Shepherd Moon, Part 6 (Epilogue)

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Shepherd Moon
by Bobbie Cabot
 
EPILOGUE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FOR ALL THE THINGS WE HOLD DEAR

 

- with a nod to the masters of space opera: J. Michael Straczynski, Larry Niven, David Brinn, E.E. (Doc) Smith,Iain M. Banks, and, of course, George Lucas.
My thanks. And my apologies.

 

“There is no real ending. It’s just the place where you stop the story.”
- Frank Herbert, author, late 20th Century Earth

 

 
So it was at the end of the twenty-fourth century (according to the Earthers’ calendar) a kind of peace was realized in the Galactic Federation, as well as a long season of prosperity and growth.

This would not have been possible if the treaty negotiations between the Federation and the Detterex was not successful. The Detterex Queen Sovann would not even consent to negotiating except with Mia, and without her, even with all the good intentions on both sides, it would not have proceeded to its eventual successful conclusion.

The Queen and her court, or what the Earthers thought of as her “cabinet” agreed to most of the conditions that were required by Mia and Tasha, and the negotiations cruised along. The only condition that the Queen asked was that they seriously be considered for membership to the Federation as full members.

The rest of the Detterex Empire would actually have revolted if not for the Phase-Waved message. The royal “Imperial Seal” also helped in authenticating the message. It wasn’t literally a seal but actually the equivalent to an authentication code that if the colonies use their own authentication code, it will generate a text in Elyran that will match the last sentence spoken by the Queen. And since the seal, as well as the colony codes, are newly generated every time, it was virtually impossible to fake.

Also, with the stories racing through the empire, their fascination with Tasha, Mia and Sahsha was an impossibly high level. They looked at Tasha in wonder, because she was the only known Elyran or Detterex that had every survived “the madness,” and they looked at Mia and Sahsha with almost wondrous awe – that these were able to rescue Tasha. If just for that, Earthers weren’t considered an alien race anymore, at least by the Detterex. The two were considered some of the most powerful bridges that Detterex had ever seen, and were considered the most beautiful. Their “animal eyes” and their five-fingered hands just gave them an exotic aura that only enhanced their erotic appeal, especially to those that were more into physical beauty.

And they all, Detterex and Elyran alike, looked at Tasha with envious or jealous eyes, because she was both a dominant as well as a submissive. They could only wonder at what she goes through in their bedchamber at night.

And they have seen her, both at the Detterex palace, and when she and her consorts tour through the Detterex countryside. The almost-automatic suspicion and derision that Detterex feel for non-Detterex, but most especially for Elyrans somehow did not apply to these three. They were greeted like royalty wherever they went, and their Earther and Elyran guards were hard put to stop the citizens from reaching out and physically touching them. Mia explained to her Earther Marines what touch meant to Detterex and Elyrans, and were told to act judiciously when holding back crowds.

- - - - -
(bookmark 1)

Even when the truth about the fall of the Tirosians eventually came out and the planted “communiqué” that the Detterex spies brought to the Empire was revealed to be a fake, the reputation of the Earthers as the legendary “warrior race” was already set in concrete, at least as far as the Detterex was concerned.

The Detterex had disarmed themselves (mostly), and had cheerfully (sort of) submitted to regular inspections, but only to Earther forces. Knowing that, Mumu and Pinpin requested for Admiral Silverman to assign companies of EarthForce army infantry, preferably female infantry, to all Federation forces assigned to patrol or administer Detterex territories.

But these were all details.

Speaking in broad strokes, the conditional surrender of Detterex and the fall of the Tiros Empire, though brought with them their own problems, life in Colossus had started to fall into a kind of normalcy, and the old “housekeeping” concerns of the Federation reasserted themselves.

Still, with the coming of the Earthers, and everything they brought with them had fundamentally changed Federation life.

For examples, previous races that had been sitting on the fence for millennia (some for thousands of millennia) finally decided to become members of the Galactic Federation. This was largely because of the reputation of the Earthers as the allies’ protectors and defenders. So that they may benefit from this, and the technological wonders that the Earthers brought, many decided to take the plunge and became members. And these new members also proudly claimed membership to what they unofficially called the “Earth Alliance.”

Most Federation citizens held the Earthers in respect and high esteem, some even in almost religious awe. The Earthers’ reputation was well founded, given how they had been instrumental, in some instances almost singlehandedly, in staving off the threat of the Empire, started the process of reproachment with the Detterex, and acted as the unofficial peacekeepers for the Federation ever since. They had also helped discover five new sophont races since their arrival (before, the Federation average was the discovery of one intelligent species every hundred thousand millennia), discovered at least one habitable planet every two months (except for those that they wanted for themselves, Earth regularly auctioned off the coordinates of habitable planets they didn’t want, and this had made Earthers even richer than they previously were) and introduced an uncounted number of new innovations that have made daily life in the alliance so much more comfortable (these still didn’t include Phase-Wave, their FTL innovations and their inertia converters: Earth government still had these on their proscribed technologies list, and Federation science was still not even close to discovering how they worked).

But what captured the hearts of many, especially those on the smaller marginalized colony worlds off the beaten path of galactic commerce that got little benefit from the alliance, was the Earthers’ philosophy of equal treatment and live-and-let-live, unencumbered by the preconceived notions and prejudices that most Federation members had been trapped under for countless millennia. Such an attitude seemed like a godsend to those who desperately needed to be given a chance for something better. For these and many other worlds, a kind of philosophical revolution, a kind of religious turnabout, was happening, brought on by the Earthers, and aided and abetted by their Elyran, Arachnian, Telcontari and Dixx friends, plus their new cyborg friends from Star-453, promising sweeping changes for the better.

The Earthers themselves did not quite believe their own press – an attitude they had acquired from their brush with near-extinction in what they called their “third world war.” This kind of humility was carefully nurtured and encouraged by Her Royal Highness, Crown Princess Amelia Catherine Liaran-Kerr-Steele of Elyra Prime and the Elyran Great Plains, Duchess of the Sciollian Isles of Earth, Admiral of the Fifth Fleet of Earth and High Admiral of the Elyran Defense Force, Lord-Defender of Arachnia and the Daemon Territories, Friend of All Detterex, Lord and Master of New Gibraltar, Keeper of the Messiah’s Torch, Director-General Emeritus of the CETI Council, and permanent ambassador of the United Nations of Earth to the Galactic Federation of Free Races. (Mia was always embarrassed by her long and “illustrious” title, but her spouses were quite proud of it and insisted it be used as often as possible.)

Mia had confided to her Elyran spouse, Queen Tasha, that she did not want Earthers to degenerate into the self-indulgence and arrogance of humans of the past. An attitude of entitlement must not be allowed to grow, she said. She had therefore engineered things so that all monies and other material riches that the race accumulated from their association with the Federation were immediately plowed back into the galactic economy via outreach programs and other philanthropic projects, making the Earth government the first and most successful philanthropic government in the alliance. Earther citizens therefore did not get any kind of advantage from this affluence, and therefore never comported themselves with the arrogance of, say, a Detterex royal among Empire citizens. After all, they never needed to: Earth System and Earth citizens did not want for anything. Not since the discovery of Phase-Wave.

Even so, a few races and colony worlds still resented the Earthers supposed affluence, and this had sparked a few revolts. But, after Galactic Federation forces put such brushfires down, the Earthers would be one of the first to assist in the recovery, and minimize any punitive actions levied on them by the Federation government. And these worlds would find themselves quickly on the road to recovery and self-sufficiency. In time, these worlds would, in fact, become the staunchest supporters and defenders of the Federation.

From the inside of the Federation government, the savvy Earther politico, Doctor Marcus Bidwell, and his crafty staff of Earthers, Elyrans, Dixx and Telcontari also did their part, and quietly instituted reforms and policies that advocated equal treatment of all sophonts, while the dynamic duo of the First Ambassador of Arachnia and the Erocii scientist, Autumn-Sun-Rising-in-the-East (who most just called Autumn) advocated an unbiased, holistic view of the Galactic Federation, and advocated education programs that highlighted this view. The education programs they created were adopted by most worlds. After all, they were free (they were fully funded by the Earthers and, to a smaller extent, the Federation government) and they were the best around, churning out top-caliber scientists, engineers and experts in thousands of different disciplines, and the most highly regarded artists among the known planets. The only thing that the Earthers and the Federation required in exchange was that their graduates must pay allegiance to what was called the “Sophont’s Oath” – an oath advocating fair treatment of all sophonts, and to use one’s gifts and talents to assist others in need or in distress, and to help make the universe a better one. Professor Tribin, a famous Telcontari teacher, once said that the Oath was familiar to all Telcontari and most Federation citizens. It had echoes in the Telcontari’s Laws of Ethics, in the ancient writings of the Messiah of Elyra and Detterex, and in the so-called Golden Rule of the Earthers.

As for Professor Jennifer Priestly, as the new apprentice to the Keeper of the Heritage, she was starting to learn about the origins of intelligent life in their part of the galaxy, and was starting to get acquainted with the long-term plan of the Keepers.

A few cybernetic improvements had already been implanted in her. Her master had offered more enhancements but she was fine with what had already been given to her. She knew that as parts of her body failed in time, and was replaced with artificial components, her body would eventually become mostly artificial, just like the Keeper. She actually doubted if there was anything organic left in the Keeper anymore. But if that was the price of immortality, and the price to help keep the Plan in place, so be it.

She asked the Keeper if he felt different compared to when he was still mostly organic, and he said that there really was no difference - he was still the same person, and he still had the same memories, drives, emotions and needs. His artificial body, in fact, boasted no special powers, senses or advantages from his original one – it worked and felt the same way. This allowed him to feel and experience the universe in the same way he always did. The only difference was that his memory was practically endless now, and sustaining himself was easier, and it was easier to... make repairs. Jennifer asked about something... delicate, and the Keeper smiled, assuring her that his sexual drives and emotions remained the same. But (he said sadly) since his species was tragically extinct now, he had toned those drives down to practically zero. However, he knew what Jennifer was asking. He said that the previous Keeper enjoyed a happy and active sex life, and indulged her desires whenever her drives moved her, and Jennifer was free to do so as well.

Jennifer heard the sadness in the Keeper’s voice – that he was the last of his line - but felt relief upon hearing that he was still the same as before. She reviewed her behavior, senses and emotions and she didn’t detect anything different after her digestive and respiration systems were replaced. Although her new parts allowed her to continue without the need for food or even air, and could conceivably live on for months without eating, she still ate (and breathed) as she normally did. The one thing she did insist upon was that there be no visible signs of her... improvements so that she could still interact with her old friends and colleagues without them being any the wiser. Especially with Mia, Marc, Sahsha, and Queen Tasha.

She wondered if these cybernetic advances could have been shared with others but the Keeper sadly said that wasn’t possible. The ancient machinery that created his spare parts and her new digestive tract, and allowed him to live a virtually immortal life, could not be duplicated – many have tried and failed. And it was only designed to do this for two beings. It was deliberately designed that way. That was the main reason why there was ever only one Keeper and one apprentice at any time. The Keeper said that the Earthers’ cybernetic advances actually held more promise to help others than his own machines.

Who made the ancient machine and how, no one knew anymore. The only thing that the Keeper knew was that it was made specifically for the purpose of assisting him and his apprentice to continue the Plan.

Jennifer took that all in, and was glad she was the one the Keeper picked. All she could say about that was that she wasn’t surprised the Keeper picked an Earther as his apprentice. The Keeper explained he knew Earthers would be playing a large part in the galaxy in the foreseeable future, and it was convenient if the new Keeper was also an Earther.

She was determined to do her part in fulfilling the Plan. She was both excited and apprehensive that she could be around conceivably forever, and see how Earthers would fare in the coming millennia, and see how the universe changes over the eons.

As apprentice, she had to learn all that the Keeper knew. But there was no physical or mental link between her, the ancient machine and the current Keeper. Aside from her new, near-limitless memory, She was not given any special “tools” that would allow her to learn better or faster. So the only way she could learn everything was through the old-fashioned way. Despite her new bottomless memory, she said that this seemed so inefficient. Couldn’t she be given some kind of cybernetic link to the ancient machines’ memory or something? But the Keeper explained that the normal way was the only way to do it. To do it in any other way would change her so fundamentally that she wouldn’t be herself anymore, and she must remain herself. Otherwise the Plan will not continue.

So her days were now filled with reading ancient texts, scrolls and books, and listening to hours of lectures from the Keeper and his staff. She had already learned a lot - a lot of mind-boggling stuff, and she was eager to learn more. But the Keeper did not insist on a cloistered, monk-like existence, so she still kept in touch with everyone from her previous life. She also had the freedom to go home, and to take as many breaks as she wanted, for as long as she wanted. The Keeper said that they had all the time they needed so there was no rush. But there was still too much to learn. She knew she wouldn’t be taking breaks anytime soon.

To the outside world, she was just the newest staff of the Keeper. Only the Keeper, his people and the Royal Family knew her status as the Apprentice. And the Keeper didn’t seem worried about her spilling the beans: she was given free access to communication. She didn’t understand that. But, nevertheless, she didn’t spill any secrets. In her frequent Phase-Wave conversations with Mia, she freely told her about what she had learned, and how her new life was like, but she didn’t talk about the main reason for the keepers, and why they were around. Maybe in time she would tell Mia. Then again, maybe not. It all depends on what happens next.

And that’s the big question.

As for Mia, many things had changed in her life. After the three most momentous events to happen in the Federation eons – the fall of Tiros Prime, the surrender of the Detterex Empire and what they called the “The Rescue of Colossus,” Mia had become the most well-known and most popular citizen of the Federation, with Tasha and Sahsha being a close second and third.

Earth was proud of her most famous citizen, and wanted to reward her somehow. But that was problematic. She couldn’t be promoted as the next post would have been Admiral Silverman’s post, and he was not prepared to step aside. They Navy was actually prepared to create a new post just for her, but Mia didn’t want that – she had a lifelong dislike of red tape and unnecessary bureaucracy and this sounded too much like that. She did, however, wanted to resign, but given current attitudes in the Federation, she couldn’t do that. To do so was a kind of cowardice. To fall on one’s sword or to risk one’s life for a belief or a cause was an honorable thing, but to retire when one was still capable was a kind of cop out, or kind of an act of cowardice. In Earther military terms, it was like desertion, and had about the same kind of stigma.

So she was instructed to keep her post as the commander of the Fifth Fleet, although Beth was the one who acted in her place most of the time.

However, her marriage to the new ruler of All of Elyra (or the closest to it) did put a different kind of twist to things.

The Fifth Fleet was now a combined fleet: Courtesy of the Great Plains of Elyra and the Elyran colony of Harcon, the Fifth Fleet now had eight Tiros Eclipse-class cruisers assigned to it. These cruisers, however, weren’t the most cutting edge ships in the fleet – they were, after all, just recovered Tiros prize cruisers the Elyrans purchased from the Tirosians.

EarthForce couldn’t really turn down the “gift” of these ships lest they insult Princess Thalassa and Queen Tasha, so they had to do the next best thing - the engineering crews of all of Mia’s five Earth cruisers were deployed, and one Earth cargo ship full of spare parts was dispatched.

Under direct orders from the queen, the eight ships took turns to land on Gibraltar Base, and their crews allowed the Earthers onboard. At the end of one Earth month, the eight cruisers were given a thorough overhaul, and were brought back close to original spec, and in fact was so improved, they could now give any Arachnian cruiser a run for its money.

Aside from these eight, the Shepherd Moon and Mia’s five remaining Type Ones were further augmented by four other newly-commissioned Type Ones. These were specially outfitted for deep-space exploration, with larger landing decks and a much larger complement of Cobra shuttles each.

Also, per the request of Admiral Steele, Earthship II, plus Saturn’s three K-class ships underwent refits and were converted to become full-fledged FTLs and would be sent to Colossus to join up with the Fifth Fleet. Commodore Oshiro didn’t raise a fuss when he lost his three mini-cruisers because, in exchange for the Yamato, Musashi and Sinano, he was promised twelve brand-new Type Twos. More than a fair trade in his eyes.

After their refits and shakedown, the four ships were then dispatched to Gibraltar Base to join up with the Fifth Fleet. Mia had requisitioned these ships because the three fast, small ships were ideal for interdiction missions whereas Earthship II was a great platform for exploration missions.

At the end of it, the Fifth Fleet was now made up of its flag carrier (the J-One class Shepherd Moon), nine Type One cruisers, eight Eclipse-class cruisers, the three K-class ships (now reclassified as K-One “clipper class” cruisers) and the newly-FTL-capable Earthship II (the first of several “exploration-class” ships). Upon special request by the Queen, Cruiser 99, Dax’s three Dixx cruisers, and Tasha’s own Blazing Star and Talon were not permanent parts of the fleet. Dixx and Arachnia had followed Elyra’s plan and were in negotiations to buy a few Tiros ships, to be assigned to the Fifth Fleet.

With twenty-eight cruisers, Mia’s Fifth Fleet was now considered a more than respectably sized fleet instead of being the smallest among EarthForce’s five fleets.

- - - - -
(bookmark 2)

Eventually, Mia had decided to marry Tasha, in the traditions of both Earth and of Elyra. And Sahsha, because she had entered into a prior bond with Tasha, Mia, in effect, was also married to her. It was the first marriage of this kind in a long time, for both Earth and Elyra, a distinction that brought them both notoriety (on Earth) and prestige (in Elyra). In time, their love was proven to be the most enduring, and provided the basis of a partnership between Earth and Elyra that eventually became more than symbiotic.

Because they were Earthers, Mia and Sahsha did not feel the effects of Bridges, except with Tasha, but more than that, what they felt for Tasha, as well as for each other, included the old-fashioned Earther-type love, and Tasha was would swoon from what she had with her spouses: the power of the Bridge amplified by the more fundamental and basic love that Earthers had. Tasha was truly smitten. She felt the love of both kinds of Bridges – both the dominant and the submissive kinds of Bridges, and enhanced with the love Mia and Sahsha were capable of. She felt like she was the most fulfilled woman in all of Elyra and was the object of envy among its citizens - the only other Elyran who was known to have experienced that dual kind of bonding. And because of Tasha’s marriage to Mia and Sahsha, Earthers were now considered the sexiest and most attractive.

In the fullness of time, the Queen Mother passed away, and after the prescribed year of mourning, to maintain the continuity of Elyra, the new Kerr royal family, made up of Tasha, Mia and Sahsha, ascended the throne of All Elyra. Though there were some who wondered at the appropriateness of non-Elyrans becoming part of the royal family, this was not a big issue given that the royals in question were the Earther who had rescued the Princess Tasha from certain death and the Lady Amelia.

Through their influence, and because of the different perspective they had as Earthers, they initiated sweeping changes throughout all Elyra and her colonies. For example: at that time, the Detterex Empire had started to decline, and communications with their colonies and vassal planets started to break down. The Detterex Royal Family offered a new renegotiated contract of cooperation in exchange for assistance. The new First Family of Elyra and the Fifth Fleet of Earth initiated interstellar rescue and interdiction missions that became known as the “First Wave.” Through this First Wave, and subsequent follow-up missions, the breakdown of the Detterex Empire was staved off, and, though, many on both sides resisted at first, the much-reduced Detterex Empire became a new member of the Galactic Federation, and that was the beginning of Elyran-Detterex integration.

As for the Tirosians, after the loss of Tiros Prime, the all-important web of communications and commerce that kept the Empire thriving died. In thirty Earth years, the Tiros Empire was no more, and was reduced to several hundred small colony worlds that professed no alliance to any empire. It became the Galactic Federation’s ongoing mission to somehow integrate these settlements into the Federation.

It was not an exaggeration to say that Tasha, Sahsha and Mia combined (but mostly Mia) were the closest that the Earth Alliance, the Galactic Federation, the Tiros Star Empire and the Detterex Empire had to a Queen or Empress, or perhaps, per Earth terminology, a Prime Minister, since almost all their governments just took their lead from them instead of blindly or slavishly following them.

Over time, Earth and Elyra rivaled Colossus itself as the center of the Galactic Federation’s culture, commerce and politics. A change in the lines of power was evident. Very few of the races complained about it, though, except for the precious few that were adversely affected. But even their leaders conceded that the Federation, as a whole, was better off because of it, and none of them really wanted to shake things up, especially since the Earthers would not stand for it. The Dravidian Guild of Merchants were one of the exceptions, though, but their intention of simultaneously blocking the major commercial landing routes with their freight and cargo containers were foiled by the “friendly” assistance of Federation garrison troop carriers who just “happened” to be there, and towed them out of the way of commercial shipping. Other more overt but minor acts of rebellion were also put down quickly and quietly, mostly by the quick interdiction the Earth’s Fourth and Fifth Fleets. In time, just the threat of an Earther show of force and their seemingly magical ability of being at the right place at the right time was enough of a deterrent.

The cultural, economic and commercial landscape of the entire Galactic Arm was fundamentally and irrevocably changed, and whether or not the Earthers were truly the coming of the fabled Warrior Race, it had become immaterial now.

It was a joke among the citizens that, to track the changes to the Galactic Arm, one would just need go through the Elyran royal titles of the Elyran Royal Family. In fact most youngsters had memorized them. Much as an Earth child would recite her A-B-Cs, or recite their multiplication tables, Federation children could recite Tasha’s, Sahsha’s and Mia’s titles by heart:

Her Most Royal Highness, Queen Tasha the Forty-Third, by Grace of the Messiah, of the Kingdoms of Elyra and Her Dominions beyond the Rim, Grand Admiral of the Royal Armies of the Crown, Defender of the Faithful, Empress of All Elyrans and Friend of all Detterex, and permanent ambassador of the Elyran Peoples to the Galactic Federation of Free Races;

Her Royal Highness, Lady Sahsha Liaran-Kerr-Delyer, Princess of Elyra Prime and the Sciollian Isles of Earth, Royal Concubine of the Queen, Duchess of the Lesser Plains, Baroness of the Sapphire Moons of Harcon, Countess of the Highlands of Petri and the First Colony; and, of course,

Her Royal Highness, Crown Princess Amelia Catherine Liaran-Kerr-Steele of Elyra Prime and the Elyran Great Plains, Duchess of the Sciollian Isles of Earth, Admiral of the Fifth Fleet of Earth and High Admiral of the Elyran Defense Force, Lord-Defender of Arachnia and the Daemon Territories, Friend of All Detterex, Lord and Master of New Gibraltar, Keeper of the Messiah’s Torch, Director-General Emeritus of the CETI Council, and permanent ambassador of the United Nations of Earth to the Galactic Federation of Free Races.

For better or worse, all the known races had all hitched the future of all their worlds to them. None knew what the future held in store for them, except, perhaps, the Keeper and his new Apprentice. But they weren’t saying…

There was one good thing that happened because of all of this, Mia said to her doctor once, during one of her infrequent visits to Earth.

“And what is that?” Doctor Isabella Puerrot asked her.

“At least I don’t have problems about being a girl, now?”

“Hmmm…” the doctor replied. “How does that make to feel?” She asked the question with some kind of thick German accent.

Mia looked at her, shocked, and then she saw her smiling, and she broke down laughing.

“Nick’s given you some more movies again, huh?”

- - - - -
(The End)


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thank you once again!

Andrea Lena's picture

You did this.... superbly!

  

To be alive is to be vulnerable. Madeleine L'Engle
Love, Andrea Lena

But of course! lol

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More a reply to part 5

There is a reason why people say Sir Isaac Newton (or more accurately his legacy) is the deadliest SOB in space. also explosives might actually WEAKEN railgun fired projectiles,because they get a crap ton more impact energy from their mass then you can ever get from chemical explosives- if you really wanted to make them more deadly, you would use depleted uranium which is not only dense, but soft like lead, the result being a more efficient transfer of the projectile's impact energy to the impact surface.

DU is not soft.

DU is used in kinetic penetrators because it is hard and self sharpening.

Couple of things

I have to wonder, If the Earth government sees fit to build several "exploration-class" vessels, Is it that much of a stretch to think they may have planed FTL capable "spaceport" vessels as well, as their more combat oriented counterparts? Capable of transporting a small number of Type 2s- or damaged Type 1s, or non-Earther built ships (captured/gifted or allied vessels) that for the purposes of a joint mission NEED the speed of Earth FTL, as well as acting as mobile dry-docks facilities. Also what would be interesting to see in continuation of this universe is the evolution of Earther blades after this point, its not a huge stretch to see that energy blades (laser and otherwise) will get a demand in the ranks that they may become standard issue, of course then variants of them will also be demanded to reflect individual cultures (like how many American soldiers purchase tomahawks to substitute the standard issue combat knife regardless of Native American descent) and they would want the ability to block against similar weapons, after all even if they never expect to have to use them, they need to prepare for the eventuality, and keep from being reliant on the fact that their blades will cut through enemy blades.

Another expected development would be a "Tight Field" EM Suppression devise, for obvious reasons. Finally, with the suppression fields the "Legacy" ship designs have a distinct advantage over their more blocky counterparts, the ability to travel through debris fields and atmosphere when under suppression, which would give those hull designs justification for revisiting, so while Seeker was the last J-class, Sheppard Moon might not be the last "J-One class", I suspect that was what was being referenced in the interview.

Hi, again.

bobbie-c's picture

Hi, MH Alpern. Fancy seeing you here again. lol

I don't know what you mean re "spaceport" vessels. If you're referring to workhorse ships like tugs and towboats or ships used in spaceports, yes, indeed, they are there. But you must see that in Shepherd, the only locales where inport activities happened were in New Copernicus (which is on the surface of the moon) and Kennedy Spaceport, which is on Earth.

I am sure if there was any action in the story involving orbiting stations, I'm sure "spaceport" vessels would be featured as well, just like they were (to a certain extent) around Colossus.

But if you are asking about FTL-capable commercial ships, I think covered that in one of my other responses to you.

The idea of "mobile" drydocks is not a viable idea, at least in the universe of Shepherd Moon - it has always been my idea that drydocks in orbit is a little off - too much effort would be needed to run and maintain them whereas having them nearer their supplies or raw materials would be so much easier.

In Star Trek, they needed orbiting stations because their ships were never designed to land whereas in Shepherd, all ships were specifically designed to land on planets that approximate Earth/Elyra/Detterex/Tiros/Arachnia/etc. conditions. In 21st century terms, I guess what I'm saying is, why have a repair/construction station be floating in the middle of the ocean when it would be infinitely more convenient to have it in the dock.

As to making ships double as "temporary" dry-docks, I think that would be possible without making them especially built for that purpose. As in present-day maritime ships, smaller ships can always hitch up to bigger ships while they wait for their ships to be fixed.

As for Colossus, it was deliberately designed as an un-tethered and non-planet-bound station to symbolize that it was an independent facility with no allegiances and not beholden to any race and planet because it is the seat of the Federation.

As to your conjecture that a kind of tow-ship to allow Federation ships to travel at Earth-designed-ship speeds for joint missions would be needed, wouldn't it be better if they just rode in the Earth ship? That would be like making high-speed ferries that could bring onboard passenger ships instead of just asking the passengers to ride in the ferries in the first place.

With regards bladed weapons, I think I covered that in another of my responses.

Anyway, thanks, again for your comments. Keep 'em coming!

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Great conclusion!

Great job finishing this story Bobbi. And a great science fiction plot. I have seen a couple comments ab out the science you have used, and I have to say that your science is well done, does not have any inconsistencies that I noticed and is a plausible extension of what known science could eventually become in the distant future.

The story is well written and has no gigantic fubar comments, plot holes or impossible science like very popular series of space opera movies that I will not mention.

A lot has also been mentioned in the comments about Rail gun ammunition. Any of us could come up with great ideas of exotic ammunition that could be fired from a "naval" cannon. A little research on the various loads used in the naval cannons of the old sailing ship days by those posting those comments would show that the only limit is the imagination.

While depleted uranium is the best material we have today, who knows what they will have 200 years from now. Also how difficult and is what quantities is the material available? It could be possible to have a singularity projectile, a true one shot ship killer but if you only have the resources to create 3 of them and you have to fight 9 other ships you are up the creek without a paddle.

I will never forget reading about the war the Moon fought against the earth in, "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress." For those that have never read it, the Moon used linear accelerators to quite literally throw rocks at the earth, similar to one of the battles in your story where they sat out in the asteroid field and did exactly that. It's a simple solution and you have an abundance of really cheap and readily available ammunition.

We the willing, led by the unsure. Have been doing so much with so little for so long,
We are now qualified to do anything with nothing.

You're too kind.

bobbie-c's picture

Thank you for your very nice comments, Nuuan. I can't help but feel that you saw my "meltdown" after I posted the first installments of Shepherd way back when, and are being kind. lol

All this talk about the rail guns - I guess I can only say that the rail guns that the Earthers had they actually considered old tech, and only had it in their new ships as supplemental weaponry. The reason the Shepherd/Seeker had more rail guns was because it was an older ship. But with their effectiveness in the war, this opinion of the Earthers will undoubtedly change, and I'm sure they'll start conducting research and update the technology instead of using the older versions of their rail guns to use more exotic ammunition, or to increase the velocity of their projectiles.

In any case, exotic materials would probably (conceivably) be available to the Earthers while they were in home port, but I doubt if they'd have such materials available in Star Harbor or while they were mining C-57D. The image I wanted to conjure up was that they were essentially chucking rocks or gravel at the enemy, as you said.

Yes, I've read "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress," but I was thinking more of "Footfall" by two of my favorite writers, Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven.

Anyway, thanks for commenting. Keep 'em coming!

Btw, I prefer "Bobbie" with an "ie" at the end. :)

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Defending your rail guns

Yes I did see how a few had started this "Why didn't they use X?" in earlier posts. Also the fact that rail guns were considered to be almost an abandoned technology at the time. I guess what I was trying to demonstrate is that the comments about how they should have used depleted uranium were moot when the type of projectile the weapon uses could anything imaginable.

Another "Big One," they failed to take into consideration is the availability, cost and time it takes to produce the more exotic projectiles. And the most important fact is what was the weapon designed to fire?

Simple physics, It takes a greater time and more power to accelerate a heavier projectile to the same speed that a lighter projectile. Given that the rail guns are of a fixed length and power firing a heavier projectile than it was originally designed to fire would mean the projectile would leave the weapon at a slower velocity and possibly not have as much kinetic energy as a lighter projectile that travels at a higher velocity.

Also a projectile that travels slower would give the target more time to attempt to avoid it, thus equaling more "missed" shots.

So yes I am defending the way in which you have used the rail guns :)

And Bobbie, I am also a fan of Niven and Pournell, along with Heinlein, Clarke, Anderson, Verne, and all the classic sci-fi authors.

We the willing, led by the unsure. Have been doing so much with so little for so long,
We are now qualified to do anything with nothing.

Truly appreciate it

bobbie-c's picture

Well, thank you kindly. :)

I think, however, the rail gun tech in the story wasn't being questioned, per se, but rather suggestions were being given. I think it's more like their imagination was caught because there were many resonances in other works of fiction for them - the Star Wars Death Star and the frigate carrier in Halo to name two, and wanted to integrate that into my narrative. It's actually flattering in a way. I am actually a little flattered.

I am just afraid that what happened to my first three installments might happen to the last three, too. I remember this fairly long comment where like a dozen elements from my story were openly questioned. Not in a bad way, mind you, but I felt that the commenter was just really looking to nitpick that time. Sorta like those commenters who just post to point out grammar or spelling errors.

I'm hoping I won't melt down again this time, and hopefully the commenters will be a little more circumspect in their litany of corrections. But I learned my lesson - I have my tech backstopped this time.

What makes me sad, though, is that no one seems to want to discuss the story - just the tech. Oh well...

I think you're right in your observations - the rail gun tech was obsolete tech that was carried over from the legacy ships, and they weren't really keeping them up-to-date.

I can only comment, though that with their new, crazy-powerful engines, accelerating them might not be too much of a problem. But, yeah, more mass equals difficulty in acceleration.

I'm hoping I get more comments discussing the story than the tech.

Thanks again for your comment. And keep 'em comin!

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OMG! WTF? and Bravo, Bobbie-c

I could comment for hours but it all comes down to BRAVO!

Even the long, seemingly slow bits about Federation politics/intrigue proved VERY informative as the story progressed.

For example is showed how the seemingly powerful Federation was in many ways a paper tiger due to various factor.

That the Arachnids became among Earth's and the Federation's most valued races did not go unnoticed by me.

As to Mia... her greatest skill seems the turning of almost everyone into friends/allies... even damned near worshipers of her.

That many of her greatest supporters were former enemies ... or at least former rivals ... is proof.

Look forward to your completion of other story arcs.

John in Wauwatosa

John in Wauwatosa

The "long bits"

bobbie-c's picture

Thanks so much :)

I intentionally put in the "long bits" to give a feeling of the kind of time involved in space travel, and how it can drag along, and how long and intricate political haggling can be. It's all part of the worldbuilding I've been attempting. Sorry if you didn't like that too much.

As to the Federation, I was attempting to show that they weren't so much a paper tiger but more a decadent and stagnant society mired in their fixed ways of thinking and doing things.

As to the Arachnians, I wanted to show a kind of prejudice against the exoskeletal "buglike" races, and how they have had to struggle.

I also spotted a lot of grammar errors especially in the epilogue. Guess I was rushing it. Aplogies for that, and I'll get to them soon.

Thanks, again, John. I'm working on my other unfinished stories, too, so stay tuned. :)

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well done

I enjoyed your story, you certainly have a talent for worldbuilding. Thank you very much for sharing it here.

"we can turn it all around, because it's not too late, it's NEVER too late" -(never too late, Three Days Grace)

Frank Herbert fan here :)

bobbie-c's picture

This was my own attempt at a Frank Herbert kind of universe. I'm a big fan of Dune. :)

Thanks!

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So the EM suppression could

So the EM suppression could be described as an anti-radiation field, I find it curious that no one uses fission induced fusion weapons (hydrogen bombs) after a minimum amount of fissionable material they have completely scalable yield. And for that matter almost wondering why EarthForce doesn't have antimatter weapons, its a matter of energy and a means to redirect premature explosion so very attainable, might be hesitant due to ww3 but it would be a sensible contingency

please make one comment thread, ok?

bobbie-c's picture

To respond...

No, the EM suppression field cannot be simply described as an anti-radiation field, as it's selective in its field effects instead of across-the-board, and they don't understand why yet. And what does this have to do with hydrogen bombs?

As to fission-induced fusion, why do you "find it curious" etc etc. I thought we got the idea that the Earthers don't like nuclear weapons? And yes, the Earthers DO have hydrogen bombs. Didn't you notice that the Earthers used a thermonuclear bomb to get rid of the enemy derelicts because they might be booby trapped? (see part 5)

As to why EarthForce doesn't have antimatter weapons, well why would they have to have it? Is there some cause and effect that makes antimatter a de-facto technology in the future? Present technology says that the production of antimatter is too costly, and you only produce amounts in picogram amounts. In my universe, I am positing the scenario that the technology is still unavailable, or at least unviable, despite the fact that I am a Star Trek fan.

Also, please just make one comment thread instead of this back and forth between two threads, okay, Kim?

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Sorry went into thought to

Sorry went into thought to comment crazy mode, i do that. I can't help it.

The antimatter thing was brought by thinking about how much the siren stations far exceed the power requirements for our largest particle accelerators, and that is assuming that they don't figure out how to extract it from the quantum foam. They have mastered high power electro-magnets and probably use the kind that would be needed in starships but from a story standpoint it isn't needed.

minor correction

bobbie-c's picture

That factoid of yours that "siren stations" far exceed the power requirements our largest particle accelerators - I don't think that was in the story.

Minor correction: those are Seren Stations, not Siren Stations. "Seren" is welsh/irish for "star." I did mention that the inventor was an Irish scientist.

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It is mentioned that they use

It is mentioned that they use 20% of our current planetwide power output planet, our current accelerators just need a single reactor per to power them, often producing excess energy to sell to the city they are in/nearest to. And thats the ones that have their own power plants.

yep. 500 exajoules' worth

bobbie-c's picture

Yes, that's correct. the the Shepherd universe, the Earth used 20% of their power output to run their Seren Station, which shows the enormous power requirements of Seren technology. So, per the story, a Seren Station uses 500 exajoules. That means the total power generation of Earth was 2,500 exajoules. To give that some perspective, in 2012, Earth's total power consumption was a little below 600 exajoules.

Now, about your point about generating excess energy -

The present day situation of producing excess energy that they can sell it off - this is not often because they have too much excess energy output but it's a timing issue: the excess power in a grid usually comes from the fact that at a certain time of the day, power consumption is not at its peak. So, instead of throttling down production, the excess at that time is sold to other grids whose power needs are too high.

So, for example, if it's early morning in a certain place, their energy needs are low. While in another place, let's say it's currently the hottest part of the afternoon and more air conditioners are needed. The first grid can sell/transfer its excess capacity to the other grid. At another time of the day, it would be the reverse, where the first grid would be the one buying power.

Economically, if a certain generating grid creates a lot of excess power and have no place to sell it to, then they'd lose money rapidly. And they cannot shut their generators down because that would be the same thing. Idle resources would mean lost money again. A generating grid will therefore not make power generating systems and generate excess power. This is a business no-no. They will only make power if they have customers for that power.

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Great Story

This was a very enjoyable adventure story, truth be told, I spent at least two sleepless nights just to read it all in one sitting. Great story!

I just wanted to add a comment, that the end of this story, reminds me a tiny bit of the end Battle field Erth (a lengthy wordy and odd book written by someone equally strange and I intentionally obfuscated the title to prevent search engines from giving this book more props) that at the end of that book, the protagonist of the book was quickly one of the most famous people of the galaxy, but as the decades and eons passed that the hero's list of feats only grew with retelling, and that the original information was suppressed to allow the legend to grow and twist to fit a more galactic narrative.

It makes me reflect on this story, and to wonder, even though there is video record, that in 800-5000 years time, will the Legend of Mia even grow more?

something like ... "With Colossus in danger the legendary warrior reached forth her right hand and pulled the station out of danger" a huge twist on holding a radio near a support beam and getting speared.
or
"The legendary warrior's strength as a bridge was so strong that she was stave off the madness of the queen"
or
"With a single wave of her hand, she was able to disable the atomic weapons of the enemy"

Will the legend grow as fictional retelling of events happen (i.e. movies / dramas), or will the facts reign supreme. Who is to say...

I haven't read that book, but...

bobbie-c's picture

Actually, I haven't read that book. I do have a copy of it, but I have not read it given the reputation of the author and its reviews. But I wouldn't mind if churchgoers were to buy copies of my book a thousand at a time just to get it up into the bestseller lists. Lol

I also read somewhere that famous authors and people were asked to give the book good reviews. A famous bestselling sci-fi author, after giving that book glowing reviews then went and said he didn't actually read it.

I didn't even see the movie version given how badly it was panned. My then-spouse-to-be did watch it so I asked her if it was worth buying the DVD when I saw it in a Blockbuster sale bin selling at $3.99 (so you know that was a while ago). She didn't reply and just took the case and buried it under the pile of on-sale DVDs.

So you will understand if I felt very sad when you compared my "little" story with that one... :(

Don't let me catch you in a dark alley, or I'll getcha with my glowing laser sword. lol joke! rofl

All kidding aside...

The theme of a legend outpacing reality is a theme that has been explored in many works of fiction. It does intrigue me and it has me thinking of visiting the Shepherd universe again, but maybe 5,000 years after the events of Tiros Prime, and seeing Lady Amelia's legend grow.

I think, given that the events have been heavily documented, her legend might not go as you said. My basis is what happened to our contemporary heroes. President Kennedy, for example - he is widely regarded as a great president (I think he is was a great man, myself) and has many devotees who have elevated him to almost the level of sainthood, but has not actually given him any saint-like powers. What time has done to him was to actually showcase, some might say even exaggerate, his accomplishments. His oratorical skills ("ich bin ein Berliner"), his writing skills ("ask not what your country can do for you..."), his statesmanship (the cuban missile crisis). His family has even elevated his life to a tragic-romantic kind of love story. Yet, at the same time all his very human failings (his womanizing, his drug addiction, his relationship with his father) and tragic and mysterious death has not detracted from his near-Camelot mystique. You can even say it has actually enhanced it (I just think about the thousand-and-one made-for-TV movies about the Kennedys and the Kennedy shootings).

It's my "thesis" that, because Kennedy's term and life has been so well-documented in film and in recordings, it is hard to mystify his life, but the legend has grown in the over fifty years since his assassination despite this. It's my thought that Mia's life will have the same kind of legend - for lack of a better phrase, it'll be a "factual legend." There may even be made-for-TV movies about her, her exploits and her family somewhere down the road, made by BBC Solar and the Royal Elyran Broadcasting System. lol

I'm sorry, but that's the best way I can put my idea into words.

Because of the thorough media coverage, I think the embellishments will not be many (there might not be any, actually) but the hype around the facts might actually be such that no embellishments might be needed to create a "factual equivalent" to a legend. In fact there may even be negative pieces out there where conspiracy theory nuts will talk about the "insidious" campaign of the Earthers to control the Elyran and Detterex empires, or the effort to use the Earth Alliance to undermine the efforts of the Federation (and you can bet it'll be the Dravidians who will be making these conspiracy movies). Some enterprising researchers might even uncover the facts about Mia's ancestry, or make a big deal about her sex change.

There are so many ways this can go, actually.

As to your idea that time will embellish the facts enough that Mia becomes a kind of supernatural saint or something, that could happen, especially with the under-developed planets who do not get much information from the Federation, or perhaps in the isolated Tirosian colony worlds - you might see that kind of thing that you talked about.

Also, there are several nuts out there who would discount documentation, such as those that believe the holocaust didn't happen, or the moon landing was a fake. Etc etc. With such people, who knows what kind of mis-information they'll sow.

So many ways this may go.

Who knows, if ever Shepherd does become a story universe like Bikini Beach or MORFS or Altered Fates or MAU or Spells-R-Us, maybe there will be stories that can cover these kinds of story ideas of ours.

This little chat was fun, actually. Thanks!

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Battlefield Earth?

Probably the best book he ever wrote, but in saying that I found his other books mostly a waste of paper. It is a dry almost painful read for the first 8 or 10 chapters until some action actually begins. The ingenuity of the humans in fighting off what has to be the most incompetent and moronic alien invaders that has ever been written is fun to read.

As for the book being serious science fiction? I found it impossible that a race that incompetent could ever invade and take over the earth even by the means that they used, especially when you considered their weakness to radioactive elements.

We the willing, led by the unsure. Have been doing so much with so little for so long,
We are now qualified to do anything with nothing.

Not intending to read the book

bobbie-c's picture

Didn't read the book, nor watch the movie, like I said in the earlier comment, with no intention to do so in the future. Not that I'm unwilling to try. Guess all of the stories about that book, and how their church fixed it so that their members would buy the book just to inflate the sales numbers and get it on the bestseller lists sorta affected my pov about it.

Maybe we can talk about other works of fiction instead. lol

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Wow, enjoyed this one!

Hypatia Littlewings's picture

Intriguing universe!
Great story, lots of little twists.
Echos of other stuff but different.
Me likes!
>i< ..:::

Me say thank you!

bobbie-c's picture
wink-2.png
            Thanks so much! Appreciate it.

 
 

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Beautiful Story

BarbieLee's picture

I saw the epilogue and knew the story was or should be completed so I began at the first. I fell in love with your characters as you filled out their lives and their profile. Their unselfish acts of bravery beyond what most understand was an eloquent touch. Outnumbered, outgunned but with an intuition to outsmart the enemy, again a plus.
It was a beautiful story and it was well told. The effort you put out to write a long book length story such as this required dedication and love of your characters from the author to full fill their lives instead of leaving them dangling. It showed.

Many thanks for an epic adventure into space and other life forms.
always,
Barb

Oklahoma born and raised cowgirl

Epic!

bobbie-c's picture

Thank you so much Barb. I appreciate the kind words.

Yes, it turned into a very epic effort to finish the story. And by the end, with so many characters and sub-plots, it was starting to get difficult to keep them straight at the end. BTW, I apologise for the grammar errors that crept through, especially at the end. I’ll try and fix them sometime.

Yes, I guess you’re right about my feelings for my characters, but it was more that I thought of these characters as real live people, and I had a picture in my mind as to how they behaved or reacted to the things happening around them.

It’s a good thing you were able to suss out that the “interviews” post wasn’t the ending. The post that was called the “epilogue” was really the ending whereas the “interviews” one was just what’s called a “companion piece.”

I know some people shun stories that are incomplete, and would like to expunge them from the site. I have to admit that I am guilty of this - I have four that are still incomplete - My Danny, Witching Hour, Library and New Beginnings stories are incomplete. I guess readers can just avoid these if they are extremely angered by incomplete works. All I can say is that I hope that they’re more forgiving, and that I will finish them eventually. No need to shun people, you know. lol

For such people, I have conveniently marked my stories that are completed.

Thank you for your review. I appreciate that what you got from the story is what I wanted to showcase. This is a space opera, after all. Space battles, love stories, faraway planets, Brave and noble heroes and despicable bad guys. All that fun stuff. :)

Hope you like my other stuff, too. And don’t worry, the stories I have that are complete, I have them marked properly. Anything for you. lol

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Entertaining

A truly well thought out plot and plausible storyline made for a really good story. I sat up a couple of late nights to finish all the parts but I wasn't disappointed. Thank you for sharing this wonderful tale.

Joanna

gonna fix the grammar

bobbie-c's picture

Thanks so much, Joanna. You're too kind.

And polite, too. lol You didn't even mention the dozens of grammar errors! lol But don't worry, I'll have those fixed eventually. :)

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WOW!!!!

Bobbie....... Don't you EVER dare preface your writing again by saying that "I am not a writer". Sheperd Moon was nothing short of BRILLIANTLY written. Phenomenal job. The story was wonderful, the characters were fleshed out and full, The descriptions of everything was meticulously nuanced. You should be extremely proud of this work. BRAVO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My only complaint was that your story ruined my week as I did not get anything done that I need to as I was transfixed by your story.

That was the plan.

bobbie-c's picture

Ruining your week was the plan, after all. Mweheheheheh....

Thanks so much for your kindness.

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an addendum

Bobbie........ There was one thing that occurred to me. A slight criticism (very slight). As I mentioned, I LOVED this story. The only thing that I might question was why you telegraphed the death of Ren. I was expecting it based on things that you had said earlier and then you titled chapter " The Passing of Ren Tevann-Reshanii -" I think that this was THE major plot twist for the story and by telegraphing it, you diminished its impact. My thought is that perhaps you were so bonded to your characters that you consciously/unconsciously wanted to lessen the blow to the reader. Just a thought.

Well, not really

bobbie-c's picture

Heehee. You're so careful...

Actually, Ren's death has been out of the bag for a long time now, even before parts 4, 5 and the epilogue were out.. It was revealed that Ren died in Interviews #1.

But, yes, I guess the impact was diminished by announcing it in the chapter title. But, ultimately, the readers (at least those who were following the story very closely) already knew he was going to die. They were all just waiting to know the circumstances of how he would die. As well as how the three would get married (they already knew that, too, from Interviews #1). I wasn't really trying to lessen the blow. But, yes, story development-wise, announcing his death though the chapter title could have diminished the impact.

Oh, well...

  bobbysig-pink.png    

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Continued.......

I really believe that this story is good enough to be published as a book. Certainly sold on Amazon ( and I hope that you do it). I guess that the interviews were a way to remind people and excite them about the rest of the book coming out. It did accomplish that at the time but also had the effect to "give away the farm" on another level regarding the major plot pivot that you did with the death of Ren. If you don't use the interviews in the final published book (if it happens) and change the title of the chapter to something like "Death and Madness" (or something like that), I think that it will have a huge impact on the reader. Anyway, just a thought. Far be it for me to tell a brilliant young author how to write their books :) Keep up the great writing. It is honestly a pleasure and a joy to read.

Actually...

bobbie-c's picture

Actually, Adoy, I wrote "Interviews 01" not to fish for more readers, or to get people excited about the next instalments.

I'm sure you read me mentioning my "meltdown." I guess you don't remember anymore, or maybe didn't know about it. Way back, when I wrote Parts 1, 2 and 3 around 2011, I got a lot of comments, which is usually a great thing, but not for my story.

Many of the comments were all about the errors or mistakes I made with regards the tech of the story. No, the comments were actually very nice - polite for the most part, and full of praise, but all of them were about why was Mia called "sir" when she was female and should be called a "maam," or why did she get to call the shots for several ships when she was only a captain. Shouldn't she be a commodore at least, or that it wasn't necessary to put women in command positions in order to get along with the aliens, Or why were fighters not kept streamlined in case they have to fly in atmosphere. Or why weren't nuclear weapons used. Or why didn't the Federation consider making Earth a member when they had all these nifty tech. Or why was the message from Neptune only minutes delayed when it should be hours, or why Mia's transition into a woman wasn't given a bigger part of the story's narrative. Et cetera et cetera.

Let me repeat - the comments were all very nice, but they were all to point out my seeming mistakes.

I felt picked on and had the "breakdown:" I posted some very sharp responses, and it escalated enough that someone asked for his comments to be removed, which, in turn, meant the discussion threads attached to them were also removed. In fact, now, the comments that remains feel downright antiseptic.

I am not complaining - whether or not I think I was entitled to respond that way, I think my very acerbic comments merited the redactions. But nevertheless, I was still felt down.

So, as a compromise, I posted the "Interviews 01" story. The point of "Interviews 01" was to "correct" the thousand-and-one problems that the commenters said the story had, not to get people to read the story nor to excite them about new instalments. In fact, I felt so bad that I wasn't actually meaning to continue the story anymore. You will note that Parts 1, 2 and 3 were written 2011.

I only wrote parts 4, 5 and the Epilogue when I was feeling better about it. I did learn my lesson. I promised not to explode anymore. And I made sure that my tech is backstopped this time. Anyway, so far so good. lol

So, I wasn't really "giving the farm away." It was just "filling in the blanks" and "crossing the Ts and dotting the Is."

I suggest you read this to understand what I'm trying to say: http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/comment/224102#comment-224102

Anyway, I am glad that you liked the story enough to say that it's worthy of being printed. I'll keep that in my back pocket and bring it out next time I see some of the less friendly comments and help keep myself from feeling down. I've been lucky this time, I think - there haven't been any comments like that so far.

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To read my old Working Girl Blogs, click this link -
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Amazing.

UnfortunateReader's picture

I believe that all I could have commented on has been said, and almost everything that needs to be praised has been exalted.
And yes, DON'T EVER SELL YOURSELF SHORT!! EVER!!!!
We need more writers with your skill outside of the 2D world. I, for one(or is that many with my mental situation?), have thoroughly enjoyed this exemplamary piece of writing and would love to see more of your work getting the proper praise it deserves.
While I may not write paragraphs to specially describe how amazing you are, I thank you for this.
Welcome, to a new frontier.
~Unfortunate

A couple of questions

1. Since Earthship II did not have FTL, when did they intercept it?
2. Did Mia save sperm to help her wives out, and did Ren leave some?
Great wrap up, thanks for the great story

To answer your questions:

bobbie-c's picture

Hello, LoneWolf.

Let me answer your questions:

For your question: Since Earthship II did not have FTL, when did they intercept it?

My answer is: I guess I don't understand the question. The didn't intercept Earthship II. Why would they intercept it? I suppose you're asking how Earthship II became part of the Fifth Fleet. Well, though it wasn't explicitly said, when Mia was explaining to her crew about the Fifth Fleet in Part 4, and she said that the newly-formed Fifth Fleet would pick up where Earthship II left off, this statement implied that Earthship II's mission was cancelled - after all, she was outmoded already, especially in the face of Earth's new FTL ships. Other ships could do what she was supposed to do, so she was recalled home. And it was back in Earth System that Earthship II was upgraded to a full-FTL explorer ship (Perhaps in New Copernicus Shipyard - that was the government's main shipyard, after all.). And, as mentioned in Part 6, Earthship II and the three new "clipper-class" ships would be flying to Colossus to join up with the rest of the Fifth Fleet.

Your other question was: Did Mia save sperm to help her wives out, and did Ren leave some?

My answer is: There was no mention of this in any part of the story, so I guess no. I suppose their most immediate plan is to adopt children when the time comes. All I can say is that this particular problem of children and heirs will be tackled by a story later. In any case, the issue of offspring is not germane to the Shepherd Moon story.

By the way, thanks for your grammar corrections via PM. I appreciate your discretion, and for not publicly embarrassing me by pointing out grammar errors, not only here in my Shepherd Moon story, but in my other stories, too. Thanks also for identifying some truncated sentences. I've fixed those hanging sentences already.

  bobbysig-pink.png     
    
To read my old Working Girl Blogs, click this link -
http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/book/19261/working-girl-blogs
To read all of my blogs, click this link -
http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/blog/bobbie-c
To read my stories in BCTS, click this link -
http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/book/14775/roberta-j-cabot
To see my profile and know more about me, click this link -
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Loved it!

Aine Sabine's picture

I really loved this story. But I did notice something and wished I had took a note then. When they were first leaving the Battle of Pluto, or there about, it was pointed out that it would take about two weeks to get to earth. But later on when the Seeker return from the battle of Saturn, it was said it would take two weeks from there. Just wanted to let you know.

Something else, at the end when you are giving the titles of our three main characters, Sahsha isn't given Friend of all Detterex as are Mia and Tasha. Was this a mistake or deliberate. And if so why?

One thing I want to know is if Mia decided to have kids. I mean she is fully functional female now. Also, if either Mia or Sahsha did, did they ever get fully recognized? I mean since things over time change so much, did their offspring get official recognition in the royal line after all?

Next were there any more Human/Elyra pairings?

Did Tasha ever find out that Mia used to be a guy? If so what was her initial reaction?

Last is this line:
She felt like she was the most fulfilled woman in all of Elyra and was the object of envy among its citizens - the only other Elyran who was known to have experienced that dual kind of bonding.

In context of the paragraph it didn't really make since. There was no mention of another triad.

Okay that's it. Loved the story and would love to read more of their adventures.

Wil

Aine

Someone paying attention! Yay!

bobbie-c's picture

It's nice that someone is really checking out the details, but it harkens a lot to the posting of the first two parts when all that were posted were comments about my mistakes - both in grammar and in the technology. It harkens to the days when people delighted in pointing out mistakes of the author - not that I'm saying you did... lol. seems your points were well thought out, so I will take all seven (mweheheh) of your... comments head on. You remind me of this certain someone who likes to post comments that list author "mistakes" like it was a shopping list. (lol)

Anyway. Here we go...

Point One - that may have been a typo - maybe the travel time from Pluto should have read "months" instead of "weeks" - the point is, travel from Pluto to Earth is super-long, but travel from Saturn to Earth is not as long. But I have to check. If it is a typo, my apologies.

Most everyone who publicly commented about grammar errors or typos that have no impact on the "facts" of the story that I have responded to know my stand on this - grammar errors should be pointed out in private instead of in public, in order to avoid embarrassing the writer. However, since this particular possible typo affects the "facts" of the story, then I thank you for pointing it out.

Point Two - I do not know why the Detterex Royal Office of Patents did not officially designate Sahsha as "Friend of All Detterex" - the political motivations of the Detterex are unclear but there are no mandatory rules to maintain equivalencies in the royal titles of the three - they are, after all, ceremonial. However, when I was writing it out, I thought, fleetingly, that Sahsha, as a less-politically influential person of the three - she was "just the spouse," after all, with almost no governmental powers except, perhaps, to influence in her capacity as the spouse, as the US First Lady might - she might receive less titles than the other two. However, most likely, there was probably an issue of timing, just like there always is in real life.

Point Three - As to the Royal Lineage, since, technically, they cannot have children from being fertilized by any of the other two, then they will not have natural children.

To quote a passage from Part 5: "As to a dynastic heir, Tasha has the option to find a surrogate father to allow her to bear a child, or to adopt, but whatever she does, it must be with, or within the current royal clan, and the child must be an Elyran native. As for any children that Mia or Sahsha may bear – they shall not have any royal powers, nor will they be able to inherit any kind of title. But while they were alive, they will have all the privileges of royalty but without the power."

Cross-fertilization between Humans and Elyranoids (Elyrans and Detterex) was not established in the story, but assuming it is not possible, then all the children that Sahsha and Mia can bear will be pure humans, and therefore not eligible to be heirs. As for any Elyranoid that Tasha will bear, that will qualify as someone who will be an heir. Furthermore, if they adopt, so long as the child is from an Elyran royal family, he/she will also be an heir.

Point Four - No, there were no other Human-Elyran pairings yet - though there is an undeniable attraction between both species, the first to actually "pair" and to make love were Mia/Tasha/Sahsha. However, because of this undeniable attraction, it is an inevitability that Humans, Elyrans and Detterex will be knocking boots in the future.

Point Five - Yes, Tasha did find out Mia was a man before, and she did not care. After all, homosexual love among Elyranoids, though less common than heterosexual love, is commonplace, and there is no stigma attached to it, largely because the Messiah openly acknowledged having a triad relationship with a male and a female.

Point Six - Millenia ago, the Messiah was in a triad marriage with a male and a female (which was covered in the story). Backtrack a bit from where you left off, read the text in continuity and you will pick up the connection to the "other." Compositionally, it makes sense.

In Elyranoid societies, triad marriages were modelled after the Messiah's marriage. However, previous triad marriages did not include a bridge relationship among the three, where one of the three is the focus of all the bridges - all except the Messiah and Tasha.

Point Seven - Yep, I intend to write new Shepherd Moon stories. Don't know when that would be, though. :(

Oh, btw, there are two "companion stories" - you might want to check them out:

https://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/fiction/31386/stories-from-sh...
https://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/fiction/62686/stories-from-sh...

Thanks so much for your kind words, Wil, and I truly appreciate you being very attentive to the story details. It is very greatly appreciated, and I am very happy you liked my story. :)

And Happy New Year!

  

:-)

Aine Sabine's picture

Actually, I am usually less likely to point out errors, unless I really, really like what I read and want to help make it better. I'll try and refrain in the next one. ;-)

Wil

Aine

i apologize if -

bobbie-c's picture

I'm sorry if I gave the impression that I didn't like you bringing up things you wanted clarified. I actually appreciated it very much.

I guess It's just my way that, when I do respond to comments, I like to get it on the record what I think of people who bring up grammar errors for no reason other than to point out the writer's errors, and you were clearly not one of these.

I think bringing up an error just to be able to bring it up is a bit mean-spirited of the reader, and she should not do so publicly, and should do it privately instead. As I said, your comment was clearly not one of these mean-spirited comments: you really were curious, and really wanted to find out some more details about the story, as well as wanted some clarification. And such comments are very much appreciated. I dare say all writers would want such comments instead of the grammar nazis that there used to be a lot of before.

Bobbi / Bobbie

  

No worries!

Aine Sabine's picture

Sorry if I sounded hurt. Not my intention. Actually as far as grammar goes if I put the story on my puter, which I can't right now, I tend to fix as I go. Just for myself. Right now, I don't have the ability to save them. I live in an RV and any wire tends to be fair game for my cats. I used to save all my favorite stories so I could re-read them when I want. At least until they showed up on Amazon, then I'd buy them. But I can't do it right now. Bummer!

Wil

Aine

Doing own fixes

That is what I do. Most authors do not do much with going back and making fixes as it can be a lot of work or it is the creative process and not the mechanics of it that make it enjoyable. I don’t understand the latter viewpoint myself, to be honest, as a finished piece of work should not be a struggle to read. I am not referring to Bobbie’s work as it is for the most part, quite readable, but to the great author of 5 meters of iron alloy, if you know what I mean.

Anyway, I don’t have a good laptop at the moment so I’ve slacked off on that, maybe when I retire, in the mean time I save it on my ipad.

Kim

nice writing,

i am not the typical fan of scifi Stories,

but you did a great Job writing it. each one who thinks he / she is better or can remark error's on others should post his / her own Story.

Hella

Wowza. That was a long story. And it was really freaking cool. I haven’t read a straight ahead sci fi space opera like this in a while, but you did it nicely!

Excellent

I’m glad a sequel showed up to this. I would have liked to see the wedding described and you didn’t cover children why not. Also I though Mia saved Tash and pulled her back from madness.

hugs :)
Michelle SidheElf Amaianna

Wravidians dumb as ever

Jamie Lee's picture

It had to surprise everyone when Trios and Detterex sued to join the Federation, given all they attempted against the Federation. But what, or who, kept them from suing in the first place, and trying to attack the Federation?

The Earthers never dreamed things would turn out as they did, or the position Mia now found herself. They were just trying to do what was right to help others, and became something more.

And the Dravidians felt left out again, but that was their own doing. While the Earthers put their gains back into the Federation, the Dravidians were only thinking about themselves, still. And their little attempt to block routes was foiled, still, again.

This is beyond a doubt one of the best sci-fi stories I've read in some time. It possessed everything that makes for good sci-fi. Most of all it was well written, easy to follow, and most importantly, fun to read.

This is a humdinger of a story!

Others have feelings too.