totm aug 2016 Kerny Kerman's Journal (mission reports from a Kerbal's point of view) [Chapter 87: "Among the growing shadows."]

[adsii1970]

5 minutes ago, Just Jim said:

Thank you so much!  I'm honored! 

Just one question, is it an animated series??? 

Nope. Much better... claymation!

Actually, have not put that much thought into it...yet!

[Just Jim]

59 minutes ago, adsii1970 said:

Claymation!

Claymation... perfect!

 

 

Edited July 29, 2016 by Just Jim

[Dman979]

@Just Jim

I prefer this:

 

[Just Jim]

1 minute ago, Dman979 said:

@Just Jim

I prefer this:

OK... yes.... I'll admit it, yours is much more Kerbal, so to speak!  I really loved the drawing board! 

[adsii1970]

So... claymation it is! Haha

[Just Jim]

8 minutes ago, adsii1970 said:

So... claymation it is! Haha

After watching Wallace and Gromit, I totally agree!!! 

Edited July 29, 2016 by Just Jim

[Geschosskopf]

On 7/28/2016 at 7:19 PM, adsii1970 said:

Actually, have not put that much thought into it...yet!

Well, you've put enough thought into this so far to get stickied.  Congrats!

[Just Jim]

Hey, great job making TOTM!!!

[Dman979]

Way to go, Adsii1970!

Looking forward to the next installment!

[adsii1970]

Sarnus 42, Y003
"The short ride home...and back the grind of the KSC"

I've been back to the KSC for a little under a day and I miss the excitement and thrill of being on the orbital station. This past mission was the longest I have ever been in space. It is also the longest I've been away from the KSC since I was selected for kerbalnaut training. As we detached and began our journey back to Kerbin, Eribie's excitement about her new assignment was obvious by the way she talked about her most recent set of performance specifications of her newly assigned command. At one point, Bob looked at me, pointed to the lower seat, and said in a soft whisper, "now you see why I told her she had to sit down there..."

 

With the detachment procedures completed, I activated the main engine and nudged forward, towards Kerbin. Bob activated the on-board computer navigation system⁺ to plot our course to the assigned landing area - the Kerbin ocean to the southeast of the KSC. According to the readout, the computer estimated our descent would take a little over fifteen minutes - and it was only a few seconds off! We landed within the target zone, too! All I had to do was to keep the navball aligned to the descent guidance indicators. I actually laughed out loud when Bob said, "the nav computer has all the abilities of Jebediah but without his attitude..." Once we splashed down, the URKAV Menzabac was there within twenty minutes to recover our capsule.

 

After we were lowered onto the deck of the Menzabac, the chatter from the lower seat became even more intense. Eribie began telling us about the vessel's lifting capacities, the number of crew on board, and even the potential use as a research vessel. As the hatch was opened I heard Bob exclaim, "Thank the gods, it's nice to see you..." as Aldas prepared to help us out. I'm not sure, but I think it was because that opened hatch meant that Eribie was now the crew of the Menzabac' s problem. Within two hours, we were back at the KSC and Eribie... well, let's just say she is getting acquainted with her new crew!

Later, as we were ferried from the ship to the space center, Bob would later say, "she's excited about her new assignment; she'll eventually calm down..." Yeah, I'm sure she will but I'd rather her calm down without me being there! Once we were back at the space center, there were the normal debriefings for Bob and myself. Bobak supervised the debriefing since Gene was in the tracking center monitoring the launch of the Duna Eksplorer probe. At the T minus 1 minute hold, we left the conference room and was able to watch the launch from our vantage point. It was pretty impressive feeling the shock wave and then seeing the probe rise into the nighttime sky on a bright pillar of fire.

This morning's briefing was a nice change of pace. Gene gave us an update on the Duna Exsplorer probe. About three hours ago it underwent a scheduled maneuver and is now on its way out of Kerbin's sphere of influence. For the next few months it will be on a trajectory to send it in an elliptical orbit to rendezvous with Duna. We were told that the probe's launch had been delayed for nearly six days over a series of mechanical glitches in the guidance system. Had it launched on schedule, I would have had to have been content with watching a video feed of the launch. At least with the delay I was able to watch the launch personally!

Gene also told us that he has begun making duty assignments for the regular staff of the when we are not involved in assigned missions. For me, it means more time flying in the Knat and simulator work for landing on the Mün. Gene has delayed the announcement of the Minimus missions list until the 13th of Dres, fourteen days from now. For now, there are five more münar missions scheduled over the next two months. Gene has told us that the last two missions of the series will actually start the construction of a permanent Kerbaled settlement. Once constructed, it will house 15 kerbals and will be self-sufficient. Gene said that if the construction projects go well, there will be more settlements built on the Mün, Dres, and similar bodies throughout the solar system. 

In two hours I am to report to the aircraft hangar and will be assigned a permanent plane. Gene informed me that not only will I fly routine flights around the KSC and to other points as determined by the Committee of Kerbin Exploration and Resettlement. Whenever I am not flying those missions, and until my next assigned space mission, I will be working with Jebediah. I'll be assisting with the orientation and training of new pilot recruits - which really isn't that appealing to me. On the bright side, I did find out from Bob that it was not Jebediah that flew through the hangar on the island air station - it was actually an accident and it was done by Valentina! I also learned that she was not flying a Knat but a Kersplat-o-kopter as a part of her advanced pilot training. 

+ Yes, a mod does exist for this. I use both KER and MechJeb2 in my game. I mainly use MechJeb to assist in planning landings, but use the landing guidance mode rather than the auto-land function.

Return to the OP (Index)

Next Chapter

[Kerbinchaser]

Oops! I didn't see this mission report before I began my journal. I hope I didn't accidentally copy anything.  Sorry! 

[adsii1970]

On 8/9/2016 at 8:14 AM, Lo Var Lachland said:

Oops! I didn't see this mission report before I began my journal. I hope I didn't accidentally copy anything.  Sorry! 

Not a problem! I'll consider it a complement since it appears that mission reports from a Kerbal's point of view was virtually unknown territory! Besides, there's always room in the forum for more creativity. The nice thing is that although we are all writing about KSP, the viewpoints we present through our fiction is our own views/experiences.

Edited August 10, 2016 by adsii1970

[Kerbinchaser]

You got it!

 

Edited August 19, 2016 by Lo Var Lachland

[adsii1970]

Dres 7, Y003
"When Jebediah says we're going to have fun...worry!" (Part 1)

 

The last few days have been incredibly exciting and terrifying at times. On the 23rd of Sarnus I flew my assigned Knat for the first time! From what Gene told me, it's only been on the tarmac for three days before it was assigned to me. I think Gene thought I was insane since each time Jebediah told me to go stand at a certain point for a picture, I gladly did! For now, I am permanently assigned to the KSC since I'm in the kerbalnaut program.

Anyhow, that morning's briefing at mission control was incredibly long and somewhat useful. There are times I think that Gene enjoys telling us what we can't do, what we shouldn't do... and at others, he just enjoys hearing himself talk. He also told us of some personnel changes within the URK Defense Forces. Kensie and Kerene had returned to the KSC and were now being reassigned to the Karakol Research Settlement near the Arctic Circle. There were a few other personnel changes, but what got my attention was when Bobak announced that I would be flying them to the outpost. I knew something was up when I heard Jebediah's evil cackle coming from behind.

After that morning's briefing, Jebediah approached me and said that it was time I learned to fly something larger than the Knat... the Stearwing A-300! Sure, I had seen the commercials for that craft on the video feeds, about tourists flying across the globe, and before my acceptance into the kerbalnaut program, had even thought about booking a flight to the settlement in the southern islands. But now, I was going to get a chance to fly that kind of plane. As we left the briefing room, Jebediah said, "We're going to have some fun, you and I..."

I've never flown anything that big; for the first time I had never even been prepared by doing a simulator mission. Jebediah told me, "There are just some things that have to be experienced and not simulated..." I strongly disagree. So, within thirty minutes of our briefing, we were in the air with me at the controls. She didn't have the thrust of a Knat; but surprisingly the Stearwing is quite maneuverable. Once we reached 74 meters a second, Jebediah told me to gently pull up on the controls. I was amazed at how easy the craft became airborne. It took me a few seconds - I know this because Jebediah began counting out loud - to find the gear controls and retract the wheels. But we were now up and heading to our destination near the arctic circle.

Jebediah told me me to take a north-northwest heading and to continue on that course for roughly three hours. Between the simulators and actual flying time, I've become accustomed to the speed of the Knat. In the Searwing, you don't get anywhere real fast. We never even broke Mach .5! The flight went well, with Jebediah explaining the controls of the craft, the basics about large aircraft navigation and control. For nearly an hour he explained that part of my advanced pilot training would include this and even larger aircraft. He also told me that Kersplat Aerospace Industries was already working on a space transportation system that would launch a fixed wing, reusable craft into orbit, perform its missions, then return to the KSC and land like an aircraft! I'm not sure about all the particulars about it, but I definitely would like to try my hand at flying one of them! He's not too sure on when it will begin to enter the testing stage, but he's heard that Gene is looking for volunteers to train as test pilots. I think it could be fun!

 

After nearly three and a half hours of additional flying - and hearing Jebediah snore - we came to the Karakol airspace perimeter. Each settlement has its own air control system to coordinate air traffic within a set radius. "KSC Seven, this is Karakol, take heading 270, fly thirty five km, then begin approach at altitude of 890 meters." It was a little unsettling to have Jebediah come out of his nap in a near panic state. He immediately began asking me how long was he asleep and why didn't I wake him up when we were further out. To be honest, I heard stories from Bob during our last mission together where he made the mistake of waking up Jebediah. No thanks... I think I will pass.

The most nerve wracking point of the entire trip was landing on the designated runway - which happened to be grass! I never expected a grass runway to support the weight of something as large as a Searwing! I made the final banking turn and was beginning my descent when Jebediah said, "now remember, she's not a Knat and when you bank this thing, you cannot do it like THAT!" I'm not so sure which was worse, hearing Jebediah get a little unhinged at my flying or hearing that big monstrosity moan as I leveled out the turn. We landed without issue and soon, Jebediah and I, and our two passengers, Kinsey and Kerene, were walking towards the Karakol settlement.

I almost laughed a little when Kinsey asked, "Jeb, was that you I heard screaming like a stuck kerbite?" I didn't think that Jebediah had been that loud.  I guess he wasn't acting after all.

Jebediah just sort of grunted, kept walking, and pointed towards me and said "Newbie..." I'm still not too sure what he said afterwards. Once we were given a tour of the settlement, Jebediah told Kensy that we would be staying at the settlement until tomorrow night. He and I didn't do too much the rest of the day except I had the much needed opportunity to catch up on The Saga of Emiko Station. I know Jebediah hates the claymation style animation, but dammit, I love the show! I've missed a few episodes but to be honest, I still think they've cast Gene quite well - except I do not think Gene would have been that calm if the tracking center had blown up. After all, we had watched him explode on video feed when the Harvester's crane had failed and a capsule was dropped on deck.

Jebediah did make one comment that still has me laughing - "wait, what do they mean that Gene became moody...? He's ALWAYS like that!" After a few minutes Jebediah added, "you remember when he told you I did more than scratch a Knat? Well, dammit, I clipped a wing on the control tower... and Gene was more worried about it being the third knat I crashed than if I were ok!"

I will proudly say this - I've not crashed a Knat so far. That's one record Jebediah can keep!

Return to the OP (Index)

Next Chapter

[Dman979]

Hmm, looks like that Knat has been sitting there for a little more than three days.

[adsii1970]

47 minutes ago, Dman979 said:

Hmm, looks like that Knat has been sitting there for a little more than three days.

Naw, I just had to lower the resolution and when I did, everything now looks like it has a nice layer of dust. One of the mods I use updated and apparently added a lot more memory strain on an already taxed system.

[Dman979]

1 hour ago, adsii1970 said:

Naw, I just had to lower the resolution and when I did, everything now looks like it has a nice layer of dust. One of the mods I use updated and apparently added a lot more memory strain on an already taxed system.

You're not trying to tell me that engine and cockpit are new, are you?

[adsii1970]

Yup. I am.

I would personally like to thank @NecroBones for his Discontinued Parts mod.

[Just Jim]

5 hours ago, adsii1970 said:

I know Jebediah hates the claymation style animation, but dammit, I love the show! I've missed a few episodes but to be honest, I still think they've cast Gene quite well - except I do not think Gene would have been that calm if the tracking center had blown up.

Love it!!!!  

[AviosAdku]

I just found this and ... impressive.

This I would say is another story for my "follow" list, light but that's a good thing, not everything has to be First Flight or Plan Kappa, not that there isn't any intrigue. I also liked the shout outs to the other works, them being shows in this S.A.V.E. is something I haven't seen yet and it makes perfect sense too in universe.

Also, I couldn't help but notice this, it got a bit of a laugh from me (along with the hilarity implied by the stories told) ...

On ‎29‎/‎01‎/‎2016 at 1:43 AM, adsii1970 said:

"Doctor Haywood, can you tell us anything about the monolith?"

[adsii1970]

4 hours ago, AkuAerospace said:

I just found this and ... impressive.

This I would say is another story for my "follow" list, light but that's a good thing, not everything has to be First Flight or Plan Kappa, not that there isn't any intrigue. I also liked the shout outs to the other works, them being shows in this S.A.V.E. is something I haven't seen yet and it makes perfect sense too in universe.

Also, I couldn't help but notice this, it got a bit of a laugh from me (along with the hilarity implied by the stories told) ...

Thank you... I appreciate your encouragement. I love dropping small breadcrumbs to see who picks them up - and you're one of the few who've picked up on that. For those of you who do not know, Haywood Kerman is named after the fictitious Dr. Haywood Floyd from 2001 and 2010.

By vocation, I am a historian so it is hard at times not to get too bogged down in explaining back stories. @Just Jim has been a big help to me as well as @ZooNamedGames. This was my way of not only thanking them but to bring their stories into my story-universe. There's been a few more that have either (unknowingly) contributed through my use of their mods - and in the case of the Depreciated Mod Pack mentioned in an above post, I wanted to thank the mod's manager for maintaining the parts that create the craft I like. Unfortunately, I have an older and slower laptop (until February), and after that, I will be able to expand my mod usage as there are a few more I would like to add that would help my story flow in the direction I would like it to go.

Again, thanks for the encouragement...

[Dman979]

13 hours ago, AkuAerospace said:

This I would say is another story for my "follow" list, light but that's a good thing, not everything has to be First Flight or Plan Kappa, not that there isn't any intrigue.

Sometimes, you don't need any intrigue to make a good story. This reminds me of DOB!, when @Kuzzter had no Kerbulans to contend with: just the crew, the ship, the mission, and his piloting skills. (And a few bugs like missing lift, but we don't talk about those.)

 

[adsii1970]

Dres 9, Y003
"And then things got real serious..."

I still do not know where the last two days have gone. Last night, as Jebediah had told Kinsey we would depart after sundown. I took the camera and tried to take a picture of the Karakol settlement as we prepared for takeoff, but couldn't get a good picture because Jebediah was in the way. Anyhow, knowing we were on a tight schedule, Jebediah began our pre-flight check while I contacted the settlement's air traffic control coordinator. Once clearance was give, I throttled up the engines, released the brakes, and off we went, gaining speed on the grass runway. Just as before, at 74 meters per second, I pulled back on the yoke and the Searwing lifted into the air. We made one circle about five hundred meters above the settlement and then took a southeastern heading, back towards the KSC. Within about twenty minutes I wasn't sure which was louder, the whine of the engines or Jebediah's snoring!

The flight was uneventful and once we were around 25 kilometers from the space center, I decided to wake up Jebediah. I had heard from Kinsey that he didn't sleep at all since our arrival, choosing to spend his spare time in a poker game held in the science lab. Jebediah had lost nearly half of his monthly pay, and no sleep before our planned return trip. Any one of those things meant that Jebediah would not be in the best of moods. Both of them meant that it would be a miserable trip home. One thing I will say about Jebediah - everything he does is done to the extreme. So if his poker playing is as extreme as his flying skills...

And I thought it was hard landing the Stearwing during the day! KSC flight control instructed us to drop to 1000 meters and to approach the runway from the west. Although I was slightly off-center, I think my landing was flawless. After turning the craft and heading towards the taxiway that leads to the refueling point, Bobak called us from the tower, "Kerny, Jebediah - Gene wants you both to report to the briefing hall immediately! He said to let the ground crew take care of the Searwing..." and with that message, we left the craft and headed to the briefing hall.  Flying the Searwing wasn't a bad experience. It was just a lot different than flying one of the smaller, more high-performance craft.

When we arrived in the briefing hall I was a little surprised to see Bill, Bob, Ralph and Valentina. Valentina had been flown out by seaplane from her current assignment as the commander of the URKN Eeloo. I remember the surprise of when it was announced after her last spaceflight, while I was in my first year of training, that she wanted to command an oceanic exploration mission. She had been the third Kerbal to land on the Münar surface. Everyone had expected her to continue in the rotations to the Mün, to Minimus, and possibly Dres. Ralph, who was working on a new experimental ocean exploration craft in the bay to the north of the KSC, had also been ordered back to the station. 

Gene began the briefing by reminding us that as kerbalnauts we were also members of the URK Defense Forces. I had known this since the first year of my training and it really wasn't anything new for me. He then told us that the remainder of the meeting would be considered classified and introduced Dr. Haywood Kerman, the director of the Committee on Aeronautics and Space Flight. Dr. Haywood began by reminding us about the monolith near the KSC. "We still don't know much about it, but what I am about to tell you is classified..." and with that we learned that a second monolith had been discovered in the mountains on the eastern continent of Khibirias. He told us that a survey satellite, Kerbin Explorer 1, had located it from an altitude of 1,500 kilometers. An expedition was dispatched about a week ago and won't arrive to the site for another couple of months. It was what Dr. Haywood said next that caught everyone off guard.

While Jebediah and me were at the Karakol settlement, Jedner and his exploration team were curious about something the satellite interface indicated was an unknown anomaly. Dr. Haywood then told us they drove for nearly 13 kilometers when they came across this - and he showed the image on the video screen. It was metallic, and half-buried in the thick snow of the arctic. He flashed a second image on the screen, taken from a requested fly-over that gave us the size of the craft. Nothing we have here at the KSC is that large. Immediately the chatter increased and everyone heard Bill exclaim to Bob, "pay up! I told you we weren't alone...!" I, as well as many others, couldn't help laughing at this nearly comical exchange. 

Redirecting everyone's attention from the ongoing argument between Bill and Bob, Jebediah yelled out, "Dammit, this is serious. Come on, pay attention..."

After Jebediah's outburst, everyone just sat there in shocked silence. For once, it was Jebediah redirecting everyone's attention and not Gene. Even Gene sat there for a few seconds - not sure what to do. "Thank you, Jebediah, "Dr. Haywood said. "Now I will tell you what we do know about the craft. We've not determined what it is made of, how to get inside it, or how long it has been there. What we do know..."

"...is it is alien, so pay up, Bob! added Bill. Had things not been so serious, the ongoing exchange between Bob and Bill would have been fun. Gene immediately yelled at Bill to pay attention to the briefing. Tensions were already high among the KSC command personnel and with Dr. Haywood giving the briefing, it simply added to the seriousness of the situation. The briefing lasted for about an hour and a half with Dr. Haywood explaining that from this point forward we were not to share this information with anyone outside of the Defense Forces or the kerbalnaut program. With that, he called Bobak to the podium.

Bobak gave out the assignments for the next few days. Jebediah was given the task of assisting with the new pilot's simulator training. I'll be flying routine patrols over the KSC and island airfield for the next two days before I begin training for another space launch. With the discovery of the second monolith and the alien craft, we've been told to be prepared for anything. As Bobak ended the meeting, he asked for all the pilots assigned to the various patrol flights to remain behind.

"Until we figure out if the alien craft poses a threat your craft will have combat loads," Bobak told us. After a slight pause, he added, "There's some disagreement over if it could be a threat to our planet. Dr. Haywood suspects that it has possibly been here for a while and poses no real threat. Gene and Dr. Wernher believe that once the craft is either moved or opened, it might send out an automatic signal back to whatever world it came from or it could be the remnants of a failed invasion. Anyhow, the plan is for the exploration team to find some way to enter the craft and to be honest, we don't know what will happen. The truth is we just do not know; until we do, all patrols around settlements, science stations, and the space center will have combat loads. If you encounter anything you're unsure about, contact control immediately. If you encounter an unknown craft, don't engage it and for the gods's sake, don't provoke it..." Sure, we'll be flying craft with a combat load and we aren't supposed to do anything to provoke it.

I think that was the most unsettling part of the entire briefing - not knowing what these latest discoveries mean. I do know Bill is right - it means we are not alone in this universe. But it does raise new questions, such as how far away are they, where are they from, and what are their intentions? I'm beginning to understand the role of the Defense Forces - it isn't that there's a fear of factions or breakaway settlements on Kerbin or any other internal threat. Earlier this evening, I decided to take some time in the archives and found a few books on the history of Kerbin before the Emerging. I think it's time I do some real studying beyond what I was trained in lower and upper school.

 

 

Edited August 17, 2016 by adsii1970
Clarified confusing wording... :D Sorry, folks!

[Readerty2007]

Looking good! 

[Dman979]

Nice!

3 hours ago, adsii1970 said:

"Until we figure out how long the craft has been there, your craft will have combat loads," Bobak told us. "They'll try to find some way to enter the craft and to be honest, we don't know what will happen. Dr. Haywood suspects it probably won't do anything because it has been there for a while.

Wait, what?