Post "The Hope Of Winter"

[themomentoftherose]

[1/Network]

Hello White Chalice. I'm very happy to announce several things to you right now, the results of our mission against the mountain base.

First of all, The Stalker Fang is dead, permanently this time. Unfortunately it took her original personality, as Anna Fang, reasserting itself for this to happen. For a little while, she was the kind person the history books tell us she was. She rammed Requiem Vortext into Harrowbarrow, saving us and killing Wolf Kobold.

Second, Harrowbarrow contained the enormous, city-powered beam gun MEDUSA. It has been taken aboard.

Third, it also had plans for quick conversion of a large static city to a mobile one, derived from observation of the Yapan Exodus.

Fourth, both of the above were to be sold to an interested third party who would then have taken one of the world's greatest cities mobile and spread Municipal Darwinism at MEDUSA-point. Fortunately that does not seem like it will happen now.

Fifth, more secret documents were recovered from the base. Apparently they were developing a mag-lev system large enough for cities to use. We will be broadcasting this to any city that will listen. With mag-lev, there will be no need for cities to devour each other for fuel. Municipal Darwinism will soon pass into history.

White Chalice, I want to thank all of you for helping us get this far. General Naga has ordered that everyone who accompanied us is to be awarded the Wind Flower's Petals, Crimson Class, one of our more prestigious medals, and a cabin and forty acres of farmable land within our territory, if you ever decide to retire.

[2]

After sending that message, Oenone sits back in the arboretum, leaning against a tree trunk, her head tilted back. Something wet spills over and traces a line down her cheek, then another. It's tears of relief, for something that she'd been fighting for most of her life. And now it's over. Her brother and Stalker Fang can both rest in peace.

She feels lightheaded, empty, sweet. Where next? There are so many possibilities. The net is wide and infinite.

Comments

[paladin_robot]

Well... its less what you know, and more what you can do. You're a skilled Doctor, right? Heard around you know... um... Brain related technologies?

[Richard hadn't understood all the technical terms, so his mind was flubbing it a bit.]

[themomentoftherose]

She nods and tries to keep it simple. "I specialize in the interface of the nervous system and technology."

[paladin_robot]

So if I were to say that I'm working on a replacement arm, for a certain Mr Joz that we both know...?

[Richard crosses his fingers a bit.]

[themomentoftherose]

Her eyes light up. A project! One that helps someone and has nothing to do with undead abominations! "I'd be delighted to help in any way."

[paladin_robot]

Basically, whilst I'm pretty sure I can build the arm itself based off my knowledge of Knightmare Frames... making sure it'll work with a human body is far from my expertise. So if you could work with me... I'd be totally in your debt!

[The young man extends a slip of paper, with a great big 'IOU' on it.]

Raynor's helped me with so much, so... its more than high time I pay him back!

[themomentoftherose]

"Well, you're in luck. I built Stalker-style legs for General Naga when he was wounded. Building an interface to attach that to Mister Joz's arm can't be any harder than that." She stood and motioned for him to follow. "I'll show you what we're working with."

[paladin_robot]

[Fistpump for success.]

So is this sort of thing your usual work, or just something conveniently put to use?

[Richard's kinda curious as he follows.]

[themomentoftherose]

"Ah, well..." She leads him towards the hangars, where her airship, Shortening Of The Way, is parked. "Do you know what a Stalker is?"

[paladin_robot]

...I'm going to guess that you're not talking about the creeps who follow women like you around?

[...There is a bit of unspoken irony there...]

[themomentoftherose]

She shook her head with a weak smile as she opened the airship's door. Inside was a miniature workshop/MASH unit, with many obscure instruments and machines.

"Stalkers are mechanical soldiers brought to life from...from the recently deceased. Their nervous system is used in lieu of of an AI system, meaning that elite soldiers can serve again. It's...it was often all that could be done against the predator cities."

Two of them are propped against the wall.

[paladin_robot]

I... see. It... is pretty desperate to bring back the dead themselves to keep on fighting...

[And something Richard would rather not see with any of the crew here if they could help it.]

Are they... effectively alive again, or just acting on old instinct?

[themomentoftherose]

"Exactly. Facing the Predator Cities, we were desperate." She's glad he said that, instead of having a freakout.

"The definition of 'life' can get very blurred at the edges. Consider Tardigrades, which enter a state of..." She shakes her head. Her good mood and the technicality of the question had started her science babbling. "But if you mean are any of parts of the brain that make up consciousness alive, for the vast majority of Stalkers, the answer is no. What we're using are deeply ingrained reflexes."

[paladin_robot]

So it really is making the dead fight, instead of giving them rest...

[And given there appears to be some form of life after death, by all he's seen... Gah, too philosophical.]

But the body retains those reflexes without needing to 'think', right? So even if he's lost his arm, Raynor still knows how to use it?

[themomentoftherose]

"Yes. It was a sin we had to commit. But that doesn't lessen its magnitude." Unconsciously, her hand went to the cross around her neck. God could forgive all, she thought, even if one didn't deserve it. "Exactly. It's for that same reason people experience phantom limb pains."