The Saga of Emiko Station - Complete

[Geschosskopf]

14 minutes ago, Just Jim said:

I really like the idea that despite what they really are, they don't appear like a mechanical device at all... 

... and neither do my Magic Boulders... 

And here I was thinking they were alive....

[Just Jim]

14 minutes ago, Geschosskopf said:

And here I was thinking they were alive....

Ahhh...  if I remember right, the Guardian of Forever almost qualified as a life form... sort of...  

[SpaceplaneAddict]

6 hours ago, Just Jim said:

 

 

Autocorrect haha. I meant magic with a capital M

[Mad Rocket Scientist]

5 hours ago, Just Jim said:

OK, in the case of the Magic Boulders and floating rocks, I will share this tidbit.

There are two items in Star Trek TOS lore that inspired me as to how and why I would use the Magic Boulders and floating rocks:
The Guardian of Forever and the Doomsday Machine.

[...]

How could I have missed the inspiration!  

[Crystal_Mace]

On 7/1/2016 at 5:34 PM, Just Jim said:

hehehe

OK, wait until tomorrow, then y'all can decide what kind of roll it is... 

It's a Cinnamon Roll!                                                                                   

Edited July 8, 2016 by Crystal_Mace
lost the image. Reinserted it.

[Crystal_Mace]

On 7/4/2016 at 4:17 AM, Just Jim said:

hehe, yeah.  And I have most everything ready for the next one.  But I'm thinking it needs a little more.... I just can't decide what yet.

 

Boosters..? 

[Crystal_Mace]

If the coming chapter is a bit short no worries....this one was an excellent length!

Thompberry is in good company....the Bad guy who becomes so popular with the readers (or the writers)  he becomes a Good guy.  At least until his past catches up with him.  Azrael, who took over for Batman for a while.  Barnabas Collins, the Dark Shadows evil vampire, until the writers caught on to how romantic vampires are (long before 'Twilight'),  General Hospital's Luke...I never watched but I hear he was pretty vile at first.  Hmm...2/3 of my examples are from Soap operas...they seem to like that ploy..   Well...I do too really.

Portals are NOT just a Deus ex Machina to get characters out of an impossible situation....they are a way of letting the reader know "Sit back and keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle folks.....this ride just got a WHOLE LOT BIGGER."

 

 

[0111narwhalz]

7 hours ago, Crystal_Mace said:

Portals are NOT just a Deus ex Machina to get characters out of an impossible situation....

Portals get a lot more fun when they're sentient, uncommunicative, and allied to unknown factions. Particularly if the sentient portal can portal itself.

Speaking of which, harken back to when the KSC got destroyed in a dream. Perhaps that wasn't Emiko Station after all, and a vision of a rather more distant future.
Perhaps the asteroid actually had veins of luminescent ruby...?

[Just Jim]

25 minutes ago, 0111narwhalz said:

Portals get a lot more fun when they're sentient, uncommunicative, and allied to unknown factions. Particularly if the sentient portal can portal itself.

Speaking of which, harken back to when the KSC got destroyed in a dream. Perhaps that wasn't Emiko Station after all, and a vision of a rather more distant future.
Perhaps the asteroid actually had veins of luminescent ruby...?

Well, it is said in many great works that dreams and visions are often interpreted incorrectly... 

[Geschosskopf]

3 hours ago, Just Jim said:

Well, it is said in many great works that dreams and visions are often interpreted incorrectly...

Or that they show one of many possible futures....

For example, "No, I will diminish, and go into the West, and remain Giladriel"

Edited July 9, 2016 by Geschosskopf

[Just Jim]

7 hours ago, Geschosskopf said:

Or that they show one of many possible futures....

For example, "No, I will diminish, and go into the West, and remain Giladriel"

“Before I draw nearer to that stone to which you point,” said Scrooge, “answer me one question. Are these the shadows of the things that Will be, or are they shadows of things that May be, only?”

Edited July 9, 2016 by Just Jim

[Just Jim]

Chapter 57
Halo Jumping

 

The morning after the Kerb and Munquakes, and the VAB inferno, Gene Kerman, accompanied by dr. von Kerman, took an older Chariot from the spaceplane hanger and inspected the wreckage.

The damage was extensive, and in all likelihood the building would have to be rebuilt from the ground up. But after the tracking station disaster of years past, KASA had instituted a massive and sweeping fire safety and prevention program, and last night that program paid off in full. Yes, the building was gone, but not one of his people was lost. There were injuries, and he was saddened by this, but several of the more serious burn victims were those that held back the fire so their comrades could make it to safety. 

Gene wondered to himself if he could ever repay such bravery properly.

"Well," Gene sighed, trying to keep a positive face for the people around him, "It's a mess, but I suppose it could have been worse."

"Yes, it could have," von Kerman replied, "And I've just gotten the final reports from the Mun and Minmus."

"Minmus?" Gene asked, startled, "There was an event on Minmus as well?"

"Apparently," Werhner answered, "But it was minor, and there was no damage. Munbase Alpha, on the other hand, suffered severe damage, and the crew requires rescue. Luckily, again, there appear to be no causalities, only structural damage. And there's one more thing..."

Gene knew inside he didn't want to hear it, but asked anyway, "Yes?"

"It appears Piper and her crew were near the colony when the quake hit. They'alright, but the Chariot is... well... it flipped."

"Dispatch Raptors immediately," Gene ordered, "To both the Mun and Minmus colonies."

"Both?" von Kerman asked.

"Both," Gene replied, resolute. "There has been much too much weirdness, and until I have some answers, I want everyone either home or at least as far as Emiko Station. So far that seems to be the one place nothing odd is happening."

Not much of a surprise, Thompberry Kerman came over Gene's headset.

"A wise precaution <gurgle> Gene Kerman."

"Thompberry..." Gene whispered, "Is this somehow your doing?"

There was a delay, and Gene wondered of Thompberry was toying with him, but then he remembered the Diamondback was still somewhere between Kerbin and Duna. A few seconds later he got a response.

"No, Gene Kerman <gurgle bubble> I'm just a humble brain in a jar <bubble bubble> Not even I can shake a planet."

"No... no, I don't suppose you can. But you do know something of this, don't you?"

At this point Kerenna interrupted. "Yes, Gene darling, he does. Or he may. I know that sounds flighty, but I haven't heard the whole story yet myself."

"Kerenna?  Are you alright, dear?"

"Yes, so far Thompberry has been true to his word, and I am quite unharmed. But I think you need to hear his story. You and dr. von Kerman both."

Gene thought it over, then decided he could do nothing else but trust Kerenna. "OK, Thompberry, what is this story?"

"In due time <gurgle> Gene Kerman.  But first I must ask a favor."

"I knew it!" Gene exclaimed loudly. "What's the catch?"
"No catch, Gene <bubble> I will share what little I know. But first <gurgle gurgle> did I hear correctly, the nearby Monolith has... grown in size?"

"Yes, Thompberry," von Kerman interupted, "And yes, we are heading out to investigate."

"Ahhhhh <Bubble gurgle> All I ask is keep me informed of what you find. <gurgle boil> And gentleman, proceed with extreme caution.

As the Chariot headed out across the north field and grew closer to the looming monolith, the instruments began to grow erratic, and the driver was forced to stop much further away than previously. But even from this distance, Gene and Werhner could see how much more massive the object had become.

"We are picking up interference from roughly 250 meters, and will likely lost contact soon. Stand by...."

Slowly, Carefully, Gene and Werhner approached the monolith. But the closer they got, the more apparent it's size, and the more Gene couldn't believe his eyes.

"But... it wasn't much taller than me..." he whispered.

"I cannot explain it either, my friend," von Kerman whispered back. "But I am willing to bet a crate of cheese snacks the quake centered on this point."

"No, old friend," Gene laughed nervously, "No, I somehow do not believe I would win that bet."

Once they had returned to mission control, Gene issued orders for the evacuation of the Mun and Minmus, then switched frequencies over to Duna.

"Duna Station, this is mission control, do you read?"

After a long pause for the signal to reach Duna and back, Jeb's voice came over the intercom. "Mission Control, this is Duna..... station.  How can I help you, Sir?"

"Captain Jeb, I assume you've been monitoring the situation?"

"Affermative, sir."

"Good." Then Gene smiled. "Now, what is your ETA home?"

There was a longer pause, then Valentina came over the speakers, sounding somewhat meek, "How did you know, sir?"

Now Gene laughed outright and looked over at von Kerman. "You, sir, owe me a box of cigars!"

Werhner just shook his head.

"Jeb, Val, I know all of you much too well, and I knew almost instinctively you would follow Karenna home as soon as you could."

And he was right. Several days earlier Jeb, Val, Bill and Bob had made the decision to leave Duna and try and overtake Thompberry, and had plotted a somewhat dangerous course to arrive a couple days before the Diamondback. The Duna Raptor was quite efficient, and had more than enough fuel to pull it off, and without thinking twice about it, the crew headed home.

"It's OK, I need you here, ASAP." Gene smiled "I need everyone back here, at least until we get some answers."

And over the next several hours, the crews of both Minmus colony and Munbase Alpha were evacuated, as were their space stations, and the Raptors all pulled back to Emiko Station to await further orders.

During the evacuation Captain Maryin, who had left Minmus station a couple days earlier aboard the Starbird, radioed in and asked if she could assist in any way. 

But Gene assured her the matter was well in hand, and to continue on with her mission to rescue the unknown Zaltonic ship on the edge of Kerbin Space. Secretly Gene suspected who it was she was rescuing, and ordered her to maintain strict radio silence from this point onwards, in the slim and desperate chance he was right.

 

*          *          *

 

But several hours after Minmus was evacuated, a lonely figure slowly fell towards Minmus station.

Slowly, almost gracefully, Carlenna Kerman, or what was left of her, tumbled directly towards the station hatch, robotically grabbed ahold of the ladder, and crawled inside the station.

Once inside she changed from her burned and tattered spacesuit into a fresh one and then sat motionless for several more hours.

Suddenly, without a sound, she got up, strapped on a new jetpack, left the station, and drifted a couple hundred meters away. This time, however, she did not just tumble away, but instead reached around for her jetpack controls, spun herself perfectly retrograde to her orbit, hit the forwards thruster, and essentially killed her orbit.

After many seconds she stopped, let go of the jetpack controls, and let herself begin to gently fall from a height of 55 kilometers to the surface of Minmus!

As she got within a few kilometers of the surface, a shadow and a shape could be seen below her, and her destination became clear.

And with absolute precision, Carlenna reached for her jetpack controls and decelerated to a gentle stop right at the entrance to the abandoned Minmus colony base.

For a few seconds she just stood there motionless, as if the Kerbanity had been stripped from her completely, and all that was left was a lifeless shell. Then with stiff, robotic steps she slowly climbed into up and into the base, and waited....

 

*          *          *

 

Meanwhile, halfway across the solar system, Harfield had just emerged from the green Magic Boulder, only to spot another floating boulder a couple meters from, and what appeared to be a monolith, floating perhaps 20 meters off the ground and no more than a hundred meters away!

A second later Emiko emerged and landed gently behind him with a laugh.

"Emiko SOOOO missed that!"  she squealed when her feet hit the ground.

But when he turned to greet her, Harfield's mouth fell open in amazement at what he beheld.

"Emiko.... " was all he could get out.

All they could do was stand there and stare, until Emiko whispered softly, enigmatically....

"Harfield and Emiko not in Kansas anymore..."

 

The Saga of Emiko Station, and the Tale of Emiko Kerman, is far, far from over.....

Go to Chapter 58
Return to Index

Edited December 7, 2019 by Just Jim

[DualDesertEagle]

5 hours ago, Just Jim said:

not in Kansas anymore

Heard that in Avatar aswell. Is that where u got the idea from or is it more of a common joke?

[0111narwhalz]

1 hour ago, DualDesertEagle said:

Heard that in Avatar aswell. Is that where u got the idea from or is it more of a common joke?

Believe it's originally from The Wizard of Oz, if I'm not mistaken.

[HebaruSan]

10 minutes ago, 0111narwhalz said:

Believe it's originally from The Wizard of Oz, if I'm not mistaken.

Yeah, Dorothy says it to her dog:

 

6 hours ago, Just Jim said:

"Duna Station, this is mission control, do you read?"
Almost instantly Jeb's voice came over the intercom.

In real life, the light speed communication delay between Earth and Mars ranges between 4 and 24 minutes. I know the solar system in KSP is much smaller, but would there still not be at least a few seconds of delay each way? The instantaneous interplanetary communication is slightly jarring.

Sorry to nitpick this fun and very creative story. If it's any incentive, communication delays can be an easy source of tension in science fiction, especially if the speaker isn't sure of the well being of the other side; imagine waiting 24 minutes after speaking to find out if the Mars colony survived some cataclysm!

[SpaceplaneAddict]

NYAAAAAAAAAAA! SO KAWAII! Emiko~Chan too KAWAII!

*Crushing Depression.

Also I feel bad for Carlenna. Can I give her a hug plox?

[TopHeavy11]

If you are not Just Jim, do not attempt to manipulate the Magic Boulder.

[Just Jim]

6 hours ago, HebaruSan said:

In real life, the light speed communication delay between Earth and Mars ranges between 4 and 24 minutes. I know the solar system in KSP is much smaller, but would there still not be at least a few seconds of delay each way? The instantaneous interplanetary communication is slightly jarring.

Sorry to nitpick this fun and very creative story. If it's any incentive, communication delays can be an easy source of tension in science fiction, especially if the speaker isn't sure of the well being of the other side; imagine waiting 24 minutes after speaking to find out if the Mars colony survived some cataclysm!

Ya know, your right...  I did totally miss that fact.  Too focused on keeping all the characters straight and not enough on basic science... opps... lol

I can fix this easy enough.

 

7 hours ago, DualDesertEagle said:

Heard that in Avatar as well. Is that where u got the idea from or is it more of a common joke?

It's originally from the Wizard of Oz.  But the funny part is I've never actually seen Avatar... 

 

5 hours ago, SpaceplaneAddict said:

NYAAAAAAAAAAA! SO KAWAII! Emiko~Chan too KAWAII!

She is, isn't she.... lol  

 

6 hours ago, 0111narwhalz said:

Believe it's originally from The Wizard of Oz, if I'm not mistaken.

For the record, I still watch the Wizard of Oz whenever I can... 

Edited July 10, 2016 by Just Jim

[DualDesertEagle]

6 minutes ago, Just Jim said:

But the funny part is I've never actually seen Avatar...

SHAME ON YOU!

 

Nah, jk, but do watch it, it's great! And I've got a half-way done 1:20 scale RC model of 1 of the helicopters sittin' around here.

[Just Jim]

9 minutes ago, DualDesertEagle said:

SHAME ON YOU!

I'll catch it one of these days now that it's on regular TV   

[Just Jim]

3 hours ago, TopHeavy11 said:

If you are not Just Jim, do not attempt to manipulate the Magic Boulder.

I do have a way to explain all of this...  

Small Hint:

Spoiler

Part of my explanation has been known to give certain starship captains a severe headache... 

 

Edited July 10, 2016 by Just Jim

[Draconiator]

You know, your Zombie Kerbal is severely giving me the creeps.  can it be that Thompberry is controlling her now somehow, and he's going to download his consciousness into her?

 

Oh, and I also want to continue my story but I did not have any readers last time...so it's a gamble.  what should I do?

[Just Jim]

1 hour ago, Draconiator said:

You know, your Zombie Kerbal is severely giving me the creeps.  can it be that Thompberry is controlling her now somehow, and he's going to download his consciousness into her?

Oh, and I also want to continue my story but I did not have any readers last time...so it's a gamble.  what should I do?

Keep writing!  Or start writing a new project.  I've said this numerous times, I didn't write this to attract readers, I did it because I like writing, it's fun. I would imagine it's always a gamble, even with the major authors, whether or not something will get a following.  
Us humans are a funny lot, it's hard to tell what we'll like or not....  Oh hey, that rhymed... lol...
Anyway, I'm also an amateur artist and musician, but I've never had a following like Emiko.  And I don't care.  I play and paint and draw... and write... because it's what I like to do.  Yes, I won't deny I'm tickled pink having such a huge number of people check out my story.  But I do it because it's like something is trapped inside me, and I have to let it out, either as a song, or a painting, or a story, or I'll go bonkers.  I'm always creating stuff.  If people like it, then cool.  But if not, oh well, I'm not going to stop.
Whether you post something here, or keep something like a private journal online or at home, if you like to write, then don't stop. 

 

Edited July 10, 2016 by Just Jim

[Torgo]

11 hours ago, Just Jim said:

But the funny part is I've never actually seen Avatar...

If you have seen Dances with Wolves or Pocahontas, you've seen Avatar minus the multi-million dollar special effect budget. 

Edited July 10, 2016 by Torgo

[Geschosskopf]

On 7/9/2016 at 7:01 PM, Just Jim said:

For a few seconds she just stood there motionless, as if the Kerbanity had been stripped from her completely, and all that was left was a lifeless shell. Then with stiff, robotic steps she slowly climbed into up and into the base, and waited....

Zombies!  Yay

 

On 7/9/2016 at 7:01 PM, Just Jim said:

"Harfield and Emiko not in Kansas anymore..."

Don't stay there too long.  I hear the radiation is pretty fierce

 

4 hours ago, Torgo said:

If you have seen Dances with Wolves or Pocahontas, you've seen Avatar minus the multi-million dollar special effect budget. 

Which just doesn't play well in the context of 1 side having infinitely more tech than the other.  I mean, the space guys could have just nuked the place, not to mention many more sophisticated methods of solving the problem at no risk at all.  Which is why I never bothered to watch "Avatar", either.

But I do watch "Oz" every year.