Schlock Mercenary VIII: insAIne in the mAInfrAIme

[diremage]

The message's exact wording is unknown to the Toughs, but they're able to infer the nature of the message because they were expecting a message of that nature to show up.

In related news, the identical phrasing between the Quisling and the DME makes me wonder if the Quislings are baryonic shells piloted by nonbaryonic awarenesses? Or perhaps the Quislings are all clones of that one DME.

That suggests that the Resident Mad Scientist might be able to create non-baryonic shells for the Toughs.

We might see a planet-devouring Schlock after all.

[Willie the Duck]

In related news, the identical phrasing between the Quisling and the DME makes me wonder if the Quislings are baryonic shells piloted by nonbaryonic awarenesses? Or perhaps the Quislings are all clones of that one DME.

Could be. Or as pawns of the DMEs, they simply copy the DME's propaganda and call the Milkywayian threat 'Scary-Barry's' even though they themselves are also Barionic.

[geoduck]

Could be. Or as pawns of the DMEs, they simply copy the DME's propaganda and call the Milkywayian threat 'Scary-Barry's' even though they themselves are also Barionic.

That'd be my guess.

[JavaScribe]

Could be. Or as pawns of the DMEs, they simply copy the DME's propaganda and call the Milkywayian threat 'Scary-Barry's' even though they themselves are also Barionic.

They are even lower than pawns. They appear to be artificial lifeforms programmed by the Pa'anuri.

[Gnoman]

Am I the only one that finds this very reminiscent of this old Schlocktoberfest arc?

[Thomas Cardew]

Eh. I'll just say I'm going to be very dissatisfied if the resolution to this grand multiyear arc is that 'the non baryonic life is just like us/ as scared of us as we are of it, and there's no reason for us to be fighting'. I trust Howard to have a better plan than that but I'm getting those sorts of vibes. And I've not really appreciated lots of the arcs lately, since basically can full of sky where everything got wrapped up off screen.

[geoduck]

Eh. I'll just say I'm going to be very dissatisfied if the resolution to this grand multiyear arc is that 'the non baryonic life is just like us/ as scared of us as we are of it, and there's no reason for us to be fighting'. I trust Howard to have a better plan than that but I'm getting those sorts of vibes. And I've not really appreciated lots of the arcs lately, since basically can full of sky where everything got wrapped up off screen.

I'd say just because this one particular critter is acting like this doesn't mean they all will.

[Lvl 2 Expert]

So this ís going to be a deep "know thy enemy" arc.

That, or we'll get 40 pages of Schlock shooting his way halfway across Andromeda intercut with panels of the froggosaurs describing how bad and bloodthirsty any rogue dark matter beasties would be.

But probably a know thy enemy arc.

We may need to bring in some gatekeepers for a group hug.

[tonberrian]

So if this plot is still going by the end of the thread, I suggest the title "The Search For Schlock".

[Rockphed]

So if this plot is still going by the end of the thread, I suggest the title "The Search For Schlock".

I was going to say we already saw a "search for Schlock" segment, but it got cut at the end of the first time the Toughs knew they met a gatekeeper.

[factotum]

I was going to say we already saw a "search for Schlock" segment, but it got cut at the end of the first time the Toughs knew they met a gatekeeper.

This isn't really a search situation anyway--they apparently already know where Schlock is, it's a matter of whether they can do anything about it.

[halfeye]

This isn't really a search situation anyway--they apparently already know where Schlock is, it's a matter of whether they can do anything about it.

Well maybe, but the analogies with "Search for Spock" makes it a funny title anyway.

[Wayson]

What's bothering me here is the chicken and egg problem of the Quislings. Where did they come from? They're clearly an artificial mass-produced species, so someone had to first capture and suborn the fabber on the outpost. If it was more Quislings, where did THOSE come from? Etc.

[Lvl 2 Expert]

What's bothering me here is the chicken and egg problem of the Quislings. Where did they come from? They're clearly an artificial mass-produced species, so someone had to first capture and suborn the fabber on the outpost. If it was more Quislings, where did THOSE come from? Etc.

Given that we now know Pa'anuri were themselves (most likely semi-accidentally) created by baryonic lifeforms, I don't really have a problem with them figuring out the reverse, somewhere in the past few million years. Maybe they programmed a fabber by gravitational influence on the letters of a keyboard?

[factotum]

It's possible these were originally non-created lifeforms who got corrupted by the Pa'anuri into what we see--they don't need to have created them from scratch.

[Gez]

https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2019-11-03
They're called "dronuri" which is an obvious portmanteau of "pa'anuri" and "drone".

They're also cyborgs. They're literally created by the fabber as this mix of organic and electronic. It's possible they used an existing animal from one of the planets of Andromeda as a basis, but it should be clear that this is pretty much irrelevant to the dronuri as they are; they're artificial beings that are probably not entirely sapient.

[Windscion]

Given that we now know Pa'anuri were themselves (most likely semi-accidentally) created by baryonic lifeforms, I don't really have a problem with them figuring out the reverse, somewhere in the past few million years. Maybe they programmed a fabber by gravitational influence on the letters of a keyboard?

Um. There is a much simpler explanation. Consider this scenario:

The Pa'anuri have always have baryonic allies, ever since someone (some baryonic someone) realized that they had become sapient. They would have sought to end their slavery. The question is, what if any ethical standards do DMEs have? Maybe they're on this kill spree because earlier scary-barys broke a treaty or treaties with them. Or, maybe, the madness is being caused by those baryonic allies, who have told the Pa'anuri they will never be free while all other baryonic life exists. Extremists do tend to extremes, after all.

[Radar]

Um. There is a much simpler explanation. Consider this scenario:

The Pa'anuri have always have baryonic allies, ever since someone (some baryonic someone) realized that they had become sapient. They would have sought to end their slavery. The question is, what if any ethical standards do DMEs have? Maybe they're on this kill spree because earlier scary-barys broke a treaty or treaties with them. Or, maybe, the madness is being caused by those baryonic allies, who have told the Pa'anuri they will never be free while all other baryonic life exists. Extremists do tend to extremes, after all.

If only there was someone to talk some sense to all of them, no?

[Max_Killjoy]

I wonder what all Cindy DID manage to copy across.

We'll see what "Cindy Prime" thought was important enough to send over.


(Also, less than two hours left on the Big Dumb Objects kickstarter.)

[Rockphed]

Is Kathryn threatening to scowl degrees off, or is it someone else? Either way, that is a skill that would come in handy.

[diremage]

Is Kathryn threatening to scowl degrees off, or is it someone else? Either way, that is a skill that would come in handy.

It's the cookie lady who got promoted to intelligence officer, whose name apparently hasn't been used in the last 3 months. https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2019-08-17

[factotum]

It's the cookie lady who got promoted to intelligence officer, whose name apparently hasn't been used in the last 3 months. https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2019-08-17

Are you sure? It seems very out of character for her to be so...well, forthright, she's been portrayed as generally quite timid.

[Lizard Lord]

Are you sure? It seems very out of character for her to be so...well, forthright, she's been portrayed as generally quite timid.

It is definitely her silhouette.

With that said it probably helps that she is talking to someone that is not only beneath her in the organizational ladder but also already tried to scam the lyceum by attempting to trick them into ordering a ridiculous amount of map pins from his relative.

[HandofShadows]

Are you sure? It seems very out of character for her to be so...well, forthright, she's been portrayed as generally quite timid.

She's been getting more assertive lately and this researcher has been getting on her nerves. (He's the one that wanted tons (literally) of push pins to waste time with.)

[Max_Killjoy]

Liz.

She met the Toughs when they were doing "mall security".

[Rockphed]

Liz.

She met the Toughs when they were doing "mall security".

Specifically, she is the one who sold Nick a saladupa. Later Nick quit because he didn't want to find out his memories of her were based on lies. Then he didn't get off the bus, so she didn't either. Then she fixed the Ambassador's cooking and got her pay doubled. At some point she even beat Tagon with a coin check and made him do his job. Aside from her initial intro as a fast food worker, she has always been shown to be intelligent, if not always quick on the uptake. Strike that, she has always been intelligent and not quick on the uptake. The Commodore's training seems to have made her more assertive.

[Max_Killjoy]

Specifically, she is the one who sold Nick a saladupa. Later Nick quit because he didn't want to find out his memories of her were based on lies. Then he didn't get off the bus, so she didn't either. Then she fixed the Ambassador's cooking and got her pay doubled. At some point she even beat Tagon with a coin check and made him do his job. Aside from her initial intro as a fast food worker, she has always been shown to be intelligent, if not always quick on the uptake. Strike that, she has always been intelligent and not quick on the uptake. The Commodore's training seems to have made her more assertive.

As I recall, they transferred her to the "intel" department because her education and interests filled in a big hole in their expertise (history, culture, etc).

[diremage]

Specifically, she is the one who sold Nick a saladupa. Later Nick quit because he didn't want to find out his memories of her were based on lies. Then he didn't get off the bus, so she didn't either. Then she fixed the Ambassador's cooking and got her pay doubled. At some point she even beat Tagon with a coin check and made him do his job. Aside from her initial intro as a fast food worker, she has always been shown to be intelligent, if not always quick on the uptake. Strike that, she has always been intelligent and not quick on the uptake. The Commodore's training seems to have made her more assertive.

She got her pay raised by an infinite multiplier, because prior to getting her pay doubled she wasn't actually getting paid. She was being helpful in the kitchens so she wouldn't look like a camp follower.

That said, ever since her salad almost killed her boyfriend she has never failed to be on point with a tray of cookies whenever cookies were called for.

Killing someone with a salad violates the Geneva conventions, but they have to actually die from eating it right? They can't eat it and then die? No wonder she fled the system.

[Windscion]

Killing someone with a salad violates the Geneva conventions, but they have to actually die from eating it right? They can't eat it and then die? No wonder she fled the system.

First, I believe it was her soup that almost killed Kathryn (who she thought was Nick's girlfriend).
Second, it did so by being slippery, not toxic.
So she's in the clear there.

[Mechalich]

Specifically, she is the one who sold Nick a saladupa. Later Nick quit because he didn't want to find out his memories of her were based on lies. Then he didn't get off the bus, so she didn't either. Then she fixed the Ambassador's cooking and got her pay doubled. At some point she even beat Tagon with a coin check and made him do his job. Aside from her initial intro as a fast food worker, she has always been shown to be intelligent, if not always quick on the uptake. Strike that, she has always been intelligent and not quick on the uptake. The Commodore's training seems to have made her more assertive.

Earning Professor Uptrobar's respect also probably helped with her assertiveness specifically with regard to other academics, since it helped her recognize her authority in her new sphere as the military administrator of an otherwise largely civilian project team. If the Tough's cultural deep history 'save the galaxy' project were likened to the Manhattan Project, Karl Tagon would be Colonel Leslie Groves and Liz would be his most important staff officer.