three or so allied NPC models. After Sunlight's wild success, Sunlight 2 started referring to these NPCs as Bravo Squad, and the junior writing staff whipped up some bios (and retcons) for them. These ended up on the promotional website in the section designed to show off how narratively rich and cinematic Sunlight 2 was. One of Bravo Squad, Lysa, even became a supporting character in a tie-in novel later on.

My imagination was captured by these minor characters. After following the tag for a while, i found myself spinning stories of their time in training, growing up together. I've actually started to write some fanfiction about the series. Some of the details, admittedly, are my own invention, since the games don't really focus on these parts of the world. I mean i haven't played any of the games but i feel like i have a pretty good handle on the story from all the gifsets. And the planets they visit are definitely canon.

Some Bravo Squad characters i like to write about:

Hannah, called Hammerhand in the marketing. A Medium. Likes warrior-poets.

Perihelion Yamaguchi, called Peri, a Medium sniper. Quiet, contemplative. After graduation she reconnects with her religious family in a big way and becomes the Young Queen Rhiannon.

Lysandra, called Lysa. She knew she wanted to join the navy ever since she read her first Horatio Hornblower book in primary school. Big ego, big ambitions, was the top-graded in her class back on her home planet. Uses a teleport harness, field laptop, and electro drones. A Light.

Shawn. She keeps to herself, but she's part of the group and is good with an assault rifle. Knows the best ramen places. A Medium.

Bu, who fights with two axes and plenty of strength biomods. A low-armor Heavy.

Fiona, with repulsor wings and a heat-seeking spear. A Light.

Some sub-settings:

The early cadetship on the mighty flagship HMS Titan (back before they even had any weapon certificates!)

Pilar Academy, and the windy grasslands used for ground war classes.

Mars, work placement missions against the robot warlords.

The winter internship in the echoing tunnels of the mysterious alien moon Extremis A.

The interplanetary expeditions of the graduates' warband: Dragon Team.

The Bevelled Plains, greatest land theater in the whole sector, created by an eccentric necrotechnomancer as his last gift to the tradition of warfare.

Basic backstory:

It's the future, & all problems have been solved.

Poverty, agriculture, space colonization, gender, artificial intelligence, economics, death, violence, politics... Whatever it is, someone has already gotten there first.

This is a little disconcerting for a young person who dreams big. All the demons that still exist were created for mere entertainment in safe, isolated environments. Ambition is redirected into games and amusement parks.

War is obsolete. Militaries linger on at a fraction of their old budgets, funded mostly by donors and hobbyists.

All intercultural conflicts have so many outlets and safeguards set up that the possibility of violence is astronomically low.

Conflicts are settled by diplomacy or fair arbitration under pre-agreed rules.

And the end of scarcity means that people don't really get serious about fighting anymore.

Furthermore, brain backups, body manufacturing, brain emulation, and artificial bodies are all so developed that lethal injuries are no longer a realistic threat.

If you die, you'll just wake up in a newly-grown body the next day.

But the literary and narrative traditions about warriors survive.

And it is this poison that has gotten into the veins of our protagonists.

War is like sports.

It is hosted by special venues - theaters - such as colosseums and state parks.

Violence outside of predeclared areas is ridiculed.

Armies (a fraction of their historical size) are funded by advertising, merchandise, and tips.

Marketing the combatants is an important part of the military business model.

The actual main character of the Sunlight video games is Agent Golem, champion of the combat tournaments that war has devolved into.

Her life is legitimately dramatic and involves power struggles between sponsors, the pressure of being the best in the world, etc. However, the life of the average war enthusiast is much more mundane.

Military technology is marketed to retrofuturist hobbyists, and features a kitschy exuberance in its design and branding (Electroblasters, Meltaswords, etc.).

There also exist backwater moons that artists have seeded with self-constructing species of robots (Pandoricans), just as something to fight. These are not very dangerous given that death is a totally curable condition.

These moons are somewhere between theme parks, open-air zoos, and live-action video games

Also, gender roles have changed. Most parents and organizations obsess over children's genomes before conception, and the current fashion in this sector is bright, athletic daughters who strive for uniqueness. (Unfortunately, there is only a finite supply of uniqueness available.) Male births are down in the low single digit percentages, and most parents seem reluctant to bother with the gender.

Other influences i draw on in these fics:

Anamanaguchi

The Magicians

Ender's Game

Halo

My memories of playing Mass Effect with Michelle in high school

Also, i like to be conscientious and attach a disclaimer on my fanfiction:

Sunlight and related characters are registered trademarks of VileMilan Studios, Inc., but as it is obvious to us storytellers that characters, narratives, and mythology belong to the people, such trademarks are culturally void. Claims of corporate ownership over thought and folklore, however well-intentioned, can have no artistic legitimacy among fans. Proprietary fiction is a legal fiction. The explorations, variations, and transformations of Sunlight in these fic(s) belong to no one but exist as simple dreams set loose upon the net, flitting from the mind of one fan to another.

#sunlight #writing #fanfiction #sunlight 2 #scifi #creative writing

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tired-dinosaur · 4 years ago

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*rubs hands*

This was too long to fit in a comment, I apologise for the rant. In retrospect I put it under a cut. Hmu if you want more these were off the top of my head while I avoided going to bed. I used to read A TON of urban fantasy but only saw you’re open to that afterwards.

I support the Discworld recommendation. If you want fairies go for Lords and Ladies tho I would read some other witches books first so it's more impactful. Carpet jugulum for vampires but again better if you know Granny well by then. I would start with Wyrd sisters (Macbeth with witches) or Witches abroad (old ladies go on a trip; also mirrors are freaky; also cinderella). Equal rites has a bad rep but I reread it recently and while on the nose it is good. Granny is more proto Granny in Equal rites. Also Death is one of the best characters ever written and his horse is named Binky. Pls read. Any of them. Pls.

Have not read Vampire Academy since I was a teen but it would seem to fit the bill. It does what it says on the tin really. YA romance with vampires and dhampires and an academy.

The Paper magician series by Charlie N Holmberg has an awesome magic system and there's a mentorship. Really cool, good writing. Content warning - nothing heavy but mentor mentee romance but only after she qualifies. Very metaphor, much deep.

Untangled by Naomi Novik is amazing, the vibe is very Eastern European faery tale. As an Eastern European I approve.

Gail Carriger's complete bibliography is amazing and very queer. Vampires, werewolves. The Finishing School series has all that, ghosts, assassin school pretending to be a finishing school and more.

Seaman McGuire's Wayward children series is fab. Faery kingdoms, faery doors, great imagery. Very on the nose but I was besotted. Mileage may vary. She also has an urban fantasy series, I think it’s separate? First book in that series is Rosemary and Rue.

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovich. What if the mc was a cop in London today but with magic and an old mentor.

Have you read Neil Gaiman? The Graveyard Book is creepy and whimsical and I love it.

Do you like history? One damned thing after another - a book about time travelling historians. The later books have dinosaurs. Super funny and it made me cry.

If you haven’t read it, try A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin. Her writing is insanely good, like out of this world and the main character goes to an academy. Only one I’ve read but I intend to read her other books too.

I know you said fantasy, but if you have even the slightest inclination to try scifi please please please try A small angry planet by Becky Chambers. This writer is a genius, the books are pieces of freakin art. Like it deals with anxiety, sensory overload, depression, the immigrant experience, not fitting in, cultural inheritance, so so so much I love them. Content warning for sex, tho not for the main character, there’s a species that’s just very chill with how they show affection.

If you just want fairies with big Ds I hear Sarah J Mass delivers but I haven’t read them so idk.

If you want like historically based and mythology based try any of Madeline Miller’s, her writing is enchanting.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgensten is also very magical. I can’t tell you more without spoilers.

Wizard’s first rule by Terry Goodkind is a classic. Wizards. Old world stuff.

His majesty’s dragon by Naomi Novik - what if old English (when they were fighting the Spanish I think, idk modern history) but with dragons.

The Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson - I wasn’t mad about it but it’s well written, the action is fun and the magic series is really interesting. Some people can eat metal drops and that gives them powers. Real good, solid magic system.

The Others series by Anne Bishop is otherworldly, fantasy alt-universe and dark as hell, like nearly horror level. Lots of content warnings but great writing omg. That kinda describes all her writing though...

A natural history of dragons by Marie Brennan - what if Victorian English lady explorer but dragons. I seem to have a type. Very old world feel. Dragon biology. Delightful.

Ilona Andrews has a great series. Urban fantasy, werewolves, super cool magic system and mythos. Lion dude. Enemies to lovers. Totally loved this when I read it a while back.

I’ll stop now before I go on another hour.

pls give me ya fantasy book recommendations ✌

bonus if they include fairies, mermaids, and/or some kind of hidden magical world/urban fantasy setting. even more bonus points if there’s some kind of academy.

#books #book recs #reading recs #unless otherwise specified these are gold fam try them

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pomoblue · 7 years ago

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I realise when I’m analysing stuff, I make up a lot of words, or make words mean different things.

I should start a dictionary for shit I just made up. I should probably make this a page rather than a post but whatever.

"lonely” space opera/sf/scifi: that sort of atmosphere of loneliness and emptiness in a science fiction series, usually one that takes place in spaceships. Think FTL. I think it’s a really cool atmosphere, and I like looking at the simple things that make it feel more immersive.

Base SF: I think the best way to describe this is sort of like cosmic horror, only less cosmic and more sort of dreamlike. People randomly disappearing, things turning into other things,lots of unexplainable stuff. I find it kind of fascinatingly creepy because a lot of my nightmare-y dreams involve that, where things are scary because they’re inherently Wrong.

Heavy Urban Fantasy: Urban Fantasy that uses a lot of heavy lit fic themes alongside the fantasy stuff. Often goes into the moral implications of stuff like the masquerade, as well as the psychological effects. I think supernatural (or possibly buffy idk I haven’t seen either) made this a popular tv show subgenre. If it’s also YA I give it the beautiful acronym YAHUF. Poetic.

Continental Fantasy: oh god I need a better name for this. Similar to urban fantasy, but the “Urban” part of the setting is also a constructed setting, usually based on 20th century earth. Think Legend of Korra, or FMA. It’s fun and political and there’s also magic

Halfpunk: A genre so called because it’s halfway to cyberpunk. Halfpunk works take place A Little Bit(tm) in the future and are A Little Bit(tm) more dystopian. What makes a halfpunk setting work is that the issues in the world are the same issues as in the contemporary world, but worse. The oil crisis worsening, a current conflict turning into an all-out war, whatever. Doctor Who had a couple of good halfpunk episodes, but the quintessential example of this is Black Mirror.

Eclectic Fantasy: I think this is similar to new weird? Eclectic fantasy is any kind of fantasy work which specifically doesn’t take a lot of its influences from Tolkein or any other influential fantasy, and takes a lot of influences straight from other mythologies and folklore. I really like this kind of fantasy. Think Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, all that lot. This may or may not be the same thing as new weird.

YAD: Usually said in a derogatory way. “Ugh, it’s YAD”. Stands for young adult dystopia. You know what I mean. For the record I don’t hate YAD, I just think 80% of it is a bit shit.

My Thing: Young adult gay shit with heavy themes and wacky sci-fi.

There’s more but I can’t remember them at the moment and this post has been in my drafts for aaaaaages.

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philippmichelreichold · 6 years ago

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#scifi #review this immortal by roger zelazny

Basically This Immortal, known in an earlier incarnation as Call me Conrad, is one of Zelazny’s heroic epics with no less than the fate of humanity at stake. The principal character, Conrad, is typical of most of Zelazny’s heros. He is for all practical purposes immortal. Like Bugs Bunny, he does not go out of his way to cause trouble for others, but does not suffer abuse lightly. He plans carefully, trying not to act rashly. And he changes his feelings and views as he grows older and wiser. These traits lead, of course, to conflict. Conrad is retained to give a high caste alien from Vega named Cort Myshtigo a tour of earth for a survey. Because of the relationship between Vegans and humanity, this incites some resentment against the alien and concern for the future of humanity. The smart money has wagered that the way to save humanity is to kill Cort. Conrad makes it plain that he prefers to wait until he has enough information to decide, and spends most of his time shielding Cort from attempts on his life.

Irony The novel contains a great deal of irony which is used to show mankind returning from the brink of extinction and beginning the process of healing its wounds.. Episodes occur in which the putative destroyer is the instrument of salvation. The first of these occurs in Egypt. Hasan has been hired by the Agency to protect Cort. But as is known or suspected by everyone except Cort, Hasan is also a Radpole agent sent to kill him. In the final ironic twist of this episode, Hasan saves Cort from a boadile while trying to kill him. Other ironies abound. Twice, those thought lost are returned and bring salvation with them. The first returned is Conrad’s dog, Bortran. Bortran had gone missing years earlier and has been searching for his master ever since. After Conrad returns to Greece on this tour, Bortran crosses his trail. He catches up with Conrad just in time to rescue him from the Kouretes. Next to return from the presumed dead is Conrad’s wife, Cassandra. While burning an old friend, Conrad and his party are set upon by the Beast of Thessaly. In a dramatic sequence worthy of Dickens, they battle the Beast until Cassandra plays Zeus and strikes the Beast dead . In a more prolonged twist, the Radpole is trying to kill the one Vegan who can save earth and set it free. Throughout the story Conrad repeatedly intercedes to stay his execution, opposing the Radpole which he had founded decades before. The final irony is in the very nature of the Kallikanzaros. Rather than being the instrument of the world’s destruction as in Greek myth, he is to be its savior.

Symbolism Symbols of loss, destruction and ultimate redemption strengthen the themes presented through the use of irony. Symbols of the destruction of earth’s civilization include the spiderbats, the Kouretes, the Beast of Thessaly and the threatened dismantling of the Pyramids. The beginning of the restoration of civilization is symbolized by the return of Bortran and Cassandra as well as the destruction of the Kouretes, the Beast of Thessaly and the inroads being made against the spiderbats. Conrad symbolizes earth civilization itself. Cort refers to him as a sort of “ghost of place.” The restoration of Bortran and Cassandra, essential to Conrad’s wholeness as a person, support this symbolism. Also, Conrad’s fungal rash, present at the beginning of the story, has been eliminated at the end. He still has his limp, but his healing has begun, and like the earth itself, he endures

Steve Troy calls This Immortal a “lighthearted romp.” And it is. This in no way detracts from the seriousness of Zelazny’s themes or nor does it reduce the effectiveness of his presentation. It does make the story more enjoyable. The twists and rescues do not merely heighten suspense and grip the reader. They also provide the framework for the irony and symbolism that carry Zelazny’s themes of returning from the brink and of recovering from destruction.

QUOTES My thinking is usually pretty good, but I seem to do it after I do my talking– by which time I’ve generally destroyed all basis for further conversaton.

If heaven didn’t want me then, I’m not going to ask a second time.

Vocabulary adytum- “1 the innermost room or shrine in certain old temples, to be entered only by priests 2 a sanctum” (Excerpted from Compton’s Reference Collection 1996 copyright © 1995 Compton’s NewMedia, Inc.)

bouzouki-“a stringed musical instrument of Greece, somewhat like a mandolin, used to accompany folk dances and singers” (Excerpted from Compton’s Reference Collection 1996 Copyright © 1995 Compton’s NewMedia, Inc.)

caique- 1. a light skiff used on the Bosporus 2. a Levantine sailing vessel(Merriam-Webster Dictionary)

Cassandra- Conrad’s new wife. According to Bulfinch’s Mythology, “Queen Hecuba and her daughter Cassandra were carried captives to Greece. Cassandra had been loved by Apollo, and he gave her the gift of prophecy; but afterwards offended with her, he rendered the gift unavailing by ordaining that her predictions should never be believed.” In This Immortal, Conrad disbelieves both Cassandra’s accurate warnings of danger and her later prediction that things will go well.

chthonic- “1.designating or of the underworld of the dead and its gods or spirits 2.dark, primitive, and mysterious” (Excerpted from Compton’s Reference Collection 1996 Copyright © 1995 Compton’s NewMedia, Inc.)

Kouretes- “returns this line from the play The Bacchae by Euripides:” ‘O secret chamber of the Kouretes and you holy Cretan caves, parents to Zeus, where the Korybantes with triple helmet invented for me in their caves this circle…“ That is because the Curetes (the more common spelling) were spirits on the island of Crete who protected the newly born god Zeus when his mother Rhea hid him from his father Cronos, who would otherwise have eaten the baby. The Curetes danced around banging spears on shields to make a clattering din to drown out Zeus’s cries.’” (email post from Joel [email protected] 21:11:42 EDT) ouzo- “a colorless Greek liqueur flavored with aniseed” (Excerpted from Compton’s Reference Collection 1996 Copyright © 1995 Compton’s NewMedia, Inc.)

Ozymandias- “Here are two verses from the poem Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822):

'I met a traveler from an antique land Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand, Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read.” … “My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!” Nothing beside remains. Round the decay Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare, The lone and level sands stretch far away.’“

(email post from Joel [email protected] 21:11:42 EDT)

Piraeus- "seaport in SE Greece, on the Saronic Gulf: part of Athens’ metropolitan area: pop. 184,000: ModGr name PEIRAIEVS” (Excerpted from Compton’s Reference Collection 1996 Copyright © 1995 Compton’s NewMedia, Inc.)

Satyr- “The Satyrs were deities of the woods and fields. They were conceived to be covered with bristly hair, their heads decorated with short, sprouting horns, and their feet like goats’ feet.” (Bulfinch’s Mythology)

Skinner boxes- “an enclosure in which small animals, as rats or pigeons, are conditioned by rewards and punishments to perform certain acts in response to specific stimuli” (Excerpted from Compton’s Reference Collection 1996 Copyright © 1995 Compton’s NewMedia, Inc.)

syrinx- “pipes of Pan”, upon which he plays. See:Syrinx; Encyclopedia Mythica for more information.

Characters Bortran- Conrad’s dog

Conrad- hero of the story, “Director of Arts, Monuments, and Archives,” Radpol founder, and kallikanzaros

Cort Myshtigo- a wealthy Vegan journalist who wishes to write a book about earth

Dos Santos- hates Vegans, husband of “red wig”

Diane- the girl with the red wig, hates everyone, disfigured by a Vegan disease Radpol member

Dos Santos- hates Vegans, husband of “red wig” Radpol member

Ellen- George’s wife, wants to go to Taler, freind of Conrad

George- scientist, entomologist, freind of Conrad wants to poison the spiderbats

Jason- Conrad’s son

Hasan- Mercenary hired as Cort’s bodyguard

Lorel Sands- earth director appointed by Earth Government onTaler, Conrad’s boss and freind

Phil- poet laureate of earth, freind of Conrad

Procrustes- War Chief of the Kouretes (from Procustes in Myth)

All my content is creative commons attribution required. sources as cited. image used under fair use from isfdb

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philippmichelreichold · 6 years ago

Text

#scifi #review this immortal by roger zelazny

Basically This Immortal, known in an earlier incarnation as Call me Conrad, is one of Zelazny's heroic epics with no less than the fate of humanity at stake. The principal character, Conrad, is typical of most of Zelazny's heros. He is for all practical purposes immortal. Like Bugs Bunny, he does not go out of his way to cause trouble for others, but does not suffer abuse lightly. He plans carefully, trying not to act rashly. And he changes his feelings and views as he grows older and wiser. These traits lead, of course, to conflict. Conrad is retained to give a high caste alien from Vega named Cort Myshtigo a tour of earth for a survey. Because of the relationship between Vegans and humanity, this incites some resentment against the alien and concern for the future of humanity. The smart money has wagered that the way to save humanity is to kill Cort. Conrad makes it plain that he prefers to wait until he has enough information to decide, and spends most of his time shielding Cort from attempts on his life.

Irony The novel contains a great deal of irony which is used to show mankind returning from the brink of extinction and beginning the process of healing its wounds.. Episodes occur in which the putative destroyer is the instrument of salvation. The first of these occurs in Egypt. Hasan has been hired by the Agency to protect Cort. But as is known or suspected by everyone except Cort, Hasan is also a Radpole agent sent to kill him. In the final ironic twist of this episode, Hasan saves Cort from a boadile while trying to kill him. Other ironies abound. Twice, those thought lost are returned and bring salvation with them. The first returned is Conrad's dog, Bortran. Bortran had gone missing years earlier and has been searching for his master ever since. After Conrad returns to Greece on this tour, Bortran crosses his trail. He catches up with Conrad just in time to rescue him from the Kouretes. Next to return from the presumed dead is Conrad's wife, Cassandra. While burning an old friend, Conrad and his party are set upon by the Beast of Thessaly. In a dramatic sequence worthy of Dickens, they battle the Beast until Cassandra plays Zeus and strikes the Beast dead . In a more prolonged twist, the Radpole is trying to kill the one Vegan who can save earth and set it free. Throughout the story Conrad repeatedly intercedes to stay his execution, opposing the Radpole which he had founded decades before. The final irony is in the very nature of the Kallikanzaros. Rather than being the instrument of the world's destruction as in Greek myth, he is to be its savior.

Symbolism Symbols of loss, destruction and ultimate redemption strengthen the themes presented through the use of irony. Symbols of the destruction of earth's civilization include the spiderbats, the Kouretes, the Beast of Thessaly and the threatened dismantling of the Pyramids. The beginning of the restoration of civilization is symbolized by the return of Bortran and Cassandra as well as the destruction of the Kouretes, the Beast of Thessaly and the inroads being made against the spiderbats. Conrad symbolizes earth civilization itself. Cort refers to him as a sort of "ghost of place." The restoration of Bortran and Cassandra, essential to Conrad's wholeness as a person, support this symbolism. Also, Conrad's fungal rash, present at the beginning of the story, has been eliminated at the end. He still has his limp, but his healing has begun, and like the earth itself, he endures

QUOTES My thinking is usually pretty good, but I seem to do it after I do my talking-- by which time I've generally destroyed all basis for further conversaton.

If heaven didn't want me then, I'm not going to ask a second time.

Vocabulary adytum- "1 the innermost room or shrine in certain old temples, to be entered only by priests 2 a sanctum" (Excerpted from Compton's Reference Collection 1996 copyright (c) 1995 Compton's NewMedia, Inc.)

caique- 1. a light skiff used on the Bosporus 2. a Levantine sailing vessel(Merriam-Webster Dictionary)

Ozymandias- "Here are two verses from the poem Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822):

'I met a traveler from an antique land Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand, Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read." ... "My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" Nothing beside remains. Round the decay Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare, The lone and level sands stretch far away.'"

(email post from Joel [email protected] 21:11:42 EDT)

syrinx- "pipes of Pan", upon which he plays. See:Syrinx; Encyclopedia Mythica for more information.

Characters Bortran- Conrad's dog

Conrad- hero of the story, "Director of Arts, Monuments, and Archives," Radpol founder, and kallikanzaros

Cort Myshtigo- a wealthy Vegan journalist who wishes to write a book about earth

Dos Santos- hates Vegans, husband of "red wig"

Diane- the girl with the red wig, hates everyone, disfigured by a Vegan disease Radpol member

Dos Santos- hates Vegans, husband of "red wig" Radpol member

Ellen- George's wife, wants to go to Taler, freind of Conrad

George- scientist, entomologist, freind of Conrad wants to poison the spiderbats

Jason- Conrad's son

Hasan- Mercenary hired as Cort's bodyguard

Lorel Sands- earth director appointed by Earth Government onTaler, Conrad's boss and freind

Phil- poet laureate of earth, freind of Conrad

Procrustes- War Chief of the Kouretes (from Procustes in Myth)

#scifi zelazny review

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