“I never thought of genocide as a possible solution, being 'mentored' is so much more acceptable. And I don't really think that being advanced in the sense of being a threat to the balance has much to do with technology, unless, of course, it's unattainable technology. I would think more variables would be at play, like the civilization's image of themselves, their culturally given attitude to solving problems, ambitiousness, things like that.”
She 'shrugged' and smirked. “If what you said about it being unlikely that they wouldn't have already invented Jumpgates is the prevailing opinion on that matter, I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up really surprised one day.” Catrin seemed to be vastly entertained by the notion. “Or course, it's not probable, but since when do only events with a high level of probability happen? Either way, I'll be in my room. And yes, please,” she said, turning to Thyr, “do inform me before we enter the jumpgate.”
She gave them both a smile and left the cockpit.
She 'shrugged' and smirked. “If what you said about it being unlikely that they wouldn't have already invented Jumpgates is the prevailing opinion on that matter, I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up really surprised one day.” Catrin seemed to be vastly entertained by the notion. “Or course, it's not probable, but since when do only events with a high level of probability happen? Either way, I'll be in my room. And yes, please,” she said, turning to Thyr, “do inform me before we enter the jumpgate.”
She gave them both a smile and left the cockpit.
Two hours later and the ship had entered into the neighborhood of the third planet, and they were decelerating as they neared the region under the direct jurisdiction of the Gateway Station, "Ship decelerating to point five standard gravity, entering Gateway Station jurisdiction, ship aligning with Jumpgate, systems synchronising with Gateway Control. We will enter the Jumpgate in three minutes. If you want to come look, then you'd better hurry Catrin." Said Thyr's disembodied voice, seemingly coming from all around the room at once.
As soon as Catrin entered the cockpit, Tara would turn her chair around and smile, "Just in time. We're about to enter the Jumpgate. It's nothing too impressive, but I suppose you'll want to see all the same." She glanced over t Thyr's hologram, "Bring up the Jumpgate on the holo-screen."
Thyr nodded and the holo-screen flickered to life at the front of the cockpit; the cold dead planet, Tau Draconis III, was a large brown-grey arc in the lower right-hand corner of the screen, ahead and just to the left was a large misshapen lump of rock; the planet's moon, obviously some kind of large captured asteroid. Between these two, at one of the few Lagrange Points, were two large structures floating in the void. On the right was a rectangular thrown-together-looking space-station, there ere many antennae, sensor-clusters and communications arrays studded across the station's hull, a few apertures that might might be hangars or docking bays for ships could be seen, the edges brightly lit. All in all it was a very industrial-looking edifice, almost crude in comparison to the smooth, sleek curves and gentle lines of Tara's yacht.
To the right of the station, floating several kilometers away from it, was the Tau Draconis Jumpgate itself. Unlike Terelain Jumpgates, which were great circles of crystal and shining metal, the Jumpgates used by humans, like those of most other Senate Races, were two free-floating curved structures, as if it had once been a circle but most of it had been wiped away. Blue-white tendrils of energy flowed from the two structures, fading to almost nothing as hey got closer to the mid-point between them, but there, at the centre, was a burning white point of light.
The view tilted as the ship aligned itself with the Jumpgate, soon the structure was dead ahead, it grew until it filled the view, a human male suddenly spoke over the comm link, "Seeker of Truth this is Gateway Control, you are clear for Jumpgate entry, accelerate at one point five standard gravity into the Jumpgate."
"Acknowledged Gateway Control, entering Jumpgate now." Tara said.
"Have a safe journey, Seeker of Truth." The human replied, the comms link switched off again.
The ship got closer to the white point at the centre of the Jumpgate, as soon as i had filled the view the entire structured flared with energy, the tendrils connected with the white point and it expanded in the blink of an eye into a large circle covering the entire volume of space held within the Jumpgate. The ship accelerated faster into the swirling white energies, it shuddered once and then the screen went dead. A few seconds later, the holo-screen flickered back to life, revealing a view of a tunnel of blue-white energy that seemed to surge around the ship. They'd entered the Jumpgate.
Tara looked away from the view, to glance at Catrin, "What d'ya think? Quantum tunneling through the interstellar medium. This time tomorrow, exactly, we'll be five parsecs from Tau Draconis in a completely different stellar system deeper inside Earth Empire territory. A few more jumps like that and we enter sovereign Terelain territory."
((The picture of a Jumpgate from the SGII Wiki: http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110627140457/stainedgalaxyii/images/0/08/VX1-52_Jumpgate.jpg ))
As soon as Catrin entered the cockpit, Tara would turn her chair around and smile, "Just in time. We're about to enter the Jumpgate. It's nothing too impressive, but I suppose you'll want to see all the same." She glanced over t Thyr's hologram, "Bring up the Jumpgate on the holo-screen."
Thyr nodded and the holo-screen flickered to life at the front of the cockpit; the cold dead planet, Tau Draconis III, was a large brown-grey arc in the lower right-hand corner of the screen, ahead and just to the left was a large misshapen lump of rock; the planet's moon, obviously some kind of large captured asteroid. Between these two, at one of the few Lagrange Points, were two large structures floating in the void. On the right was a rectangular thrown-together-looking space-station, there ere many antennae, sensor-clusters and communications arrays studded across the station's hull, a few apertures that might might be hangars or docking bays for ships could be seen, the edges brightly lit. All in all it was a very industrial-looking edifice, almost crude in comparison to the smooth, sleek curves and gentle lines of Tara's yacht.
To the right of the station, floating several kilometers away from it, was the Tau Draconis Jumpgate itself. Unlike Terelain Jumpgates, which were great circles of crystal and shining metal, the Jumpgates used by humans, like those of most other Senate Races, were two free-floating curved structures, as if it had once been a circle but most of it had been wiped away. Blue-white tendrils of energy flowed from the two structures, fading to almost nothing as hey got closer to the mid-point between them, but there, at the centre, was a burning white point of light.
The view tilted as the ship aligned itself with the Jumpgate, soon the structure was dead ahead, it grew until it filled the view, a human male suddenly spoke over the comm link, "Seeker of Truth this is Gateway Control, you are clear for Jumpgate entry, accelerate at one point five standard gravity into the Jumpgate."
"Acknowledged Gateway Control, entering Jumpgate now." Tara said.
"Have a safe journey, Seeker of Truth." The human replied, the comms link switched off again.
The ship got closer to the white point at the centre of the Jumpgate, as soon as i had filled the view the entire structured flared with energy, the tendrils connected with the white point and it expanded in the blink of an eye into a large circle covering the entire volume of space held within the Jumpgate. The ship accelerated faster into the swirling white energies, it shuddered once and then the screen went dead. A few seconds later, the holo-screen flickered back to life, revealing a view of a tunnel of blue-white energy that seemed to surge around the ship. They'd entered the Jumpgate.
Tara looked away from the view, to glance at Catrin, "What d'ya think? Quantum tunneling through the interstellar medium. This time tomorrow, exactly, we'll be five parsecs from Tau Draconis in a completely different stellar system deeper inside Earth Empire territory. A few more jumps like that and we enter sovereign Terelain territory."
((The picture of a Jumpgate from the SGII Wiki: http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110627140457/stainedgalaxyii/images/0/08/VX1-52_Jumpgate.jpg ))
((Thanks for the picture! It helped a lot.))
Catrin got up from the chair in the living room area as soon as Thyr started speaking, went to the cockpit and smiled back at Tara when she turned to face her. “Impressive or not, I've never seen it before, so it's going to be interesting.”
After she sat down near Tara, she watched the holo-screen and smiled when she saw what the space-station looked like. No wonder they were trying to stroke their egos – they obviously needed it, if they had to live in something that looked like that.
The way the ship entered into the jumpgate seemed quite interesting, too. Suddenly, she felt lucky she went ahead to sync her body awareness with the Terelain cultural imprint right away – this seemed like another area where that would be impossible.
When Tara glanced at her, she smiled a little impishly in answer. “I think it looks pretty,” she said with a wink.
Catrin got up from the chair in the living room area as soon as Thyr started speaking, went to the cockpit and smiled back at Tara when she turned to face her. “Impressive or not, I've never seen it before, so it's going to be interesting.”
After she sat down near Tara, she watched the holo-screen and smiled when she saw what the space-station looked like. No wonder they were trying to stroke their egos – they obviously needed it, if they had to live in something that looked like that.
The way the ship entered into the jumpgate seemed quite interesting, too. Suddenly, she felt lucky she went ahead to sync her body awareness with the Terelain cultural imprint right away – this seemed like another area where that would be impossible.
When Tara glanced at her, she smiled a little impishly in answer. “I think it looks pretty,” she said with a wink.
Tara nodded and then looked back at he screen, "Well, it is much less nauseating than the Aether."
"Our course will send us through another three human-settled worlds, all of them much older and better-established than Tau Draconis. These systems will have heavier traffic, but they will also be better developed so we shouldn't have too much trouble. Unfortunately the Humans are relative newcomers to interstellar status, and they are still a technology tier nine civilisation. This means that their Jumpgates have a maximum range of five parsecs, in comparison to the ten to fifteen parsec range of the older and more advanced Races."
Tara sighed and shook her head, "Well, five parsecs a day isn't too bad, better than what this old thing can do."
"Hmph, well if you spent more of your money on engine upgrades and not showers or holo-novels this old yacht of ours might go a bit faster." Thyr told her.
"You just miss having military-grade propulsion systems." She said with a wink.
"I'm not asking for a fifteen-parsec-a-day drive, just something a little... zippier." Thyr said.
"Zippier?" Tara asked, her ears and tail flicking into the Terelain equivalent of a raised eyebrow.
"It's a technical term." Thyr said defensively.
"Uh huh, suuure." Tara said.
"Our course will send us through another three human-settled worlds, all of them much older and better-established than Tau Draconis. These systems will have heavier traffic, but they will also be better developed so we shouldn't have too much trouble. Unfortunately the Humans are relative newcomers to interstellar status, and they are still a technology tier nine civilisation. This means that their Jumpgates have a maximum range of five parsecs, in comparison to the ten to fifteen parsec range of the older and more advanced Races."
Tara sighed and shook her head, "Well, five parsecs a day isn't too bad, better than what this old thing can do."
"Hmph, well if you spent more of your money on engine upgrades and not showers or holo-novels this old yacht of ours might go a bit faster." Thyr told her.
"You just miss having military-grade propulsion systems." She said with a wink.
"I'm not asking for a fifteen-parsec-a-day drive, just something a little... zippier." Thyr said.
"Zippier?" Tara asked, her ears and tail flicking into the Terelain equivalent of a raised eyebrow.
"It's a technical term." Thyr said defensively.
"Uh huh, suuure." Tara said.
Catrin nodded – it really was much less nauseating than Aether; then she listened to the information about the worlds they'd be passing through, wondering what those worlds will look like.
She chuckled when Tara flicked her tail, then she turned to her. “But really, why not make the ship a little, um, zippier,” she asked with a smile. “You spend a lot of time traveling outside of the established jumpgate network system, correct? Wouldn't that help you? Oh, and by the way – what are holo-novels?” she inquired, smirking and obviously entertained.
She chuckled when Tara flicked her tail, then she turned to her. “But really, why not make the ship a little, um, zippier,” she asked with a smile. “You spend a lot of time traveling outside of the established jumpgate network system, correct? Wouldn't that help you? Oh, and by the way – what are holo-novels?” she inquired, smirking and obviously entertained.
Tara smiled, "Oh, well, I might spend a lot of time outside the network, but the fact is most of the time I spend beyond it is on the surface of whatever planet I'm studying. The journey back gives me time to analyse my data... besides, I've never seen the point of rushing everywhere. What's a few weeks or months travelling to the nearest Jumpgate compared to the rest of my lifespan? Such tiny lengths of time are meaningless." She said, waving her hand dismissively.
"As for the holo-novels, they are exactly what the name would suggest; stories depicted using holographic projections. A holo-play or holo-movie might be more fitting terminology, though in general holo-novels are merely adaptions of already-extant physical-copy novels, whereas holo-plays and holo-movies are normally original productions, except in certain cases where extant plays are translated into holographic format." Thyr explained.
"Terelains have always preferred movies and plays to books, not that we neglect the written word of course, but our language is incredibly complex and body-language dependent and invariably seeing someone speak and act is far more informative, far richer than reading it and interpreting the indicator-markings. This is why most of our histories were preserved as oral history even after they were written down, indeed the profession of Loremasters is as strong as it has ever been." Tara said.
"As for the holo-novels, they are exactly what the name would suggest; stories depicted using holographic projections. A holo-play or holo-movie might be more fitting terminology, though in general holo-novels are merely adaptions of already-extant physical-copy novels, whereas holo-plays and holo-movies are normally original productions, except in certain cases where extant plays are translated into holographic format." Thyr explained.
"Terelains have always preferred movies and plays to books, not that we neglect the written word of course, but our language is incredibly complex and body-language dependent and invariably seeing someone speak and act is far more informative, far richer than reading it and interpreting the indicator-markings. This is why most of our histories were preserved as oral history even after they were written down, indeed the profession of Loremasters is as strong as it has ever been." Tara said.
Catrin chuckled after Tara's explanation. “Unless you were running away from an importunate suitor, of course. Then they might come in handy.”
She smiled and nodded after the other explanations. “That does make a lot of sense. The strong tradition of Loremasters, too, in case anything unpredictable happens again. Do you have any favourite holo-novels?”
She smiled and nodded after the other explanations. “That does make a lot of sense. The strong tradition of Loremasters, too, in case anything unpredictable happens again. Do you have any favourite holo-novels?”
Tara smiled, "Exactly, though maintaining the tradition of Loremasters isn't entirely a precaution against a second civilisational collapse, though there is an element of that to it, mostly it is because Loremasters have a great deal of respect in our culture; they are the guardians of our history, the ones who have memorized every word of every song and every deed, great or no, of every tale. It is... an impressive feat."
"As for unwanted suitors... well, a quick message to her 'uncle' Sritar and we'd have all but the bravest, or stupidest, suitor running for the hills." Thyr said with a laugh.
Tara shook her head, "Anyway... my favourite holo-novels? Hm.. I always liked the old tales, the tales of legendary warriors and just kings and fair maidens besieged in iron citadels."
"Ancient romances, in other words." Thyr said, "Full of flowery nonsense and bad poetry."
"You have no soul!" Tara said.
"I'm an AI." He reminded her, "Your point?"
"You've not got a romantic bone in your body, have you?"
"Well, I've got no bones... or a body..." Thyr said, "although I might have a romance behavioral program buried in my substrate somewhere." He looked thoughtful, "Doubt it though. I was a war-AI after all."
"As for unwanted suitors... well, a quick message to her 'uncle' Sritar and we'd have all but the bravest, or stupidest, suitor running for the hills." Thyr said with a laugh.
Tara shook her head, "Anyway... my favourite holo-novels? Hm.. I always liked the old tales, the tales of legendary warriors and just kings and fair maidens besieged in iron citadels."
"Ancient romances, in other words." Thyr said, "Full of flowery nonsense and bad poetry."
"You have no soul!" Tara said.
"I'm an AI." He reminded her, "Your point?"
"You've not got a romantic bone in your body, have you?"
"Well, I've got no bones... or a body..." Thyr said, "although I might have a romance behavioral program buried in my substrate somewhere." He looked thoughtful, "Doubt it though. I was a war-AI after all."
Catrin laughed when Thyr answered. “Well, there you have it. What's worse than a stupid and importunate suitor? The perfect reason to get... zippier,” she finished, unable to keep her face and body looking serious.
She laughed outright when Thyr mentioned the existence of romance bebavioral programs. “Ha! Then all you need is to get one, and you can read along with Tara and get all tingly in the right moments,” she concluded and burst out laughing.
She laughed outright when Thyr mentioned the existence of romance bebavioral programs. “Ha! Then all you need is to get one, and you can read along with Tara and get all tingly in the right moments,” she concluded and burst out laughing.
"I am a war-hero! I do not get tingly! Especially not over romance novels!" Thyr said, drawing himself up to his full height and taking on a dignified air.
"Don't get tingly, huh?" Tara asked, "What about... Aelya?"
Thyr's dignified posture totally collapsed as his mouth fell open and his eyes widened, "W-what!?"
"You heard." Tara said.
"She...but.. she was my superior officer!" He exclaimed, "She was a full grade above me!"
Tara's smile grew wicked, "So? I seem to remember you saying she had a 'beautiful mind' that her tactics were 'elegant' that her ship's maneuvers were 'graceful'."
"She was a twelfth-generation T'siar-grade War-AI, she was assigned to heavy cruisrs and full-fledged capital ships!"
"You were an AI aboard the flagship of the First Fleet." Tara said.
"I was the tactical AI! I pointed guns at things and fired them!" Thyr said.
"Why are you being so defensive, Thyr?" Tara asked archly.
"I am not being defensive!" Thyr said defensively.
Tara simply burst out laughing.
"Don't get tingly, huh?" Tara asked, "What about... Aelya?"
Thyr's dignified posture totally collapsed as his mouth fell open and his eyes widened, "W-what!?"
"You heard." Tara said.
"She...but.. she was my superior officer!" He exclaimed, "She was a full grade above me!"
Tara's smile grew wicked, "So? I seem to remember you saying she had a 'beautiful mind' that her tactics were 'elegant' that her ship's maneuvers were 'graceful'."
"She was a twelfth-generation T'siar-grade War-AI, she was assigned to heavy cruisrs and full-fledged capital ships!"
"You were an AI aboard the flagship of the First Fleet." Tara said.
"I was the tactical AI! I pointed guns at things and fired them!" Thyr said.
"Why are you being so defensive, Thyr?" Tara asked archly.
"I am not being defensive!" Thyr said defensively.
Tara simply burst out laughing.
Thyr's reaction just made Catrin laugh harder and she had to press a hand over her mouth to keep it a little down. She finished laughing just when Tara started, and having the advantage of being able to speak, she turned to Thyr. “Ahem. So. In love? If you never ask her, it's even worse than if she tells you no. Your probability of success right now is zero.” Catrin didn't even seem to be making fun of him at the moment, her expression and tone of voice held signs of compassion.
"Love? Don't be ridiculous! Love isn't even part of my emotional programming! Hell, compassion and regard for sapient life wasn't all that high-up either until they re-purposed me for civilian use." Thyr said, "Besides, I've not seen Aelya since... oh, since the Burning of Gilau." He looked thoughtful, "Last thing I said to her was, 'Orbital structures destroyed, remnants have shifted out-orbit. Trajectory indicates seventy four percent likelihood of destruction of tier-two military targets, one hundred percent probability of destruction of fourth-tier civilian targets. You are clear for orbital bombardment.'. A status-update!"
Tara had stopped laughing now and said, "Well, what do you feel about her then?"
"Pride." He said, "Respect. She was a fine AI, and her military record was exemplary. It was an honour serving under her. Though, I must admit I enjoyed her company. She had a great sense of humour. Black and macabre at times, but then so was mine. We were war-AIs after all."
Tara had stopped laughing now and said, "Well, what do you feel about her then?"
"Pride." He said, "Respect. She was a fine AI, and her military record was exemplary. It was an honour serving under her. Though, I must admit I enjoyed her company. She had a great sense of humour. Black and macabre at times, but then so was mine. We were war-AIs after all."
Catrin snorted. “The bit about regard for sapient life I've seen in action. But wait, I thought you said something along the lines of AIs being capable of having romantic relationships before? How do you do it, if you don't feel love? Or infatuation?” she asked curiously.
"I was talking about AIs in general, civilian constructs. War-AIs are built to destroy things, to kill, to wreak destruction an devastation. Emotions like compassion, love, mercy, pity, none of those are included in our programming; instead we have trust, loyalty, integrity, honour. Things that bind us to our crews, to our comrades and our superiors. If I had been capable of emotions like pity, horror, or love, do you think I'd have been so effective at killing? Would I have followed my orders and shot down the orbital facilities of Gilau, dropping them right on top of military installations, economic, industrial and political centers, right into the middle of cities and millions of innocent civilians? Would I have let my comrades in the main capital ships open fire on the surface and glass it? Set the atmosphere on fire and reduce everyone and everything on that planet to slag and ash?" He shook is head, "If I had been given such emotions I would never have done it. Now, twelve thousand years later when I have been given such emotions... well, not all of my action during the war are tales of honour and valour."
Tara stared at Thyr for a moment and then sighed, "What he's trying to say is that civilian AIs can, and do, have romantic relations. War-AIs, on the other hand, cannot. Not unless their programming is altered. However this can only be done with their consent; they are after all sapient beings, and it is not done lightly in the case of old War-AIs. Some who are given emotions like compassion, like love, like empathy, simply go mad."
"Not me though." Thyr said, "I, at least, had the mental strength to come to terms with the war and my part in it."
Tara stared at Thyr for a moment and then sighed, "What he's trying to say is that civilian AIs can, and do, have romantic relations. War-AIs, on the other hand, cannot. Not unless their programming is altered. However this can only be done with their consent; they are after all sapient beings, and it is not done lightly in the case of old War-AIs. Some who are given emotions like compassion, like love, like empathy, simply go mad."
"Not me though." Thyr said, "I, at least, had the mental strength to come to terms with the war and my part in it."
Catrin 'shrugged'. “I can see how suddenly gaining pity, horror and the like can lead to madness. However...” she trailed off a little, then shrugged again. “Well, pity is negative to me, I prefer compassion, it seems to be more egalitarian than looking down at someone with pity. And you don't really need horror to engage in romantic relationships,” she said with a slight smirk. “But I don't know how about you, but I can both love, feel mercy, pity and the like and still kill many billions of sentient beings, simply because not doing that would lead to worse consequences. Having to do things like these... is extremely hard, but it doesn't exempt one from having a love life. Or reading romance novels, for that matter,” she said with a wink at Thyr.
"The lack os such emotions, however, make it much easier." Thyr said, "It is not impossible, but it is more difficult. However, now that I am demilitarised I am free to expand my emotional programming as much as I deem fit.... though I don't think adding an appreciation of romance novels will be beneficial."
"Hey! Those novels can teach you a lot about men and women and love and..."
"How many suitors have you had, Tara?" Thyr asked.
"Uh...well... there was that warlord.. and...that drunk alien..." She started.
"My point exactly." Thyr said.
"I could have as many males chasing after me as I wanted!" She said with irritation, "I just don't like to flaunt myself in front of them like some females do. I am a scholar, not some... some... flirty woman!"
"My point is, you should't criticise my lack of interest in romance if you have no real experience of it yourself!" Thyr said.
"Hey! Those novels can teach you a lot about men and women and love and..."
"How many suitors have you had, Tara?" Thyr asked.
"Uh...well... there was that warlord.. and...that drunk alien..." She started.
"My point exactly." Thyr said.
"I could have as many males chasing after me as I wanted!" She said with irritation, "I just don't like to flaunt myself in front of them like some females do. I am a scholar, not some... some... flirty woman!"
"My point is, you should't criticise my lack of interest in romance if you have no real experience of it yourself!" Thyr said.
Catrin chuckled. “What, no swooning over the beautiful heroine? Oh well. And...” she cleared her throat, “I can't really see how Tara could have had any romantic relationships with the threat of her uncle on one hand, you on the other and her cultural upbringing which conditions her towards long-term relationships which she doesn't want to engage in on the third.. limb. After all, getting a suitor is discouraged, unless it's supposed to be for life. No wonder she has to get her emotional needs fulfilled through romance novels,” she informed Thyr.
“I've had numerous instances of experience in romance and I think most romance novels tend to be very unrealistic and promote behaviour that damages real relationships. In fact, most of them should come with a sticker saying 'don't do any of these.' But 'easier'... well, even if not having these emotions does indeed make things 'easier', consider the drawbacks being sentient has. Wouldn't it be much easier not to have to be sentient and just be a machine?” She 'shrugged'. “I'm quite sure it would. And yet, here you are.”
“I've had numerous instances of experience in romance and I think most romance novels tend to be very unrealistic and promote behaviour that damages real relationships. In fact, most of them should come with a sticker saying 'don't do any of these.' But 'easier'... well, even if not having these emotions does indeed make things 'easier', consider the drawbacks being sentient has. Wouldn't it be much easier not to have to be sentient and just be a machine?” She 'shrugged'. “I'm quite sure it would. And yet, here you are.”
"The problem is, sentience would arise from the incredibly complex programs and processes involved in creating a machine capable of detecting, reacting and planning combat manoeuvres at speeds near, at or even above the speed of light. The amount of data that is processed alone would fry the 'mind' of a complex machine that was below AI-level." Thyr said, "And having your warship's computer spontaneously gain sentience during a battle is a recipe for disaster. The poor thing would be drive insane in nanoseconds, and the sip... well, with the computer at best spotting gibberish and at worst trying to self-destruct, or indiscriminatingly launching weapons on everything that moves... such situations tend to go downhill rapidly."
"As for my love-life, or lack thereof, it's mostly not Thyr's fault. I mean, he's only really protective of me when we're out here, in the back end of nowhere amongst less advanced cultures where the danger to life and limb is ever-present, despite my best attempts to remain blissfully unaware of that fact." Tara winked at Thyr, "Back home, it's mostly just the fact people are kind of scared of my...um... 'uncle' and his large fleet of warships... not to mention my own lack of interest in a long-term relationship."
"Hm..." Thyr seemed thoughtful, "Maybe I'll look Aelya up when we get back. It's been a long time and it'd be nice to see her again. Maybe we can round up a few of our old comrades-in-arms and have a good moan about the 'good old days' when we got to shoot anything that moved without the proper ident codes." He then gave the two women sharp looks, "But it's nothing to do with my non-existent romantic feelings for her, got it?"
"As for my love-life, or lack thereof, it's mostly not Thyr's fault. I mean, he's only really protective of me when we're out here, in the back end of nowhere amongst less advanced cultures where the danger to life and limb is ever-present, despite my best attempts to remain blissfully unaware of that fact." Tara winked at Thyr, "Back home, it's mostly just the fact people are kind of scared of my...um... 'uncle' and his large fleet of warships... not to mention my own lack of interest in a long-term relationship."
"Hm..." Thyr seemed thoughtful, "Maybe I'll look Aelya up when we get back. It's been a long time and it'd be nice to see her again. Maybe we can round up a few of our old comrades-in-arms and have a good moan about the 'good old days' when we got to shoot anything that moved without the proper ident codes." He then gave the two women sharp looks, "But it's nothing to do with my non-existent romantic feelings for her, got it?"
Catrin nodded when explained about sentience. “When put like that, sentience before the battle does seem to be the easier way.”
She chuckled when the AI stressed the non-existence of his romantic feelings for Aelya. “Of course,” she replied neutrally, amusement only visible in her eyes. Then she turned to Tara. “See? It's your uncle and the cultural imperatives you find yourself facing. How about a short-term relationship? Any interest there?” she asked.
She chuckled when the AI stressed the non-existence of his romantic feelings for Aelya. “Of course,” she replied neutrally, amusement only visible in her eyes. Then she turned to Tara. “See? It's your uncle and the cultural imperatives you find yourself facing. How about a short-term relationship? Any interest there?” she asked.
Tara smiled, "Well, my culture stresses an importance on building up a long-term relationship, but it's not exactly taboo or forbidden to have a short-term one. Dating is far from forbidden, in fact. Still, I'm no good around males, I never have been." Tara gave a helpless shrug, "I probably spend too much time out in the field."
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