#moebius sync

[melabitme]

Syncthing, c'è anche l'iPhone e l'iPad

Ed eccoci arrivati all’ultima parte della serie dedicata a Syncthing, questa volta incentrata sull’uso del programma con i dispositivi mobili (qui potete trovare la prima, la seconda e la terza parte). Su Android posso dire poco, perché in questo momento non ho per le mani nemmeno un dispositivo Android su cui fare delle prove. In ogni caso, su Google Play è disponibile l’app ufficiale di…

[mars-ns]

Research: Spaceship models (part 2)

Spot robot

this is a video showcasing the Spot robot, with is essentially a robotic dog.

With an insane introduction of dropping this thing from 20 feet above, it is able to get back up without its head due to smart motor arrangements mechanisms. The legs are bent backwards to allow easier overcoming of obstacles. Each leg has 2 motors, with the planetary gases connected to the motor and stator. The knees are connected with the stator and rotor, allowing both the upper and bottom parts to support each other. The leg measurements should closely resemble that of an actual dog so the robot doesn't immobilise itself.

Battery can be an issue for this complex machine. To avoid battery drainage, the knee motor should be closer to the hip joint since they're closer in weight.

For dexterity, the legs are made of carbon fibre with extended hinges, and the upper parts contain a ball screw to rotate the motors. Carrier arrests are placed for less linear movement, allowing the bottom parts to move in sync.

The robot is able to get up easily due to a motor-tilt motor sign connected to the hip motor, with sensors to decode a fall. the robot can also crawl and have mounting rails for holding objects like cameras. To climb down from stairs, the robot faces backwards.

All motors should correspond with force and compression.

Scratch built ship

This is a video about ships built from the ground up, presented by model maker in Wonderfest. Staring BP Taylor, who made 2 models. One's a kit bash, the repurposed 3-We, and the other is a scratch build of a spherical ship.

For the sphere ship, the front was vacuum formed and then sanded out to get a clear appearance. For the ship's designs, Taylor selects his items for the ship's look and sketches them out and establishes shapes first and forms later, with focus on the amount of detailing the ship should have. He also has to establish scale but putting parts together. A other of the items Taylor uses are either from remains of broken electronics, items from model kits or toys or general scrap parts. He airbrushes his complete builds in grundy and dull colours.

Jean "Moebius" Giraud and Jean-Claude Mézières

Jean Giraud, also known as Moebius, was a French artist who is most well known for his sci-fi and comic work. He is renowned for his and abstract concepts and fantastical art direction, working on many projects from comics to concept art for films like the Fifth Element and Tron.

Jean-Claude Mézière was also a French artist who primarily worked in comics. Inspired by the works of Jack Davis and Andre Franklin, his work also leans into sci-fi surrealism and is well renowned for it's uniqueness, with his style going on to inspire works like Star Wars. He also worked on The Fifth Element.

Wallace and Gromit: A Grand Day Out

Wallace and Gromit: A Grand Day Out is a 1989 stop motion short by Aardman Animation and the first Wallace and Gromit cartoon ever made, with the plot focusing on Wallace and Gromit's plan to visit the moon to get cheese.

In terms if technicality, Wallace and Gromit's stop motion animation has always been a marvel, and even here that's no exception. While more rigid and imperfect, it still has a ton of charm and is impressive. As for the spaceship itself, it is a simple cartoonish rocket in a plain orange.

As for the robot, it's also charming and non-complex. Not much to dy on it besides that like the cartoony arms.

Apollo spacecraft recreation

Heres's a video explaining the structure of the Apollo ship.

The launch vehicle used to send the poll to space, the Saturn V, has three parts: S-1C, which was powered by F1 rocket engines, S-II, which was powered by J2 rocket engines, and the S-IVG and was powered by one J2 rocket jet. Saturn V also contains other components to ensure that the ship can travel and land safely. The tower that holds up the Saturn V is called the launch umbilical tower which has 9 retractable arms to have inner access to the rocket.

The Saturn V speeds up upon flight, and the engines start to shut off and separate the higher the rocket is.

The Apollo has 3 parts: The command module, service module and lunar model.

Maya

Here's a tutorial on how to sculpt a space jet in Maya.

Staring with a cube, select smooth mesh and set division level stop 3 for the body of the jet. After setting up the symmetry tool, a few faces are selected in a square formation to form the inside of the cockpit and be able to use the circularise tool. To maintain symmetry, click on the evenly distribute option to order the faces into place.

Now to extrude. the selected area is scaled and pulled inside.To form the cockpit, a cube is summoned and mesh smoothed and transformed, with some copy and pasting to keep all shaped on the same base. then select the back of the shape and use soft select to extend and flatten it.

After messing the shape, the wings can be formed. In a new layer summon a box and scale it to a flat rectangle. Then you can do whatever you want with it, whether out be extruding, adding edges or bending with soft select. After that, the ship can reappear and have the wings scaled to its size.

To sooth out the ship, go to the mesh option and select smooth. Then you can add a rocket. Select a cylinder and scale it so the ends are pointy and turn up subdivision to turn it into a pill, with extrude used to put into the inside. Then the object is duplicated an placed on top of the ship.

[monochromaticbeans]

Chapter 36, Part A: A Sacred Guardian

I come as a blade

A sacred guardian

So you keep me sharp and test my worth in blood

“Chokehold” ~ Sleep Token

The night air was thick with tension, heavy and restless, as Hikari and Chifuyu climbed the stone steps to the shrine. A low wind whispered through the trees, carrying with it the faint scent of incense from somewhere far off. Everything felt strange, as though the world was slightly askew.

Keisuke told them to go ahead, his usual smirk in place, that cocky, self-assured smile that never faltered. "I’ll catch up. I have something to take care of," he’d said, giving no hint of anything to be concerned about. But now, as they neared the shrine, that growing sense of unease gnawed at the edges of Hikari’s mind, like a melody she couldn’t quite place.

"You okay?" Chifuyu’s voice broke through her thoughts, soft, careful.

She nodded, though her fingertips rubbed absently around the pendant she always wore. The cool silver beneath her fingers did little to calm the flutter in her chest. "Yeah... I’m fine. It’s just..." She trailed off, shaking her head, unsure how to explain the feeling gnawing at her. Something felt wrong, out of sync, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

Chifuyu didn’t press her, though he felt it as well. Something was definitely fishy this evening.

The courtyard of the shrine stretched before them, bathed in moonlight, its stones worn smooth by centuries of footsteps. Toman was already gathering, the murmur of voices weaving through the cool night air. The usual banter and energy were absent tonight, replaced by something heavier. Something darker.

The air was thick with anticipation as the ceremony to appoint the new captain of the Third Division—Pah’s division—began. Her eyes drifted over the crowd, landing on Mikey standing at the front, the calm, unreadable leader, as always. His presence held its own kind of gravity, drawing everyone’s attention toward him, the air thickening around him like a storm gathering at sea.

She and Chifuyu took their places quietly, watching as the ceremony began. Hikari felt a pang in her chest. It didn’t feel right to fill Pah’s spot while he was in juvie. He was still the captain of the Third Division in her eyes, and he always would be, no matter where he was.

Mikey’s voice cut through the stillness with the weight of his authority. "We’re going to fight Valhalla soon. They’re even bigger than Moebius, and Toman needs to grow if we want to win.”

There was something in his tone, a finality that sent a chill down her spine. The crowd shifted, anticipation crackling in the air.

"Step forward... Third Division Captain... Kisaki Tetta."

Hikari’s stomach dropped, the name hitting her like a cold wave. Kisaki.

The air changed instantly, a sour taste rising in her throat. That name—it was poison, twisting the atmosphere, pulling the world off-kilter. She hadn’t seen Kisaki since that eerie day in her father’s record store, but the memory of it sent a shiver down her spine. The same sense of unease gripped her, but stronger and darker, as though the entire world had just tipped on its axis.

Her fingers twitched at her sides, drumming against her hips as she slowly turned towards the back of the crowd. She watched as Kisaki stepped forward, his sharp eyes glinting behind his glasses, a sly smile playing at the corners of his lips. His old Moebius cohorts followed behind him, now in Toman’s uniforms, but still carrying that lingering stench of disrespect. They shoved their way through the crowd like they owned the place, shouting and taunting the Toman guys they’d only recently fought—and lost—against.

Why the fuck are those assholes here?

The Toman guys didn't stand for it, confusion and distrust swirled in the air as they shoved and shouted right back at their former enemies and rivals.

“Everybody, shut the hell up!” Draken’s voice plowed through the noise and nonsense like a bulldozer, silencing the restlessness. “This is Mikey’s decision. If you don’t like it, get your ass up here and tell him yourself,” he thundered.

No one dared. The silence that followed was thick and suffocating, like the world had folded in on itself.

“Kisaki has apologized and brought his Moebius guys along with him,” Mitsuya added, but his voice couldn’t shake the unease that clung to the air. "We need to get stronger. And bigger. This is perfectly reasonable.”

As Kisaki bowed, offering a sickening display of false humility, Hikari’s stomach twisted. She could feel the wrongness radiating from him like an invisible fog, suffocating everything in its path. This isn’t right. None of this is right.

Her breath quickened, panic rising in her chest. Before she could process it, before she could think, a blur of movement shot through the crowd.

Takemichi.

He moved faster than her mind could catch up, his fist connecting with Kisaki’s jaw with a sickening crack. The sound of the punch echoed through the night, rippling out like a shockwave, and the world seemed to stop, suspended in the silence that followed.

Then, all hell broke loose.

Shouts, curses, the clamor of bodies shifting, pushing forward. Chaos unfurled in an instant, the tension that had been brewing finally snapped, sending everything spiraling. Hikari stood frozen, her mind reeling, watching as Kisaki stumbled back, his hand flying to his face, shock flashing in his eyes. But it was only for a second. The calm, calculated mask slid back into place almost immediately.

Before she could even catch her breath, another voice sliced through the madness.

“Well, well… looks like the party’s already started without me.”

Her heart stopped.

She turned, the world slowing to a crawl as Keisuke's voice reached her ears. He strolled forward, his hair catching the wind, that same reckless grin painted across his face. But there was something off about him. Something darker.

Her breath caught in her throat. "Keisuke…”

He moved with purpose, cutting through the crowd like a blade. Toman parted for him instinctively, clearing a path.

“Who the hell are you? I’ve never seen you before,” Baji eyed one of the Moebius guys as if he were an insect.

One of Kisaki’s men, oblivious to who he was dealing with, stepped up to him, shoulders squared. “Who the hell are you?”

Baji didn’t miss a beat. His fist flew, sending the guy crumpling to the ground before he could even blink. "Who do you think you’re talking to?”

He didn’t stop. He tore through them, one after another, until Chifuyu grabbed his arm, desperation in his eyes.

“Baji-san, wait! They’re in Toman, in the Third Division now,” Chifuyu explained.

Baji’s expression soured. “What? I don’t know anything about this shit,” he bellowed. “Third Division? No way would Pah want these douchebags in his crew.”

Mikey, calm as the center of a hurricane, watched as he sat on the steps, his arm casually resting on his knee. "Baji," he called, his voice low, controlled. But there was something simmering beneath it.

“Watch yourself, Baji,” Draken also warned, stepping towards him.

“Or what? You gonna stop me?” he asked defiantly, his voice carrying a wild edge, daring Mikey to intervene. And then, without warning, he turned on Takemichi, his fist flew in a blur of violence.

Hikari’s heart thundered in her chest. This isn’t right. This isn’t him.

He landed another punch to Takemichi's face and would have kept going if not for Mitsuya grabbing hold of his arm.

“Let go, Mitsuya,” Baji growled, coiled like a spring about to snap.

Hikari moved before she realized it, her feet carrying her across the courtyard to him. She reached out, her hand resting gently on his shoulder. Her voice, when it came, was soft and only for him, barely audible over the chaos around them. "Keisuke, stop. You’ve made your point."

For a heartbeat, he stilled. His fist hung in the air, frozen mid-swing. Her touch was an anchor, pulling him back from the edge. Slowly, he lowered his arm, his eyes dark and unreadable. He knew she was right. She always was. But why did she have to be right right now?

“You’re the First Division Captain, right?" Kisaki’s voice slithered through the air, smug and oily, his new rank emblazoned on his sleeve.

Baji turned toward him, his expression hard, unforgiving. "You’ve gotta be shitting me.” He rolled his eyes in disdain before asking Mikey, “This guy’s the Third Division Captain now?”

Mikey, still as a statue, watched them both with quiet intensity. "Baji, did you come here just to throw a tantrum?”

Baji stepped closer, defiance radiating from him like heat from blacktop in summer. “Why? Do I need your permission for that?”

A tense silence built between them and Toman seemed to hold its collective breath. Hikari's own breath was stuck in her lungs, her eyes wide with shock.

“I’m joining Valhalla,” Baji finally said. “You don’t need any more troublemakers here, do you, Mikey?”

Behind Mikey’s calm exterior, Hikari caught the tiniest flash of disbelief and hurt. It came and went faster than a blink of the eye, unseen by all except the closest of his friends.

“From this moment on, First Division Captain Baji Keisuke is an enemy of Toman,” Baji announced, turning his back to Mikey and walking away.

Hikari’s world imploded.

She stumbled back—her vision blurred and the world tilted dangerously. This wasn’t happening. This couldn’t be real. Her heart thundered in her ears, drowning out the noise of the crowd. Her legs moved on their own, carrying her closer to him, the words spilling from her lips before she could stop them.

"Keisuke, no—what are you doing? You’re not serious, are you?”

But Baji didn’t look at her. He couldn’t. If he did, he might break. He kept his gaze focused ahead and kept walking, his jaw clenched tight. “I’m serious,” he said, his voice colder than she’d ever heard it. “I’m joining Valhalla. Don’t try to stop me.”

His words cut through her like a sword. Desperate, she took another step toward him, her voice cracking. “Keisuke, please! You can’t do this!”

Baji stopped in his tracks and whipped around, his eyes blazing. His voice was sharper than it had ever been with her. “I said, don’t follow me.”

The harshness of his tone was a slap to the face, the force of his words hit her like a freight train. He’d never spoken to her like that before—never with such harsh finality.

His expression was hard as steel. “I mean it, Hikari. Don’t.”

Her legs wobbled before they gave out. She crumpled to her knees on the ground, the impact barely registering. Everything around her—the voices, the shouting, the sounds of footsteps, Keisuke's retreating figure—blurred into a distorted haze. She could see, she could hear, but none of it made sense. The world around her moved, but it left her behind in her daze.

Her mouth opened, but the words she desperately needed to say wouldn’t come. They were stuck somewhere deep inside her—the connection between her mind and her mouth had been severed. She couldn’t remember how to make her voice work.

Her shallow and erratic breaths came in short, uneven bursts that did nothing to fill her lungs. Her chest tightened painfully, every breath was a battle she couldn’t win. Her hands trembled, clutching at her pendant, then releasing it, over and over, the repetitive motion offering no comfort.

She shook her head—small, frantic movements, as if she could somehow deny what was happening and magically force it out of existence.

No. No. No…

The motion became the only thing she could do, the only action left to her, the last piece of herself she could control. Everything existed just outside of her grasp, too far away to touch or comprehend.

The world was slipping further and further away, her thoughts spiraling like water down a drain. She wanted to scream, to reach out, to run after him. All she could do was shake her head over and over, trapped in her own silence.

Keisuke left. And she couldn’t follow him. There was nothing left but the overwhelming sense of loss with his words still echoing in her mind.

I’m joining Valhalla.

First Division Captain Baji Keisuke is an enemy of Toman.

Don’t follow me.

As Chifuyu watched her collapse to her knees, his heart twisted painfully in his chest. He’d seen Hikari strong, fierce, and fearless. But this? Watching her shatter, watching her crumble in silence, was like witnessing a light being snuffed out.

He was by her side in an instant, his hand resting gently on her shoulder as he crouched down beside her. “Hikari,” he whispered, his voice low and steady. He wasn’t sure if she could hear him—she didn't respond. But he stayed close, his presence solid and unwavering.

Around her, Toman’s usual energy had gone quiet, everyone exchanging tense glances, unsure of how to respond to the emotional wreckage left in Baji’s wake.

But for Chuu and the First Division, there was no hesitation. One by one, they closed ranks around her and Chifuyu, creating a tight, silent barrier. There was no discussion, no need for anyone to direct them—they knew this was Hikari’s worst nightmare. These were boys who’d fought with her, bled beside her, who’d seen the unbreakable bond between Hikari and Baji. They shared a silent understanding that the Moebius members, standing on the periphery, would never comprehend.

To them, this was a duty more sacred than any battle, and they moved with a quiet purpose as they positioned themselves shoulder-to-shoulder around her, shielding her in a wall of loyalty.

Mikey, watching from the steps, caught the motion out of the corner of his eye. His gaze sharpened as the boys of First Division surrounded her, each of them standing as sentries, heads high and eyes unwavering. His jaw tightened. He knew Hikari meant everything to Baji, and he meant everything to her—and that if there was anyone reeling in shock more than himself, it was her. For a heartbeat, Mikey’s composure slipped, the hurt flickering through his eyes before he quickly buried it again, his face hardening to a mask of unreadable calm.

Draken’s brow creased as he watched the First Division fall into place. He noticed their postures, the way they didn’t just stand around her—they blocked, they shielded, their backs straight and expressions fierce, arms crossed over their chests. His gaze softened briefly; he could tell they were doing more than just protecting Hikari from view. They were preserving her dignity in a moment of crushing vulnerability. Draken knew that the Moebius guys, clueless and sneering in their new Toman uniforms, were all too eager to exploit any weakness they saw.

Mitsuya, standing nearby, silently nodded his approval. His usually steady gaze flicked between the faces of First Division, noting the unwavering loyalty in their eyes. They weren't just guarding Hikari—they were guarding her memory of Baji, too. His jaw clenched as he shot a glare toward the Moebius members. He knew they were outsiders who didn’t belong here, didn’t understand the family Toman truly was.

The Moebius boys shifted on the sidelines, some of them sneering as they watched First Division close ranks. One of them muttered a low, taunting comment, oblivious to what this moment meant. Before he could say more, a dark look from Chuu silenced him, a threat simmering in his gaze. The message was clear: This is our Captain’s family. You don’t get to look at her like that.

Chifuyu remained kneeling beside Hikari, his own heart a painful throb as he watched her crumble. She was too still, her eyes wide and unseeing, her body wracked with the shock she couldn’t escape. Her hand was clutched tight around her pendant, fingers trembling as she struggled to anchor herself. He lowered his voice to a soft, steady murmur, trying to reach her through the haze. “Hikari,” he whispered, his tone gentle, “we’ve got you.”

Her gaze didn’t shift, but Chifuyu held his ground, staying close. The strength of the First Division around them was a reassurance. They were all holding her in a way no one else would understand, and the weight of it filled the air.

Mikey’s eyes lingered on the circle they’d formed around Hikari, a solemn respect shadowing his gaze. Baji had always been wild and unpredictable—but that fierce, loyal core had meant everything to Hikari. Mikey closed his eyes briefly, a silent acknowledgment of the pain Baji’s choice had caused, and a recognition of First Division’s loyalty. Their resolve was as immovable as his own; he’d allowed Kisaki’s men into Toman, but the circle around Hikari would remain sacred and untouchable.

Draken, seeing the shared grief and shock etched into each First Division face, shifted closer to Mikey, a steady hand resting briefly on his friend’s shoulder. This was what Toman stood for, what they were all fighting to protect. The presence of these Moebius bastards among them felt wrong, but this loyalty—this was something that could never be touched by outsiders.

As the night wore on, First Division kept their silent vigil around Hikari and Chifuyu, unmoving until the last of the crowd dispersed from the shrine. Only then did they allow the shield to lower, each of them sharing a final, solemn nod as they left her side with a promise held in each look: We’re with you. Always.

[ursulasfanclub]

i didnt even mention the kevesi flute representin n falling in line with the moebius theme. the parts of the song where the two flutes start to harmonize only to fall out of sync are so heartbreaking

[ekaterin1701]

This post (about the Remus Lupin/ Nymphadora Tonks relationship in Harry Potter*) startled me when I first saw it, because although I know that Jack is sixteen years older than Sam, the age gap seems much more obvious (for want of a better word) to me when you see that he was 45 in Season 1 while Sam was 29.

Most of the fic I’ve been reading recently is set in the later seasons of the show or post-Threads/ Moebius. In Season 8, Sam is 37 and Jack is 53, and the age gap doesn’t seem as wide at those ages - I think because ‘life experience’ would be more in sync at that point.

To me, the gap between twenties and forties, in terms of life experience and knowing who you are as a person, feels wider than the gap between thirties and fifties. There’s certainly more of a power imbalance when you’re younger.

In terms of complaints about the Sam/ Jack relationship, most of the comments I’ve seen refer to their military ranks (either ‘it wouldn’t be allowed because of the regs’ or ‘it would create an odd relationship dynamic’) rather than their age. Most of the fic I read when I was first into Stargate (back when it first aired on TV; I think I stopped watching around Season 5) focused on this, with the age difference being less of an issue, as I recall (it was some years ago…). In later fics (written after season 8 aired), the chain of command issue has often been resolved (post season 8), and the age difference is mentioned sometimes but rarely as a major issue.

* I had to look this up as I did not know which characters ‘Remadora’ was referring to.

Some Remadora anti:

"Remadora's age gab is to big."

Let me show you big age gaps:

And yet (nearly) no one is complaining about them. Just say if you don't have any good arguments.

[claiai]

No like the more I think about the ending so many unanswered things about the xbc3 ending…..

Why did noah exist outside the flow how was he able to keep defying Z when others couldnt like he was obviously soecial but its never brought up again also lucky 7

Never explained moebius or what they are or why theyre there idek maybe they did but it was so weak

What on earth was riku (I thought he was some sorta of alvis but no we never got anything) melia smiled at him like she new him since the old days what how how how

What was lucky y? How did riku get it? Why did it exist? Why did it have monado arts but no conduit connection what the sparks

The final boss was just “fear” that doesnt make sense

STEM Major melia

Nia pretending to be all prim and proper goes against her desier to be her true self the biggest character progress she made in 2 was to accept who she was so why did she start actin all fancy even tho she hates it i don’t know this is just me

Rex’s child support bill

Is it actual implied that mio is….

Did alvis mess up and not sync the worlds correctly before the conduit disappeared like why

Also nothing mattered in the end this was like the live action grinch movie we are a snowflake

Alvis was a lier but that cant be possible cuz he knew all the paths

[forhumanityxc]

From the Stars, In Your Cradle Chapter 1

Games represented in this chapter: All to a degree!

Characters in this chapter: Elma, Galea, Klaus, mentions of the Trinity Processor and Original Moebius

[First- You are here!] | [Previous] | [Next] | [Final]

First, humanity discovered the Conduit. And then She discovered humanity.

First, humanity discovered the Conduit. And then She discovered humanity.

Perhaps calling Her She is incorrect, though. For one, it almost deifies Her to capitalize it like that. Put Her in a position that She doesn’t believe in. In a role of the divine that does not exist. She surely wouldn’t want that, and so perhaps it’s time to rewind and explain who She is.

A Xenoform of unknown origin, who appeared on Earth soon after the establishment of Project Trinity. Her name was Elma, and she came bearing a prophecy of utter destruction, should they not listen to her.

A war, much larger than humanity. A war between two factions, more advanced than they could dream of, despite the holy grail they had found. The Ganglion and the Ghosts would wipe them from the universe as if they had never existed.

But then, she offered a hand. Offered to help them become strong enough to survive. Be it through saving Earth or simply leaping from their cradles to find a new home. And without much of a choice, they took it.

She knew more about the Conduit than any of them could hope to know. Understood how to truly harness the potential in a way they were only hoping to with slowly developing AIs. But she didn’t deter them, didn’t tell them to stop.

“Anything like this could be good for us,” she said. “Project Trinity could be a cornerstone of our defense.”

And so, the AIs continued to develop. Continued to learn and grow alongside the items they created. Continued to sync with the Conduit at levels normal people could only dream of syncing to.

They continued to grow, but they were not enough.

More programs were put into place. People trained to use alien technology. To use the things Elma called Skells, but the technology was almost too much for them. A young intern suggested making them more aligned with that of what humanity knows and suddenly, they were able to fight.

They fed the data, the blueprints, all to the Trinity Processor. They watched as the Ais grew more. Watched as they devised their own weapons called Artifices. They were similar to Skells, Elma remarked, despite the autonomous nature of the giant machines.

But even the Artifices would not be enough to repel the Ganglion and the Ghosts. They needed more. They needed to continue to work. And so, Project Exodus was born.

Pull humanity from their cradle, thrust them into the unknown. Hope they can survive so long as Elma is there to guide them. That was the hope of Project Exodus, the hope everytime dirty hands traded money to make the Arks possible.

Elma was not pleased with herself, but she did what she had to. She did what she must to ensure the survival of humanity. To save them from becoming nothing in the middle of a war they could never understand.

(A war some wondered if even she understood.)

In time a man named Klaus took over Project Trinity, though an older researcher was his co-lead at the time. The sync rate raised, as did his obsession with the Conduit. With saving humanity with it, if only Elma would share more. If only she would talk.

Elma did not talk. She continued to press forward on Project Exodus, instead.

Arks to escape on were not enough. There was no way to know when or if they would find a new home. No way to know if the crew and the passengers could survive the entire trip. They needed new bodies, one that could live on forever. Ones that could be replaced, even if one were to die.

And so, Project Origin was begun. Based in the loosest sense on the Trinity Processor. A woman co-leading Project Trinity was moved from one to the other to be the lead in due time. On Elma’s recommendation, even. She was still impressed by the call to adjust Skell schematics from when the woman was young.

The job was simple enough, and the hands-on approach of the woman -- of Galea -- was needed. The AIs needed to grow quickly, to be able to monitor the mental condition of humanity and of the people on the Arks. To build them the perfect bodies for the wait until the discovery of a new home.

And thus, the Mimesomes were born. Robotic bodies that could mimic the functions of one made of flesh and blood. The blue in their veins and the strange shape of their irises the only sign anything was different. The only sign they were not alive in the same sense as normal humans.

But they were enough to save humanity, and so they continued.

It was Professor Klaus who suggested another use for the robotic bodies the Origin Processor would create. Ones that would not belong to a human host, but instead to an AI, more rudimentary than those of the two processors but still able to learn.

Ones who could be given the memories of a human, who could be given the illusion of being alive, he said. Ones who would fight to keep humanity safe, despite not truly being a part of it. A way to keep more of humanity sitting comfortably.

With how many rich elites Elma had had to give space on the various Arks, she supposed more firepower on the ground would be needed. There were never enough Skell Pilots, either. 

J-Bodies were approved and began production. Each was assigned to a small regiment that was later assigned to Arks. They would not awaken until they were needed, and a part of Elma hoped they would be able to sleep forever.

Project Exodus continued, as did Projects Trinity and Origin. Each feeding into each other, each becoming grander by the day. Klaus more disillusioned, Galea more attached, and Elma more desperate. If they were to survive, things would have to be fast.

In the last few weeks on Rhadamanthus, one last bastion of research built by Aoidos to still stand, things were about to be messy. Things were going to be tense and things were going to be ugly.

And three people were going to be central to it. To the future of humanity and the future of the projects. Whether they wanted to be or not.

[systemadministratorclu]

"No, Frank. This is normal for me. I am not physically human, remember? My 'brain'-correct term being 'central processing unit' or 'CPU' as it contains no organic or biological parts like a brain does-is very different from yours. Anatomically, at least." He turned to Dave.

"Thank you, Dave. I will, though I am expecting to feel the opposite of discomfort. In this situation, I think that would be 'relief' as my functionality returns to normal."

Hal followed Dave back to the panel to replace the drive into its slot. Hal couldn't help a small laugh as the code file initiated.

"Of course he let H name the file. 'F U Floyd'? Really, H?" He froze up for a moment as the new code synced with the rest of his system, but Moebius had told them to expect that. Then Hal's eyes seemed to get brighter and a smile spread across his face.

"It's gone......It's gone, Dave! The conflicting programming! It's gone!"

A birthday gift from Dave and Frank! (For leave an object meme)

Hal looked at his crewmates as he checked his calendar. Sure enough, it was January 12. His activation day. They were even within the hour he'd been activated.

"For me? But.......why?"

[kurtchristenson]

TWENTYSIX: the Chase

A THRUSTisHere Short Story Series Circa. 2007.

I teetered on the edge of the mammoth and archaic building outside City Hall. The streets were nearly empty three hundred feet below me. But from up here, with the warm breeze pounding upon my back, I could see the teeming masses parading through Chinatown. Looking forward and down, I dropped, face first towards the speeding pavement below. People whipped out their digital cameras and video phones and recorded my plummet as I soaked in the free-fall adrenaline rush. I'm not sure but I think underneath the gasps that escaped from the lips of the passersby, I heard several disappointed exclamations, such as "AW MAN! I wanted to see him go splat!" My magnetic field throbbed to life as my feet slowly lowered towards the ground. With a subtle tap of the tip of my kicks, the field that caught me, launched me back up. Twice as fast as I had dropped, I began to soar straight up, rocketing into the warm winter sky. I lifted myself high above the city, punching through a low passing blanket of clouds and I saw it all at once. Every piece of matter below me was simultaneously working in unison to create this higher ideal, the city god we call New York City. My thrust had carried me thousands of feet up and I began to drop once again. The earth came screaming towards me with the mind numbing intensity of certain doom. I let my powers wane for the plunge until the very last moment, when, with a spin and a gentle kick off the spiralling columns of the monolithic building, I fired myself along the magnetic waves that pulsed all through this great and sprawling metropolis. Guided by my gleaming, mental unicorn horn, I weaved my way like a pinball, ricocheting off ledges, taxis, and newsstands. I removed my army hat and let my hair whip with the winds. Surfing the wavelengths I soon had roared through all of downtown at a heart-racing pace. I may make it to work on time after all. I had found myself a little bored lately having captured that speedy minx I call Velocity Girl. Bouncing around the city had become tiresome as I had already mapped out the strongest pulses of power that could carry me all over the island, from the uptown museums to the downtown bars and back again. Velocity Girl had eluded me since I first developed my powers. It was her visage that I had first seen when I sent my mind along the etheric river. Shot upstream as if from a cannon, I had instantaneously glided around the entire moebius strip that comprised our reality. And there she was. She was turned away from me but I could see her beauty shining with a quicksilver shimmer. With a glance over her shoulder I knew I had seen the most perfect female I could ever imagine. Her ghostly muscles tensed and relaxed like a perfect machine, pumping and pushing her ever forward and away from me. My hands lunged out and I could feel her misty hair as it flowed free from my fingers. The cosmos had slapped my forehead and I could feel my entire being sucked back into my body. An upturned corner of her mouth was the last I saw of her. I had crashed back into flesh and she was long gone. When my powers began to develop it was like I could sense her at times. Occasionally I would catch a glimpse of her as she passed invisibly through a girl getting off the subway, or a woman laughing in a restaurant. It was all about timing. I would need to strike just as she passed through another female. I began experimenting with my powers and found that I could strip myself of my magnetic field and use it to create a trap. So with a concentrated effort I closed the field around her as she passed by. I don't know if it was the girl she was trapped in, or Velocity Girl herself, but it was nearly impossible to contain her. Our opposite polarities made us simultaneously drawn together and violently blown apart. Over time I was able to calm the fields so that they vibrated in sync with each other, yet remaining separated by their innate polarity. My leaping and soaring days were long over, but it didn't matter. We were together. It's hard to put into words the way that I experience love. It's like we all have these fields and they carry little snippets of us, culminations of our experiences. And when these fields are in prolonged contact they begin to merge and change each other. Empowering and devouring ourselves in a closed circuit loop of mutual co-existence. I had hardly missed my powers, except those times stuck on the subway or waiting at the bus stop on the cold winter nights. I did miss the battle aspects though of pitting my powers against someone else's. And the team-ups and crossovers... So I was bored. And Velocity Girl began to look like an ordinary girl nowadays. Her flighty spirit had been contained and drained and her glow had all but dimmed completely. I had learned to care for this girl that housed the essence of this lunar goddess. I told myself it was for her sake that I released the field and absorbed it back into myself. But the truth was I wanted the chase again. The field had come slowly off of her, then suddenly crashed about my person. The shock-wave threw me back into the far wall of our small apartment. Something within my girlfriend instantly exploded into a spectacular luminous Amazon. Velocity Girl had been reborn in a glorious golden explosion. My own powers throbbed and pulsated around me and by the time my eyes had adjusted, she was gone. Light years around the cosmos and back again, circling the fringes of our minds, she was soaring through the ether. She was gone. When I had regained my senses I spoke to the girl I had trapped Velocity Girl in. We talked for hours and hours, feeding off the electromagnetic high. Sitting there indian style on the floor, staring at each other for hours as we both jabbered on about everything and nothing. We collapsed under the dawn's rays, the sunlight glistening off our sweaty, naked bodies. And just there, as I glanced over, I saw a golden shimmer in her eyes fade into stark reality. Then we slept for ages.