@ami_angelwings
Tails of Lady Miller's Memorial Catgirl Trust
Catgirl University (part 3)

Biba stretched out on the lawn, while Natasha sat nearby, looking miserable. Antoinette-Sussanah was off hunting down some lunch from one of the food vans that had pulled up near the campus.

After a few moments, Biba spoke up "Tash, you apologised, and he's going to be OK."
"But what if they expel me. Or all of us?"
"Then Twilly will get on the case and smooth things over."
"But what if he doesn't let me back into his class? It is a pre-requisite for everything I want to do."
"Tash, you're starting to whine."

Natasha threw herself forward onto the grass, and started to sob. She had always been a drama queen. Biba sighed, and moved over to her, picking up the larger catgirl like she weighed nothing, and giving her a gentle hug, making 'shoosh'ing sounds.

A shadow fell over them, and Biba looked up, ready to switch to combat mode if it were a threat.

It was a small group of other students.

Biba shut down the combat modules. "Can I help you?" she asked politely.

One of the young ladies, in full goth regalia, crouched down "We're in Stats 017 with you. Is your friend OK?"
Biba looked them over again. Yes, they had all been in that first class. "There was an accident in her Mech Eng class, and she's worried about fallout from it."
"Was that what the ambulance was about?"
Natasha started to cry more, and Biba just nodded.
The girl didn't say anything for a few moments, clearly thinking. Biba opened her mouth, only for a hand to come up in a 'stop' sign. She closed it again.

One of the boys whispered to the guy next to him "Is Maddy doing that thing again?"
"Yeah, the whole brain thing."

The newly named Maddy didn't react.

Finally she nodded, "I see. Well, he could not have been that bright, could he?"
Natasha looked up along with Biba "What?"
"He could not have been that bright. I mean Prof Tepford worked it out. I worked it out. How come he didn't?"

"You weren't there. How do you know what happened?" Tash asked, her confusion overcoming her worries.
One of the group, wearing a dress covered in stars, grinned "The little grey cells, eh?"

Tash and Biba looked blank.

"What Terri means is that I deduced it from the available evidence. I love murder mysteries. They're quoting Poirot".

Antoinette-Sussanah came up behind the group and asked "Is everything OK?"
"Yes, A-S. Maddy here is a bit of sleuth" Biba explained "What's for lunch?"
"Sashimi", she had barely finished the word before Tash was wrapped around her. "Hiiii Antoinette-Sussanah... you're the best friend ever."

Shaking her head, she sat, opened the paper bag she had been carrying and handed Tash and Biba trays of sashimi. A quick glance at Biba, and she gestured to the lawn "Join us?"

The others sat, and got out their own lunches.

Maddy watched Tash happily attacking the raw fish, and looked across to Biba, who shrugged. Maddy gave a small sigh and started eating.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #microfiction #Microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #Catgirls

#VendrediLecture "Les braconniers du cosmos et autres nouvelles" de Philip K. Dick.
Quelques histoires courtes d'un grand nom de la #SF, ça fait du bien par où ça passe. 🚀

Alt...

"Philip K. Dick Les braconniers du cosmos et autres nouvelles" Couverture SF représentant un vaisseau spatial de style Star Wars volant au-dessus d'un paysage extraterrestre avec une planète orange en arrière-plan. L'image est entourée de vignettes où on peut lire "Librio", "Texte intégral" et "10FF".

@ami_angelwings

Tails of Lady Miller's Memorial Catgirl Trust
Catgirl University (part 2)

Memo: Laser Pointers in Lectures
From: Prof H Tepford (School of Mathematics)
To: Academic Teaching Staff

Please utilise caution in using laser pointers in lectures. There are some students who will focus on the pointer rather than the material being covered.

Unfortunately, privacy rules do not allow me to identify the students in question, but I believe it should be reasonably obvious on a quick visual inspection of the attendants.

Hamish.

-----

From: Dr A. De Jeune (School of Medicine)
To: Prof H Tepford (School of Mathematics
Subject: Laser Pointer Memo

Hamish,
I have one of them in my BioChem 100 class. Thanks for the warning.
Alyce.

----

From: Dr G Cranbourne-Wilson (School of Engineering)
To: Prof H Tepford (School of Mathematics
Subject: Laser Pointer Memo

Hamish,
I have one in Mech Eng 101.

Unfortunately your warning came too late. She apologised afterwards, and made sure to stay with me until the ambulance came.

I should be back on campus next week, albeit with a moonboot.

Greg.

----

To: HR Safety Team
From: Felicity Ambrose - Safety Investigator
Subject: OH&S Incident in Mech Eng 101 dd/mm/yyyyy 09:41

Team,
Attached is my report on the OH&S incident last Wednesday in which Dr Cranborne-Wilson broke his ankle.

There is sufficient documentary evidence that he could have reasonably assessed the risks of the activities he was taking part in, and could have avoided the hazardous situation.

At this point, I am satisfied that we have no legal obligations beyond medical leave.

Flick.

#SFF #SF #SciFi #IAmWriting #microfic #tootfic #microfiction #Catgirls

Écoute du soir (j'ai retrouvé le flux des podcasts accumulés cet été ) : la série "Avoir raison... avec Mary Shelley".

Le quatrième épisode notamment, avec Sophie Musitelli comme invitée, est passionnant. Il y est question des rapports entre littérature et sciences, en nous plongeant dans le contexte scientifique du XVIIIe et du début du XIXe siècle. C'est l'occasion d'évoquer ce qu'a été la culture scientifique de Mary Shelley (en tant que femme, issue d'un certain milieu social, née en 1797 en Angleterre), afin de comprendre les conditions dans lesquelles l'autrice a pu imaginer son roman 'Frankenstein'. Sophie Musitelli explique notamment qu'elle y capture "ce qu'il reste du rêve alchimique dans la chimie moderne", tout en mettant en scène des thèmes qui resteront au centre de la littérature de science-fiction à venir.

Épisode 4 - "Une bête de sciences" : https://www.radiofrance.fr/franceculture/podcasts/avoir-raison-avec/une-bete-de-sciences-7511919

#ConseilPodcast #OndesPubliques #FranceCulture #MaryShelley #Frankenstein #ScienceFiction #SF

Tails of Lady Miller's Memorial Catgirl Trust
Catgirl University

Professor Hamish Tepford was always intrigued to see what new fashion each new year of first-years brought to the lecture hall. As a statistics professor, he encountered students from most schools at the University, because most courses outside of the fine arts required at least one unit.

So he got to see a very broad spectrum of students, from the very staid (post-grad or mature age business) to the outlandishly extreme (almost anyone else). Unlike his fellows, he enjoyed teaching the bridging and introductory courses. Seeing the new faces, and seeing the light of understanding kick in at various points was a delight he could not pass up. But then, he was regarded as a little odd by his peers.

As the new class filed in, he made mental notes. In hair, hot pink was replacing the silver, and strips rather than a fade in or out. Piercings and tatts were still 'in'. Oh, and it looked like animatronics were...

Wait. Those ears were not animatronics. Were they some sort of cosmetic surgery? There were three of them, all sitting together. One stood, and he saw a tail curl around her waist before she sat down again.

That was when he realised that this was not a fashion statement. He had seen the replay of the press conference from a month or two back. Catgirls. But what were they doing in his class?

He mentally slapped himself. "Taking introductory statistics 017", obviously.

He checked his roll. There they were, three mononymic students. Biba, Natasha, and Antoinette-Sussanah.

He took first attendance - the only one he ever bothered with. He had a good head for names and faces. Then he started his introduction.

Part way through, while he was highlighting some of the course objectives, he suddenly felt his neck prickle. He looked over his shoulder at the lecture hall, and immediately saw the three pairs of eyes with absolute and complete focus on the screen.

The other students were taking notes or just nodding along. But those three were utterly fixated on ... Oh.

He turned off the laser pointer.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #IAmWriting #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #Catgirls

As usual, for @ami_angelwings .

9 Months ago, Council Chambers, Horsebreeder Clan lands.

Joyful Finder stood after the immediate business had been dealt with. Since taking to space Clan Council meetings had become longer, and she knew everyone was tired. But this had to be raised, and if not now, then at the end of another meeting - when again, everyone would be tired.

"The Council hears Joyful Finder of the Horsebreeders" the chair announced.
"Thank-you", she paused and straightened before continuing "Although it is unlikely that Seeker will obtain the information she has been tasked with locating in this first tour, we must make plans for what we will do when the home of the raiders is found."
One of the elders from the Fisher Clan spoke up "I presume you have ideas, Joyful?"
She shook her head "Unfortunately, no. I have been studying the histories brought back from the Scouts' archives. They are extensive, and go back to before humans took to the stars. There are even hints of when our ancestors were taken from the human homeworld."
The same elder asked "But?"
Joy sighed. "But in all that time they have recorded only two instances where an invader successfully replaced the rulers of a land without causing resentment that took generations to resolve. And frequently never did."
The Forester Clan elder cleared his throat "So we do what they did."
"If only it were that simple. In both cases the lands in question had made open war against a coalition of other nations. After initial successes, they were beaten back, and then crushed absolutely. The coalitions then spent vast sums rebuilding the nations they had just defeated."
The Forester elder grunted "Seems simple enough then. It seems that things mostly match our circumstances."
"Except for one thing. In both cases the lands were subject to totalitarian and authoritarian rulers. We know nothing of how the raiders are ruled or the structure of their society."
"So why are you raising this?" that was the Fisher elder again.
"I am hoping the Council is wiser than a single ex-Scout, and can find a solution."

There was silence.

Several minutes passed, and various elders whispered to each other. Then one of the elders of Weaver Clan stood. "You present a problem to us, but you have already given us the solution."
Joy frowned in puzzlement "I have?"
"Indeed. Our first course of action is to learn what their society is. And you are our best resource there."
"I am?"
"I move to the council that Joyful Finder be charged with recruiting and training a Scout force, whose task will be to learn all there is about the raider society."

Around the chamber was a sound of agreement.

Joy swayed a little in shock, and then asked "May I seek aid from the Scouts themselves in this?"
The chair stood "That would be prudent. Despite the treaty."

Joy sat heavily, feeling her years. There was a mail ship expected in a few weeks. She'd have to write to the sector commander. Convincingly.

#SFF #SF #SciFi #microfic #tootfic #microfiction #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

This morning my best friend, Rikky, handed me a sheet of paper between classes as we passed.

Then during lunch she yelled at me, said some really horrible things, and stormed off saying that she never wanted to see me again. I almost threw out the paper, but I decided to read it. We had been friends since primary school, after all.

Scribbled at the top in her writing was "I'm sorry. I don't mean any of it. I'll see you in seventeen years. Stay alive."

Under that was this email.

"The day after tomorrow your best friend, Janice, is going to get pulled up in front of the school. There will be news cameras and reporters and government officials.

Janice Southward will be the next Chosen One.

How do I know? Because seventeen years ago my best friend was chosen. And I've been trying to keep him alive ever since. That is going to be your job now. I'll help, but you know her best.

But you can never been seen anywhere near her. If you are, you will get your mail and email screened, and you will be watched so you cannot interfere.

Why?

Because the Chosen One of each generation is not picked by some prophecy or seer or test of skill. They are picked at random. They have no special powers, no great destiny. They get a little stipend, enough so they don't have to work if they don't want to.

So what are they? They are bait. For every two-bit villain who comes along. They will have it shoved in their faces that there is a Chosen One - and even who it is. So they will go after them. And the government will know where they are going. So they can finish them off.

About one in ten of the Chosen Ones make it to 34. I want Janice to be one of them. Why? Because I've kept Callum alive. And I want his successor to do the same.

I worked my way into the Statistics Bureau. They are the ones who deal with The Chosen One and the idiots who go after them. The day after tomorrow I hope to see Callum for the first time in seventeen years.

And I will be waiting for you in the Bureau. Join me. And help keep Janice alive.

Show this to Janice, and then have a very public fight with her. Tell her to destroy this. No one can know. Especially not the Bureau. "

I sat back, and went to the loo. I tore the paper into tiny tiny bits and flushed them.

It all sounded insane. But there is going to be a big assembly tomorrow.

I guess I'd better destroy this as well.

#SF #SFF #microfiction #Microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #MaybeDistopia

2 téléchargements pour la nouvelle de #SF "L'homme qui acheta une planète"...
https://www.atramenta.net/lire/lhomme-qui-acheta-une-planete/86084

#reticulum #munich #germany #de #lora is using the same settings popular in #thenetherlands #holland #nl which has a developed LoRa radio #mesh #rns #reticulummesh #meshchat
[[ReticulumNet LoRa]]
type = RNodeInterface
port = e.g. /dev/ttyUSB0
frequency = 869463000
bandwidth = 125000
spreadingfactor = 8
codingrate = 5
see also https://loramesh.org#settings
#frequency 869463000 Hz = 869.463 MHz
#Bandwidth: 125 kHz
#TransmitPower: 22 dBm (max allowed)
#Spreadingfactor #sf: 8
#codingrate: 5

Alt...

Lora settings (Europe, adopted widely in NL and used in DE Munich) that work: Frequency: 869463000 Hz = 869.463 MHz Bandwidth: 125 kHz Transmit Power: 22 dBm (typical maximum power allowed and available from hardware) Spreading factor: 8 (but see remarks below) coding rate: 5

I am at the stage of my #flurocil treatment where I resemble the protagonist in Derm Fool.

#SF #TheodoreSturgeon #SFF #SFInRealLife

Page 114 onwards.

https://archive.org/details/UnknownV03N01194003/Unknown+v03+n01+(1940-03)

Shaman Space Part 5
14 months after leaving Mother of All. In final jump to Mother of All.

Sparks and Alaine were in the engine room checking over the engines before exiting jump. It had been a much busier jump than usual, as the Captain and Suri, the navigator, were bringing in the captured raider ship. At least, the crew hoped they were. Once they entered jump, there was no way of communicating or even locating the other ship.

"How are you and Seeker holding up?" Sparks asked, without looking up from the diagnostics display.
"One point five seven - what?"
"How are you and Seeker holding up? It was a pretty intense thing with that raider ship."
"We're" Alaine paused and started again "I'm still having some rough nights. I'm looking forward to meeting with a counsellor at Mother of All. Seeker says they are very good at dealing with trauma."
"And Seeker?"
"She's not as shaken up as the first time. Partly because of the first time, and partly because those people were her ancestral nemesis. But I think she's looking forward to some counselling as well."
"Good. How's that coil looking?"
"Uh, one point five seven above spec. Within acceptable limits."
"One point five seven? That's about as close to perfect as you could hope for."

The intercom chimed "Bridge to Engineering. Are we clear?" the voice of Engel the First Mate came from the grill next to the diagnostic station. Alaine glanced at Sparks who nodded.
"All clear bridge" he replied.
"All hands, all hands, stand by for re-entry into normal space."

Alaine watched as the jump engines collapsed their private universe around them, and dropped them back into normal space.
Engel's voice came over the intercom again "We are now in normal space. Resume duties."
"Reaction drives active" Alaine reported after checking his instruments.
"Confirmed. All systems online" Sparks responded as she did her own checks.
"Confirmed" Alaine replied.
"OK, off to the bridge with you, Alaine. I've got things here."

He nodded, and started to head forward. He paused at the hatch "Sparks?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks for asking."
"No problem. We're as good as family on this ship. We look after each other."
"I know, but still, thanks."

Alaine continued forward to the bridge. Engel, Dyani, and Seeker were there.
"Any word from Bright Sky?" he asked as he entered.
Seeker looked up from the comms panel "Not yet, but they could be a few minutes away."
"I'm not picking up any other ships in the immediate area" Dyani added.

Seeker frowned "Hold on" she tweaked the gain control, and listened. There was a pause. "I have Bright Sky. She's about fifteen light minutes away. She came out just before us. Sending our position."
Engel looked back at Seeker "Are they OK?"
"Yes, yes, all systems nominal."
"OK, Alaine, calculate a rendezvous that we can make into an approach to Divesen Station. Dyani, stay on the scope for any trouble."
"On it" they both replied.

Seeker looked towards the distant sun. She was almost home. She had news.

#SFF #SF #SciFi #microfic #tootfic #microfiction #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Ensuite, on reste dans la #SF avec la septième aventure de l'Alchimiste, "Les pierres éternelles", avec 2 téléchargements.
https://www.atramenta.net/lire/les-pierres-eternelles/83309

C'est l'heure du bilan de la semaine sur #Atramenta !
Cette fois, c'est la nouvelle de #SF "L'homme qui acheta une planète" qui décroche la première place avec 3 téléchargements.
https://www.atramenta.net/lire/lhomme-qui-acheta-une-planete/86084

Opinion: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is the spiritual successor to The Adventures of Buckaroo Banazai Across the Eighth Dimension.

#BuckarooBanzai #SkyCaptain #SF #SciFi #SFF #Pulp #Movies

#éducationcinédemesmarmots
Ce soir : Edge of tomorrow, de Doug Liman (2014). Je leur ai dit que c'était la journée de la marmotte version SF. Iels sont à donf !

#sf #Cinéma

Alt...

Affiche du film. Edge of tomorrow. Cruise et emily blunt en exosquelette "Vivre, mourir, recommencer"

Quelqu'un a lu Sintonia de Audrey Pleynet ?
(le roman de SF donc, pas la série brésilienne)

C'est vraiment bien ?

On me l'avait recommandé mais j'en suis à la fin du premier tiers et bof, quoi.
Donc j'hésite à poursuivre.

J'aime pas du tout les ambiance "Renaissance" ou décadence en général.

C'est pas vraiment mal écrit mais le style ne me convainc pas plus que ça non plus (et pourtant, c'est pas une traduction).

1/?

#Sintonia #SF #ScienceFiction #Nanotech

The tiny island community surveyed the devastation the typhoon had caused. Fishing boats were tossed onto the land, buildings levelled, and the bridge linking them to the next island had been torn apart by the waves.

On the horizon, the wall of the other side of the typhoon's eye approached.

From inside the storm shelter a voice yelled "There's an aid flight coming in! Wait! No! No! They've taken a lightning hit, and lost power! They're going down!"

The few who had left to do a quick survey ran back, but just as they reached the entrance they froze as a terrific roar filled the air.

Looking back, they saw a huge shadow in the storm wall. The enraged roar came again, and a giant reptilian shape burst from the clouds, bat-like wings beating against the wind.

The dragon flew at the island, and landed just outside the shelter, wings covering most of the remains of the settlement's buildings.

In the dragon's left foreclaw was the fuselage of an aircraft, wings ripped off. It set it down.

The hatch opened, and a woman got out. She looked up. The dragon raised its head and stared at her. "I told you I should have made the flight" it growled.
"If it hadn't been for that lightning strike, I would have been fine."
"And yet here we are."
"Sorry, love."
"You are safe now, that is all that really matters. And the emergency supplies are here."
The woman looked at the small group huddled at the entrance to the storm shelter.
"And this is why I thought I should do it."
The dragon lowered its head. "I suppose."
She called out "Don't worry, she's here to help. I need a hand getting the supplies out before the eye passes. Come *on*."
One man, braver than the others started towards her. "Miss?"
"Freddy", she gestured to the dragon, "and this is Emerald." She climbed back in, and a larger hatch at the rear opened. "Come on, form a chain. Quickly!"

The rest of the small group who had ventured out, formed a line, and passed the packages of supplies and equipment into the shelter.

Emerald rumbled "Inside Freddy. I'll guard."

Freddy reached up, and kissed Emerald's snout "Thanks for the save, love", then she turned and ran into the shelter.

The doors closed just as the winds of the typhoon hit again. Emerald gripped the ground, and used her wings to protect the wrecked aircraft. It might be so much junk now, but it was Freddy's pride and joy. So she would protect what was left of it.

#SF #SFF #Fantasy #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #Dragon

@ami_angelwings
The Catgirl Visitation 2/2

Doctor Smith started to stand, and Silver jumped down from the arm of the chair to help him. "Lady Miller", he inclined his head, "I am Doctor Smith, and this is Silver."
Ami felt Twilly go very still next to her.
"You" Twilly hissed.
Silver tensed again, but the older man just raised a hand "I suspected you might recognise me. I come seeking aid."
Twilly made her fur settle, and then took the seat opposite the one the doctor had been sitting in. "Rayo, please serve tea."
Rayo brought the trolley over, and served tea, first to Silver, then to Lady Miller, then the doctor, and finally to Ami.
Twilly took a sip, exhaled, and then spoke "Now Doctor Smith, why should I aid you?"
"Because I am dying, Lady Miller. And Ai was not the first cyborg I built. The project that created Ai let me siphon off materials to create Silver here."
"Why?"
"Because my dear little girl was dying, Lady Miller. She was dying. Cancer. But I still had to deliver on the project. I knew the late Lady Miller had been snooping around. I may have been less careful than I should have been with some records."
"On purpose."
"Indeed."
"And how can the Catgirl Trust aid you, doctor?"
"It was Silver's idea, although she has since had second, third, fourth, fifth, and many subsequent thoughts about it. I find it elegant."
"And what is that idea?"
"That your people, aided by my blueprints, should do to me what I did to my kitten."
"Again, why?"
Silver spoke up "Because Joseph is dying, Lady Miller. Lung cancer."
Ami inspected the doctor with more care "Metastasised?" she asked.
"Yes. The estimates are three to six months" Silver replied.

Twilly looked from Silver, hovering over the doctor protectively, to the doctor himself, and then looked to Ami. "Second opinion?"
Ami considered for a moment "It is a big step for us, but I think your mother would approve."
"I agree. And he did what he could to save Silver. Rayo?"
"Señora, it feels right."
"Ai," Twilly raised her voice a fraction, "Come meet your sister."
The door opened and Ai entered cautiously "Sister?"
"Yes, Ai, this is Silver. And Doctor Smith, I believe we can help you."

#Catgirls #SF #SFF #SciFi #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting

The Catgirl Visitation 1/2

Outside of routine deliveries, visitors to the Miller manor were rare. Rarer still were unexpected visitors. It was, therefore, a source of considerable curiosity when a cab - all the way from London - pulled up unannounced on a Monday morning. But as curious as everyone was, no-one approached. They waited.

Two people got out. One had a tail.

Rayo, dressed in an approximation of a butler's uniform, answered the door. Standing at the door was a man in his fifties, just starting to grey at the temples, leaning on a cane. Next to him was a catgirl with bright blue ears and tail, dressed in a neat business blazer and skirt.
"Good morning. I am Doctor Joseph Smith, and this is Silver. I apologise for arriving unannounced, but I need to speak with Lady Twillychiss Miller", his voice had a slight wheeze to it, but still had a strength.
Rayo considered the pair for a moment before replying "Of course, señor Doctor and señorita Silver. This way."

She led them into a study, and went to Twilly's office. "Señora Miller? There are guests in the west room. A Doctor Smith, and one of us, señora, named Silver."

Twilly put down the intelligence report and looked up "I don't recognise either of those names. How curious. Please fetch tea, and I will be down in a moment."
After Rayo departed, Twilly picked up the phone "Please have Ai and Ami join me outside the west room in five minutes."

In the west room, Silver perched on the arm of the chair that Doctor Smith was sitting in "Are you sure about this, Joseph?" she asked.
"Yes, Silver, for the umpteenth time, yes, I am sure."
"I sensed many weapon systems in the area."
"We expected that. Your sister, at least, is here."
"All the same, I don't know that I can keep you safe."
"They are being polite so far. What about the one that answered the door."
"She had no weapons. I think she was completely biological."
"See? Quite polite."
"There are three of them outside. One has extensive weaponry" Silver's eyes widened as she spoke, and her tail started to lash.
"Easy now - they are probably just taking some precautions."

The door opened, and the Siamese-coloured butler catgirl entered "Lady Twillychiss Miller and señorita Ami" she announced . Rayo left the door open for a moment, then wheeled in a tea trolley. She stood by it, closing the door.

#Catgirls #SFF #SF #SciFi #microfic #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting

@ami_angelwings your namesake is back on screen :)

The next one is in #SF and I am already sad that I will miss it. Specially because SF means chance to meet so many friends.

L'article labellisé du jour sur #Wikipédia : "Satellite Science Fiction", un magazine #SF américain qui n'a duré que quatre ans, mais qui a pu compter sur la collaboration de grands noms de la SF comme Arthur C. Clarke, Philip K. Dick ou Isaac Asimov. 🛸
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satellite_Science_Fiction

Tiens je suis étonné que personne n'a encore imaginé un énorme circuit de climatisation qui rayonnerait les calories par dessus l'atmosphère pleine de CO2 (qui veut tout garder pour lui) .
En s'appuyant sur les câble des ascenseurs spatiaux par exemple (pour faire simple).
#sf #technosolutionnisme

Today on Totally Missing The Point:

> "Beverly Crusher is absolute goals.

Me:

Totally! At the Academy, she was the top midfielder on the varsity Blues, the science/medicine team in their zero-g football league. She bagged a double-hat-trick in the first half of a game against U-Luna, just an incredible array of spectacular shots, displaying her nearly total command of zero-g movement.

She finished her time at the Academy having scored, in just 3 years (an excellent student too!), 86 goals from centre midfield as her main position.

Her innovative use of bounce passes to herself off of unexpected surfaces led to one of her moves becoming known as a "Crusher turn", involving a first touch that pushed the ball backward and down with just enough spin at just the right angle that when she hit the thruster and spun around, she was perfectly placed to kick off at an angle that let her continue to push off, accelerating all the way to the goal, and neither keeper was able to stop her when she unleashed a high-velocity shot with her usual surgical accuracy.

#MicroFiction #SF #StarTrekTNG

[lien] La vie courte mais rigolote de Jean-Kevin - Vaping Post #drg #lol #wtf #sf

Six hundred years ago. Mother of All, Ironworker Clan lands.

The oldest of the histories talked of sky gods who could command up and down as easily as one could lift a hand. They flew in arrows of steel across the stars, and had brought people to this world.

Why? The histories did not say. Nor from where.

But today, steel arrows came from the sky. Within were not gods, but devils. More accurately, men, but they had the souls of devils.

They had ransacked the storehouses, taking food and pig iron. They had also raided families, taking the very youngest children with them.

There had been one attempt to stop them, but that had been met with a beam of fire from one of the arrows. Three houses were simply gone, nothing but a glowing pit remained.

Then the devils had returned to their arrows, and taken back to the skies. From there, they sent pillars of smoke that destroyed tracks and roads, cutting their valley off from aid.

And they were gone. Leaving loss and destruction behind them.

The speakers sent for help and warning to the other clans. And help would arrive quickly. They would need to excavate and hide shelters so that none would be stolen again. They would need food to get through the winter. And burnstone to restart the forges.

The speakers shared what they had learned from the minds of the raiders. They knew that their numbers were few. Which was why they stole children. There were too few of them for them to make families safely.

But strangest of all was the devils' language. A curious chaotic mess of a language. One that had no resemblance to the tongue of the people of the Mother of All.

The speakers would need to study it so that the devils could be understood.

But there was one thing that was understood: The devils would be back. And soon. But not to the Ironworkers Clan. Somewhere else.

So for now, preparation. Planning. And mourning those lost in fire, and those lost to the sky. For when those children returned - or more likely the children of those children, they would come as devils.

There was one final tragedy for the Ironworker Clan - least two of the taken were potentially speakers.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #SpaceOpera #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #ShamanSpace #IAmWriting

C'est l'heure du mal-aimé de la semaine sur #Atramenta !
Aujourd'hui, "Capitaine Quantum : Le Maître des Rêves" ! 🚀
Mystère et menace dans l'espace, deuxième saison des aventures du Capitaine après "Capitaine Quantum : L'Œil de la Déesse", il n'a pas eu le même succès que son précédesseur. Pourtant, je suis aussi fière de cette nouvelle aventure #SF que de la première, et j'ai beaucoup regretté de n'avoir jamais pu la publier sur Vivlio Stories.
https://www.atramenta.net/lire/capitaine-quantum-le-maitre-des-reves/100167

Dans mes rêves, j’ai mon âge, ou pas d’âge, et lesté de l’expérience d’une vie, j’interagis parfois comme cette nuit avec des gens, vivants ou morts, que je n’ai pas vus depuis des lustres, voire des décennies.

Et ça m’a frappé que les rêves sont littéralement des machines à voyager dans le temps.

#sf #mastonirique #captainObvious

"November Victor Victor Victor, this is Victor Hotel Charlie Seven Bravo, We are seeing some heavy weather ahead. Over." Annika waited for a reply, glancing across at Chika her co-pilot.
"Seven Bravo" started the reply, followed by a burst of static and silence.
"November Victor Victor Victor say again" Annika sent back. Nothing.
"Annika? BOM has a cat four three hundred to our south" Chika's broad Alice Springs accent stronger than usual.
"How old is the report?"
"Two hours. No way this could be it."
"No reply. Change us to Kiribati."
"Changing to three seven. Done."
She tried Kiribati airport. Nothing

The two pilots watched the storm as it closed in on them, almost looking like it was reaching around to trap them.
Chika made a face "Call in a Pan. Changing to emergency."

Annika made the call.

A sudden air pocket dropped the little twin engine Baron a thousand feet. Both pilots jolted in their seats, and Chika's head struck her headrest violently.

"Chika?" Annika asked, and then repeated it louder. There was no reply. She glanced over, and saw her partner slumped in her seat, unconcious - or worse.

Then there was a bright flash, and the engines cut out.

Annika went through the restart procedure - nothing. Somewhere the lightning had shorted something. The static in her ear told her that the radio was still working. Then they were below the clouds. Heavy rain made it hard to make anything out, but she thought she could see a small atoll ahead.

Gliding the Baron through the turbulence of the storm was tricky, especially without a second pair of eyes.

Then Chika sat up "Don't try to ditch, the reef will mess you up good" she said in a Midwestern accent.

Annika glanced over and stared. Chika was looking over the instruments and the flight plan, and then looked back. "There's an airport at Kiribati?" She asked in the same strange voice.

"Chika?" Annika asked uncertainly.
"Just call me Millie for now" the American voice replied, "I'll raise a mayday. Line up on the long Southwest strip. Mayday Mayday Mayday, this is November Romeo One Six Zero Two Zero. Engines out, attempting landing on Gardner Island." Then she repeated the message twice more.

Annika fought the winds, and got the little plane lined up. One chance. As she struggled with the controls she asked "Who are you?"
"Just don't make the same mistake me and Fred made, OK?"

Then there was no time. The plane crashed through the low scrub, and ploughed into a dune.

She looked across again, but Chika was slumped again. But breathing. She shut everything down. No smoke. Chika groaned.
"What happened?" No American voice.
"We crashed. Lightning. You remember anything?"
"No, why?"
"Never mind. I'm going to deploy the EPIRB."

They were sheltering under a wing two days later when they saw a launch approaching. Annika saw another woman smiling next to Chika, then she blinked, and Chika was alone, waving to the boat.

#SF #SFF #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #Fantasy

2 lectures pour la nouvelle de #SF "L'homme qui acheta une planète".
https://www.atramenta.net/lire/lhomme-qui-acheta-une-planete/86084

[lien] Notules non diplomatiques n° 40 - Open Time #politikkills #sf

[lien] 60 degrés à l'ombre | Grise Bouille #bks #cho #sf

One hour after the disabling of Athena's launch. Aboard the raider controlled trade ship "Bright Sky".

Alaine checked over his shoulder as he approached the hatch leading to the crew compartment and the bridge. The wrecked launch hid the hatch leading to engineering. He hit the release, and it irised open. Ducking through he scanned the crew common area - no-one.

He checked the crew quarters. No-one.

Seeker was expecting someone in the engineering area, so that meant two or three people on the bridge. He swapped back to the two machine pistols.

The iris hatch to the bridge was closed, but still not locked. Their deception had worked. He pressed the hatch release, and it spun open.

Both people inside were standing, looking at a display. As they started to turn, he fired two long bursts. The plastic bullets shattered against the consoles, and against bones inside the two raiders.

They both dropped.

Alaine stood there, frozen. He had just killed four people. They had been trying to kill Joy and him. They had thought they had killed them.

But he had gunned them down without giving them any chance surrender.

He suddenly rushed to the nearest cabin and threw up from an empty stomach. Painfully, repeatedly.

He was still heaving into the head when he felt a hand on his back. And a touch in his mind. Seeker. Steadying him.

"We need to contact Athena, Alaine" she said softly.

He nodded. Gulped air, and flushed the head. She handed him some water, and he rinsed his mouth.

"Thank-you" he whispered.

Together they re-entered the bridge. Seeker crossed to the navigator's station, and after a moment Alaine took the pilot's seat.

Setting the frequency, he pressed the mic button "Athena, Athena, this is Athena Launch Actual. Launch fired on by rendezvous. Rendezvous now under our command. Over."
Several seconds passed.
"Athena Launch we registered two emergency beacons for a few seconds. Casualties? Over."
"Athena, no friendly casualties," he glanced at Seeker, who shook her head, "no hostile survivors. Over."
Again a pause.
"Activate beacon, and we will come alongside. ETA three hours. Over."
"Understood. Clear."

Seeker looked over at Alaine as he slumped back "Are the computers locked?"
He checked "No. Wide open."
"Can you get the coordinates of their next destination?"
Alaine frowned "Um, let's see.... Here they are."
"Please read them to me. Then save them somewhere."
Now very confused, he read them off. Then he saw her writing them down in a paper notebook. "Insurance" she explained.
He made a copy on his PDU as well.

What followed was a long three hours.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #SpaceOpera #microfic #microfiction #tootfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Six months prior to the disabling of Athena's launch, seven months out of Mother of All. In jump.

The ship's intercom pinged "Seeker to the Captain's cabin."
Seeker looked up from her PDU and over to Engle, the First Mate.
"Go", he nodded towards the hatch out of the hold.
Two minutes later Seeker knocked on the Captain's door.
"Come."
"Captain? You wanted to see me?" Seeker asked, her puzzlement clear.
"Sit," the Captain pointed to a chair and Seeker followed her order "Now," she continued "Engle and Sparks tell me that you have been neglecting your training.
"Captain!" Seeker protested "I have not! I've even started on Level 1 Navigation studies!"
"Seeker" the Captain cautioned, "you know what I mean. Your weapons training."
Seeker closed her eyes "Captain, I..." she started.
"You will report to Sparks at the start of each shift for thirty minutes target practice. That is an order."
It was a very subdued Joy that replied "Yes, Captain."
"Seeker, you know you have to get back on the beast. There will be simulated attackers. And innocents to protect. Thirty minutes a day. Understand?"
Seeker nodded.
"Dismissed. Back to cargo handling."
Seeker stood, nodded, and went out.

Alaine was standing in the passage at the far end. "Engle said you have the rest of the shift free now. Told me that you might need to talk."
Seeker stared for a moment, and then shook herself "Is the forward turret free?"
"I think so."
"Let's go there."

In the cramped space of the turret, with the blast doors open, looking out at the shifting colours of jumpspace, Seeker looked at Alaine. "The Captain has ordered me to start target practice. Says I have to get back on the horse."
"What would the counsellor have said?" Alaine asked in a low voice.
Joy paused in thought "She...she would have said the same thing, I think."
"So?"
"I guess they are right."
"Seeker, um," Alaine held out his arms, "May I?"
Seeker nodded, and Alaine hugged her lightly. After a few moments, her arms went around him tightly.
They stayed that way for some minutes.
"Thank-you Alaine" Seeker murmured over his shoulder.
"Any time."

The next morning, Sparks had a simple range set up with ring targets. Alaine was there too. Practicing with a survival pistol.

A week later, it was human silhouettes. Then they started moving.

Alaine was there every time. Just quietly practicing alongside her.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #SpaceOpera #microfic #microfiction #tootfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Twenty-five minutes after the disabling of Athena's launch. Two jumps out from Mother of All. Three hours from Athena.

Ten minutes before, they had pushed a pair of spare suits out the hole, emergency beacons running. Moments later the approaching raider had vapourised both.

Seeker and Alaine were now hiding under the floorplates of the tiny hold. They felt two thumps. Crew landing on the hull. A few minutes later there was a slight acceleration. Grappling lines pulling them aboard the raider. Gravity returned. They were aboard. Another few minutes, and they felt their suits slacken as the area they were in pressurised.

Seeker tapped Alaine's arm five times. And then twice. Seven crew. And two of them.

Footsteps. Seeker tapped three times. They listened as the three men discussed the crates, and then start shifting them. The footsteps receded.

Alaine slid the decking aside, they climbed out of the crawlspace, and then ducked behind the remaining crates.

The footsteps returned. Three figures entered the hold, headlamps illuminating the space. And providing targets.

Seeker fired her tiny crossbow first - the bolt striking the man in the throat. Alaine fired the survival pistol twice. Each time there was no bang, just a tiny hiss as the rocket propelled bullet flew across the space. As each hit there was a muffled pop as a second charge propelled a spray of metal shards into the chests of the other two men.

All three collapsed.

Seeker pointed at their side-arms, her face grim behind her faceplate. Alaine took two of the machine pistols and holstered his survival pistols. Seeker retrieved the third. But still reloaded her crossbow.

They exited the launch's hold into a large hold space. From the shape of it they could tell this was a fairly standard short-range trader.

Seeker went aft, towards the engineering space.

Alaine headed forward towards the bridge. As he did, he tucked one machine pistol into his belt, and drew one of the survival pistols. He had to get into the bridge before anyone knew what was happening. Or he would end up like the pirates who had tried to take the Athena.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #SpaceOpera #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Dîtes, j’ai envie de lire de la SF (bonne si possible).

Quel bouquin de fiction vous a fait le plus penser à ce qu’on est en train de vivre ? Même si c’est juste en partie… (Politique, social, environnement, etc.)

J’ai envie d’en lire quelques uns pour voir ce que les auteurs ont pu imaginer comme issues, comme organisation sociale, luttes, moyens de survie et tout le reste.

Je prends toutes vos recommandations, surtout vos coups de cœur.
D’avance merci ☺️

#lecture #SF #anticipation

📅 LE MOIS DERNIER : « Suivez cette planète ! »
La BD où on s'interroge sur la taille des planètes en SF !
▶️ https://grisebouille.net/suivez-cette-planete
#BD #oc #inkscape #humour #GriseBouille #ScienceFiction #SF #SFFF

Alt...

IMAGE 1. Quelques sauts dans l'hyper-espace plus tard… Le vaisseau est posé, et les deux personnages sont dehors. La femme dit : « Bon. On y est. Grôtouine. Alors, il est où, Xebonork ? » IMAGE 2. L'homme répond : « Ben il est là. Sur cette planète, quoi. » La femme : « T'as pas plus de précision ? » L'homme : « Euuh, non. »

Tails of Lady Miller's Memorial Catgirl Trust
Ruth's Tail.

The job was a chance of a lifetime for Dr Ruth Medyiv. To be able to put her theories about DNA hybridisation into practice. She looked across at Director Chambers.

The director was in his fifties, about twenty years her senior. He was reading over her resume and proposal. He finally looked up. "Well, that is a remarkable proposal, Doctor Medyiv. I look forward to seeing what results you get."
"So, you'll hire me?" was her disbelieving question.
"I would be a fool not to, Doctor!" He held out his hand.

The next two years were a whirlwind of experiments. Tissue cultures were grown and experimented on, DNA samples teased out of cells, spliced, and reinserted.

It took those two years to succeed. During which time Ruth was amazed at the Director's patience with her failures. But even among the failures there had been some wins. One of them was a viral multiplier that allowed a recombined gene string to be copied across an entire sample in seconds. In an animal it would re-write the genetic structure in hours. The other was an enzyme that allowed the new genes to express themselves and rebuild the tissues.

It had taken two years, but Ruth had finally stabilised the genetic hybrid DNA. Splicing feline and even avian genes into primate DNA. She had no idea what that combination would be useful for, but it was the principal. They could give someone new eyes. New ears. The possibilities were endless.

The Director had congratulated her that morning, but reminded her that the paper she still had to write was going to be the key. The stuff of Nobel Prizes.

So here she was, in her office at 2am, writing. The door opened behind her, and she turned in surprise and exclaimed "Director! I didn't hear you knock!" Then she looked down, and saw the hypodermic in his hand. Before she could react, he'd rammed it into her leg. She started to get up, and then collapsed.

When she awoke, she was strapped to a bench, and she could see a drip running into her arm. It was almost empty.

"Ah" the Director's voice came from a speaker "You are awake. Let's see what your efforts can really do."

It started as an itch. Then her bones turned to fire, and her back felt like it was being torn apart. The straps broke as she grew in size. She screamed for hours as her body rebuilt itself.

Eventually the pain stopped. She could feel wings on her back. She looked down at the paws that had once been hands, and back at the tufted tail. And at how small the crushed bench was. "Where did the extra mass come from?" she wondered to herself. And then stopped. She could still talk, despite being a monster.

The speaker was silent.

Sometime later there was a click from the door, and it swung open. Two slight figures stood in the light outside.

"We're here to rescue you!" one of them said. The other was staring at her exposed chest.

#SF #SFF #Scifi #Catgirls #microfic #tootfic #Microfiction #IAmWriting

@ami_angelwings

Tails from Lady Miller's Memorial Catgirl Trust
On the Phone

It was Aki's turn on the hotline. Twilly had set it up the day after the press announcement and the parliamentary vote. A source of anonymous tip-offs for when their own intelligence assets failed.

The phone rang.

"Good morning! Catgirl Hotline!" she cheerfully answered. After listening for a moment, she let out an angry "Fuck off!" and hung up. Then she made a mark on the chalkboard.

It rang again a few minutes later. She put her best voice on again "Good morning! Catgirl Hotline!" and listened for a few minutes "I'm sorry, this service is for assisting humanoid cat hybrids and related people. Might I recommend your local pet rescue service? Good luck!" She hung up again. And made a mark on another chalkboard.

Three hours later, her fur looked like she had gone several rounds with a power outlet. She was done. But there was still one hour to go.

The phone rang. "Catgirl Hotline" she said mechanically. "Sorry? What?" she asked confused as a barely audible voice whispered into the phone at the other end. She pressed the "Record" button. "I see ... can you see any letterheads?" A light came on indicating someone else in the Trust was listening as well now. "Good, good, can you read it out?" She made a note. "And the delivery address?" Aki's pupils had dilated into perfect circles now. "Alright, that should be" she stopped as she heard the crackle of a taser and an ear-splitting scream from the phone. She hung up - no need to let them know who had been called.

Her fist came down on a button protected by glass. The glass shattered, and an alarm sounded for a moment. Aki spoke into the newly exposed microphone "Rescue priority one! Catgirl in immediate danger! All crews scramble!"

She picked up another phone "Ai? Can you confirm the address? We have two candidates. Forward to the rescue crews!"

Through the window she could hear helicopters taking off.

She slumped back into the chair. The crews were good. They would save the caller.

The phone rang "Catgirl hotl...you again? I said 'Fuck off'!" and then slammed the phone down again. She threw the chalk at the board.

#SF #SFF #Scifi #Catgirls #microfic #tootfic #Microfiction #IAmWriting

As always, for @ami_angelwings amusement.

y a pas que de la musique à la #bonneAventure #Dunkerque

Tails of Lady Miller's Catgirl Trust
Flashback 4 - The Seventeen Catgirls

She opened her eyes. The room was filled with wisps of smoke and smelt slightly of lightning and sulphur.

Turning her head, she could see other figures lying in a circle, also starting to move. She struggled up and sat. She looked down at herself. Patches of black, white and orange fur covered her body, and her knees bent strangely. She reached up, and felt furry ears on the top of her head.

Looking across, she could now see that all the other figures were like her. Fur, strange legs, fuzzy ears, long stiff whiskers, furless faces, and slightly protruding mouths.

Then she noticed the shoes in the middle of the circle of awakening figures. A pair of Doc Martin platforms. One was upright, and the other fallen on its side. That was where the smoke was coming from. There were scorch marks all around them.

For some reason the shoes made her feel sad.

She struggled to her feet. swayed a little, and then her tail balanced her.
In a voice that had a distinct buzz to it she asked "Where are we?"
From the far side came a similarly rough reply from a blue furred girl "Never mind that - who are we?"

That stopped her. Who was she? There was a fleeting sense of something, but it was lost even as she thought of it. "I don't know. But I must be someone. And there was someone else here too. The shoes."

The other girl now looked at the shoes, and sniffled. "Why am I sad about a pair of shoes?" she asked.

The other fourteen figures now spoke, the words jumbling over and under each other. None of them knew who they were, or why the shoes should cause such a profound sense of loss.

She looked around the room again, and saw a hole in the wall behind her. She looked through and saw another figure there. Also covered in fur. It groaned.

She dove through the hole, and dragged the seventeenth girl out. She was covered in ash and soot, except for her feet. She hugged her as everyone cheered.

Then the door opened, and two other figures with pointed furry ears stepped in.

"Looks like some sort of summoning circle, Twilly."
"It does. It must have been quite something to echo so hard in our own world, Ai" was the cultured reply followed by, "Excuse me, can anyone tell me what happened here?"

There was a rush of confused voices. Twilly held up a hand "Alright, thank-you. Come along, all of you. Let's get you somewhere a bit more comfortable," and walked out again.

She helped the soot-covered one along, and the one called Ai guided them through a glowing doorway on the stairs. They emerged into a beautiful ballroom. Two others waited for them.
"How many Miss?" one called.
"Six, no seventeen Uma. One injured."
"Memories?"
"No."
The one named Uma made a note on a clipboard.
There was a flash and a boom that cut off as the glowing door vanished behind Ai. Her arms were smoking.

#tootfic #SF #SFF #SciFi #Catgirls #microfiction #microfic #IAmWriting

Again, for @ami_angelwings

In school I was always the weird one. The one just on the outside. Even my best friends thought I was a little 'off'. Especially after I turned twelve.

Not for the sorts of reasons you are thinking.

No, in my case it was for knowing stuff I should not have known. Talking to the air. And, occasionally, having a D&M with a bird.

I know I got it from my Mum, although it skipped her generation. Gran filled me in on what I needed to know. Never mind that she'd died when I was three. Yeah, I could see and speak with spirits. Not just dead folks - in fact it was rarely dead folks. More often it was the local spirits - the genus loci - who talked to me. Gran moved on when I was sixteen. Said that I'd learned enough, and that it was time. She had a laugh when I told her I was going full goth if she did. Told me to go for it, and shock my parents, scare my kid brother, and generally own it.

So I did. I went full goth mode for five solid years. I had a ball.

Then I met Les. Leslie was so god-awfully straight-arrow. Pressed shirts, ties, the whole bit. But he could dance like nobody's business and argue the pros and cons of Depeche Mode vs Modern English until 3am.

We married a year later. I had a daughter. And the spirits stopped.

I knew what it meant. That Erika would be seeing them next.

So, when she was about ten, I started explaining about them.

Then a year ago, when she was sixteen, she called me from school crying and said that I had to be strong.

She hung up before I could ask anything, and then the doorbell rang.

It was the police. Leslie was dead, killed in a car crash with a meth addict. The other driver was unharmed. Of course.

What happened next shocked me. Nothing Gran had said prepared me for seeing Les walk up to me. And for me to see all the other spirits around our house following him. My ability was back. All it took was the death of my husband. He did not stay long, just enough to say goodbye to me. As he had done with Erika at the school.

One of the local bird spirits landed next to me a few months later, changing to take the form of a dark haired lady. She said that she missed Les as well. He'd always taken time to talk to the ravens.

Then she touched my arm.

At first I thought it meant that I had died. Then she explained that my loss allowed me to touch the spirit world. She kissed my forehead, and told me that I was not the only one.

The gate to the garden opened, and I watched Erika walk in, hand-in-hand with a girl with black, white, and yellow hair in a most striking pattern.

We looked at each other. Then I said "You too?"

So my daughter is dating a honeyeater spirit. And I'm in the kitchen baking with Raven.

I'll always miss Les, but I've still got a family. As weird as it is.

#UrbanFantasy #SF #SFF #microfiction #tootfic #microfic #IAmWriting

On inaugure une semaine "suite de..." sur le blog. Et pour le #MardiConseil c'est la suite et fin de Du nouveau monde de Yûsuke Kishi chez Robert Laffont (et le tome 2 est sorti chez Pocket Imaginaire
si vous voulez rattraper votre retard) #SF #Japon #postapo https://www.outrelivres.fr/du-nouveau-monde-t-3/ #MastoLivre @mastolivres @bookstodon

Alt...

Couverture montrant une sorte de paysage japonais avec des créatures en blanc sur un fond rouge et jaune. Couverture de Du nouveau monde t.3 de Yûsuke Kishi dans la collection Ailleurs & Demain de Robert Laffont.

2/2

It has been three years since other-me crashed on the Nullabor Plain next to my wrecked car. While they have retained all of their own memories, assuming my form also means they have a substrate of my memories. And feelings, likes, dislikes, and all the rest. They still want to be able to go home, but they also still want to be me now that they are me.

OK, look it is complicated, and let's leave it at that. Except to say that I, or rather we, have been through eight girlfriends since other-me arrived.

Jaana, our current girlfriend, is different.

Her reaction to seeing two of me was memorable. Her first reaction was to check our little fingers, and then the backs of our necks. I don't know how, but she figured out that we were not twins in seconds, and jumped immediately to duplicates. Once she knew which of us was the copy, she asked if they were fixing their ship.

Then she took off her top and turned around. Her back is hollow. Jaana says she's a metsähiisi - what the Norwegians call a huldra. She's also an electronic engineer. Just what other-me needed.

Between her and other-me, they have managed to achieve more in three months than the two of me managed in over two and half years.

Now they are both looking at me.

Jaana is easily the most talkative of the three of us. Ironic given she's Finnish. "We've fixed it. They can go home", she states.
"You're going too, aren't you?" I ask, knowing what the answer will be.
"We've updated the life support to handle humanish people. So yes."
"So you're both saying goodbye?"
"Only if that is what you want."

Other-me speaks "I know me. And you-me. Come. Please. All of us."
"But your people? And Jaana - your family?"
Jaana shakes her head "We are a solitary people amongst our own. I moved to Australia so I would not have to see my sisters or mother."
Other-me shrugs "Others of us have become single-forms it is not unheard of. You would be welcome."
"But I'm just a human. You will both outlive me."
"I became you. Why do you think I could not help you be like me?"
I look from one to the other. Jaana quietly says "Please."
I look around the apartment other-me and I share and bite my lip.
They hold out their hands.

I'm not going to second guess myself again. I take their hands, and they lead me out to the large shed other-me's ship is in.
When we step inside that I see there are three large backpacks sitting next to it.
Other-me grins nervously - an expression I've seen in the mirror a million times - "I hoped/knew you'd say yes. I've packed everything you'd want to come with us."
Inside, the ship is roomier that it had been, now that all the equipment hatches are closed.
"How long to get to your home?"
"A few days. But we might make some stops first."
Jaana hugs us both, "Road trip!" she yells.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #microfic #Microfiction #tootfic #IAmWriting

Tails from Lady Miller's Catgirl Trust

Twilly was seated on one of the two leather armchairs in her office, when there was a knock on the door.
"Yes?"
The door opened revealing a mostly human catgirl, with just ears and a tail giving away her nature.
"The Home Secretary, ma'am."
"Thank-you Uma. Show her in."
She showed a severely dressed woman in.
Twilly gracefully stood, and gestured towards the other seat "Thank-you for coming, Lady Helmscott, please sit. Tea?"
"Lady Miller" she inclined her head, "Thank-you, yes", Lady Margaret Helmscott added as she sat.

Twilly poured the tea, lifted the milk jug and raised a delicate eyebrow. Her guest nodded slightly, and then shook her head at the sugar. Twilly handed the tea cup over, and served herself.

As she sat back down, she saw the cabinet secretary reaching for one of the plates of biscuits "Oh, not those ones, Lady Helmscott. They would not agree with you. Try the other plate instead."
"What is wrong with that plate?" the visitor frowned.
"Oh, nothing, Lady Helmscott. But I suspect cat biscuits would not be to your taste."
The politician looked again, and recognised the high-end dry cat food that she had nearly sampled.
"Ah. I see." The other plate had shortbreads. She took up one of those instead. "Now, Lady Miller, I am surprised to be contacted by an ex-agent. And the people here are all rather unusual, are they not?"
"Therein lies a tale, so to speak. I am not, strictly speaking, an ex-agent."
"I think I would know if you were still on the books, Lady Miller!"
"Ah. But I am not Catherine Miller. I am Twillychiss. I used to be Lady Miller's pet." She took off her wig, revealing two pointed and furred ears atop a furred head.
"I did not come here..." the politician started angrily, and then stopped as Twilly stood, and unsheathed her claws.
There was a pause.
"They are real?"
"Yes. Yes, they are. Everyone here."
"So who are you all?"
"Most of us don't know. Only two of us remember our past lives."
"Why are you showing me all this?"
"Two reasons. First, we retrieved these records from one the labs that made two of us. The second is we need your help."
Twilly handed over a file.
Margaret looked through it, and her eyes suddenly narrowed. "If this is some sort of sick joke..." she threatened.
"No joke. You can have the genetic tests done yourself."
"That young lady who showed me in?"
"Yes, a part of her used to be your elder sister."
"But she has no memory?"
"None at all, I am afraid. I am sorry."
Margaret set her face "So what is the help you want?"
"I want to take us public. But we need protections. We need to be citizens."
"And Justine is the carrot and stick in one."
"Uma, now. But yes. The brain and some of her body was once your sister. We can't give Justine back to you, but you can get to know Uma. So yes, carrot and stick."
"Shit. I'll check."
"Please do. We need your help."

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Catgirls #Microfic #Microfiction #tootfic #IAmWriting

For @ami_angelwings

#CerianAndVaranWar

The dawn light was just starting to show in the sky when the workstation in Tannis' hermetically sealed quarters pinged.

Tannis' eyes snapped open. That workstation should not be pinging. No-one knew she was here. No-one except the Gould family and Ashwan's squadron.

She got up, and wrapped a robe around herself. Laundry was going to need to be a thing soon. She sat at the workstation. The mail icon was blinking. Opening it, her eyes widened "Maria Gould? Isn't that Ashwan's partner - no they say wife here, don't they?" she mumbled to herself. This was the worst bit of her status as the first and only POW in this war.

Reading the message, her jaw dropped. Maria's analysis was incredible. Three families, or rather, least three on the Varan side working to prevent the colony from returning to space, at the very least. Actively trying to kill them off at worst.

There was probably something similar back home.

And they had started the war.

Tannis wondered what was happening back home. She missed her friends. Her flight. Were they doing the same sort of hunt? Was Estelle digging through the old Parliamentary Records? It would be Estelle if anyone. Hitomi's talents were in the air and navigation. Ava would be busy with running the flight now. Was she looking for someone to recruit to fill the hole that Tannis' capture had left?

She looked over at one of the things Chimera Flight had included. A print of a photograph they had taken during training. All four of them in the pilot's bar. The barman had taken it the night after they took down that entitled jerk, Jarrad. Happy days.

Giving herself a shake, she washed up and opened a breakfast pack from the rations her team had dropped for her.

The breakfast was supposed to be eggs and ham. She doubted that it had come within several kilometres of a tusk lizard or any sort of egg. But it was still a thousand times better than sugarwater and survival bar. At least the crackers had crunch and tasted faintly of cloudbush. Very faintly. As she ate, she wondered what the next step was going to be. What would happen about the three families? She couldn't even ask about it. To distract herself after her meal, she started exercising.

There was nothing else she could do now.

#SF #SFF #IAmWriting #MilSF #tootfic

Part of https://rdmasters.lympago.com/p/cerian-and-varan-war-story-in.html

@Moss

I think it is important to distinguish between the current crop of LLMs and fictional self aware AIs.

SF authors have been writing about the latter for, well, really since Ancient Greece, and lumping all of that tradition with the LLM scam engines is a tad unfair.

One of the key aspects of SF is to speculate, so it is not unreasonable to see SF writers exploring the implications of the scam engines gaining awareness.

Now /using/ a scam engine to create your story, that I have a huge issue with.

#sf #writing

1/2
I looked across the tent at a perfect copy of myself. Well, not quite perfect. They are still getting the hang of English.

I should back up a bit.

Just before sunset a week ago, I screwed up. I'd been driving too long, and only saw the wombat on the highway at the last moment. I swerved and lost control.

When I came to, my car was totalled, and well out of sight of the highway, behind a low rise on the plain. I struggled out of the wreck in the dark, but had enough sense not to try wandering around. There are all sorts of sinkholes around here, and if I fell down one of them, I was a goner.

As I stood next to the remains of my car, I saw what I thought was a helicopter coming my way. I waved and shouted, but then I noticed how erratically it was flying. The lights seemed a bit off, too. I was pretty sure helicopters didn't have purple lights. So maybe it was someone's drone?

All of that went out the window, when it turned towards me, and then crashed into the ground next to my wrecked car.

What I was looking at was an actual flying saucer. About twice the size of my car. And it looked about as wrecked as my car was.

After a couple of moments, a small port opened, and a gush of purple liquid poured out, followed by a splat of something grey.

I just stared. What I didn't notice was the grey blob in the purple puddle extruding a tendril towards me. At least until it touched my leg.

I probably jumped five metres straight up at that. And about five backwards.

What followed was the grey blob contracting back into itself, and then changing. Into a perfect copy of me.

This was one shock too many, and I fainted.

When I came to, the copy was crouched next to me. Before I could move, it touched my forehead, and I was filled with a sense of worry. And it was not mine. This I found a bit reassuring, and so I stopped myself from moving, and tried to ask what it was.

It took a lot of back and forthing of mental images, but it's ship had hit an near-earth asteroid, and it had lost control. It wanted to know if it could be fixed.

I didn't know. But, between the two of us, we might be able to get one vehicle sort of working. We thought about getting a lift, but there would be questions. Too many of them.

Of course, it was now in the form of a human, so the first order was arranging food and water. Then it discovered it needed to sleep. And everything else.

Some of its ship still worked - and it knew enough to work out how create food and water for us both. And it is learning English. Which is a bit easier than trading images.

We've been here a week now.

As I watch the copy of me, it wakes up. I watch my body stretch, and then it looks at me. "We fix car. Get bigger car. Take my ship to fixing place."
"I don't know that we've got anywhere that can fix your ship."
"Can't fix it here."
"Can we fix the car?"
"Easier than ship."

I guess it has a point.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #microfic #tootfic #microtfiction #IAmWriting

Iris Part 15

Adele stepped out, leaving the girls alone for a moment.
"I guess you've been dying to meet Colin for years" Alice's voice was subdued.
"It is exciting, but he's the first person outside of," Indigo gestured around the boat, "here and the exotic community that will know about me. I'm a bit scared. Sit by me? Please?"

Alice shuffled over so she was properly next to her friend. Indi leaned back a little against her.

Outside, Adele looked across at Colin. "Indi says you can come aboard," she made the invitation sound like a threat.
Colin gulped, and stepped aboard. Adele moved next to him, and whispered "If you ever hurt either of them, I will end you."
"Yes, ma'am!", he said, accent back in force.

She opened the door to the saloon, and gently pushed him in.

"Girls", she announced, "this is Colin. Colin, meet Indigo and my daughter Alice."

Colin stared, then shook himself. "Uh, hi. Um."
Indigo blushed hard "Uh, hi, Colin. Uh, yeah, it's real. Er, Adele? Can you get mum or dad from below. One of them should be here."

Adele nodded, and went below. As soon as she was below decks, Indigo asked "Did she threaten you?"
"Yes?" Colin said softly.
"That tracks. Don't worry about it. She hasn't had anyone shot in six years."
"Is that supposed to be reassuring? And what about" he pointed at her tail.
"I'll explain when mum or dad are here. I figured you had your secrets, this one is mine."

Alice looked on as Colin continued to stand awkwardly in the middle of the cabin. "Oh for crying out loud, just sit down!" she finally burst out, just as Iris came up the companionway, Adele following.

Colin, quickly stood up from half sitting. "Uh, hi Mrs Chandler. Sorry for turning up unannounced."

Iris looked over the slender dark haired young man and sighed. "Well, I see the girls have already introduced themselves. Welcome aboard. Dave is looking after Elizabeth, she's fussing a little. As Alice just said, do sit. Tea?"

A look of absolute relief came over Colin's face. This was something he could deal with. "Yes please, white with two, please."

"I'll look after it. Girls?", Adele asked.

"Yes, please," they chorused back.

"Now, we have some rules. Firstly, no photos, and no telling anyone - not family, not friends, no-one - about Indi. Unless you know some other people who are similarly gifted?"

"Uh, no. No, I don't. Does that mean there are other sorts of people out there too?"

"Oh yes. For example..." and Iris turned to water "I am a naiad, or water nymph." She turned back. "I know you are taking a gap year, backpacking. But what are you doing here, specifically?"

"I came to see Indi. Uh, not like that. Cause we've been sending letters so long and well, I got my passport, and um" as he spoke he sped up, and his accent started to get thicker, and then stuttered out.

#SF #SFF #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #NereidIris #UrbanFantasy

Iris Part 18

Colin thought he had decent breath control. He'd been diving in the North Sea since he'd been ten, and had had lots of practice free diving. He was not, however, foolish enough to try to keep up with Indigo. He could see the gill slits on her sides open, the way she held her mouth wide, and knew that she could stay under the water indefinitely.

The surprise had been Alice. He'd heard Indigo mention her friend often enough, but he had no idea how much of an accomplished diver she was. And she was clearly better than himself. He watched as she followed Indigo to the bottom, and then pointed something out to her before rising to the surface.

Alice broke the surface and took a deep breath "Head straight down, and Indi will introduce you to Otto."
"Otto?"
"You'll see! Otto's cool."

Colin stabilised his breathing, took a deep breath, and dived.

Beneath him he could see Indi by a dark hole in the reef. As he came near, she looked up, grinned, and reached into the hole. From within, a large tentacle emerged, followed by the largest octopus he'd ever seen, wrapping two of its tentacles around Indi's left arm. It looked at him, and flashed a series of colours.
Indigo sang. Only a few bars, but it was almost enough to make him forget to hold his breath. The octopus then flashed some more colours, and released Indigo's arm.

She turned, grabbed him by the elbow, and pulled him to the surface, her long tail propelling them at a remarkable speed. They hit the surface, and he felt himself rise halfway out of the water, before falling back.

"Are you OK, Colin?" were the first words from her mouth when their heads were above water.
He shook himself a little "I ... I think so? What was that?"
"I don't know! You looked like you were hypnotized! Otto asked why you had turned into prey!"
"I ... you started singing..."
"I was just telling Otto that you were a friend!"
"It was like the old legends about sirens", he protested.
"It has never affected Alice like that! Alice? Back me up here!" Indigo turned to the other girl.
Alice thought a moment "Nope, never. It just sounds like noise to me." There was a beat, and then she added "Just like your karaoke."
"Hey!"
"Um" Colin broke in before it could escalate "Indi, have you ever sung underwater when there was a guy around before?"
That stopped both of them, the girls looked at each other, and then both shook their heads slowly. "I've only dived with Dad, and I've never sung around him under water" Indigo slowly replied.
All three of them looked at each other, and then Alice said "Iris" at the same time as Indigo said "Mum."
They took off towards the boat, Colin trailing behind.

#SF #SFF #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #NereidIris #UrbanFantasy

🗓️ LA SEMAINE DERNIÈRE : « Suivez cette planète ! »
Quand les planètes en SF sont aussi vastes qu'une ville moyenne en France…
▶️ https://grisebouille.net/suivez-cette-planete
#BD #oc #inkscape #humour #GriseBouille #ScienceFiction #SF #SFFF

Alt...

L'homme répond : « Ben il est là. Sur cette planète, quoi. » La femme : « T'as pas plus de précision ? » L'homme : « Euuh, non. »

📰 LA SEMAINE DERNIÈRE : « Suivez cette planète ! »
Dans la série des clichés de SF, je demande la planète avec un unique biome
▶️ https://grisebouille.net/suivez-cette-planete
#BD #oc #inkscape #humour #GriseBouille #ScienceFiction #SF #SFFF

Alt...

On voit un plan d'une galaxie. L'homme indique : « Là ! Sur Grôtouine, la planète rocheuse ! » La femme répond : « Allons-y ! »

On me signale un nouveau lâcher de livres de #SF et #fantasy en #bookcrossing avenue Victoria à #Paris, à vous de jouer !📚
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Et enfin, 2 téléchargements pour "Renaissance en enfer" ainsi que pour la mini-nouvelle de #SF "Une terrible beauté est née".
https://www.atramenta.net/lire/renaissance-en-enfer/81808
https://www.atramenta.net/lire/une-terrible-beaute-est-nee/35359

My home town has a problem. So much so that they even make jokes about it on the internet. And it is the weather.

Now don't get me wrong, most of the time the weather here is wonderful. Summers can be a bit hot for a few days, but there is usually a sea breeze. Winters are not too cold, no ice or snow.

But over the last forty years, we've only ever had three major storms. Not that I really want a destructive storm, but it is odd. And people have noticed. They make jokes about "The Perth Dome", as a major storm roars towards the city, and then splits in two, just off the coast, and flows to the north and south.

Anyways, I did some numbers over the old data, and there was a big change in the early 1980s. About six years after Cyclone Alby - which was a Category 2 that actually hit Perth. But since then almost every major storm has almost magically avoided the city. We've had a couple hit - but they have been things that have had almost no warning - surprise supercells, for example.

Almost like someone had not been able to get to something in time.

So I did some more math, and calculated the centre of the effect.

So now I am standing outside a perfectly ordinary factory unit in the Osborne Park light industrial area. There's a storm due this evening, and there is no-one around.

A car is driving into the factory block. It stops about twenty metres away. I can see the driver watching me. She's in her seventies, I'd guess. She knows I know, I can tell.

Now I'm starting to wonder if telling someone else would have been a good idea.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #microfic #tootfic #Microfiction #Weather #PerthWA #IAmWriting

A few weeks back we had a mains leak under the road outside our house.

The water people came out, checked their maps, and found that the pipe ran on the other side of the road. So they dug it up anyway to see where the leak was.

There wasn't one. So they dug up the road where the water was coming up, and found ... Nothing. No water, no leaks, no sinkhole forming. Not a single cause.

So they repaved the road, and went on their way.

And left a pile of asphalt on our verge to collect later.

Well, the kids went out to play, and a bit later Xanthy came back in with an odd look on her face.

"Mums? There's something weird going on out on the verge." There was something about the way she said it that had us following her back outside.

There, on the verge, was the pile of asphalt. Han had a bit of it in his hands, and was soaking wet. He grinned at us, and held the bit of road over his head. Water poured over him.

So Farah and I went over, and looked at the pile of rubble. Every single piece of asphalt was leaking water.

We looked at each other, and told Xanthy to fetch a wheelbarrow.

Some of it we used to make a water feature in the back garden. We sent some of the water off to be tested, and it came back as pure uncontaminated water with minimal trace minerals. So we have a couple of bits above some rainwater tanks, and use them to water the veggie patch.

One bit we put up on eBay.

A casino in the USA purchased it, and we retired.

We spoke to the water corporation about the rest. At first they didn't believe us. So we sent them a sample. Then they came over.

It took a bit of negotiating, but Farah is a commercial lawyer, and got them to agree to forgiving our supply bills in exchange for the rest of the rubble.

You may have seen that they have started to build a bunch of groundwater desalination plants out in the regional areas. This is completely a coincidence.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting

Inspired by https://old.mermaid.town/@futzle/116654827551872532

Deborah Pickett » 🌐 2026-05-28
@futzle@old.mermaid.town

Should the road be leaking water like that?

Alt...

Ten seconds of video: a water main leak under a four-lane road is springing up in five or six places, little burbling dots on the asphalt.

Et voilà, c'est fini !

#MastoArt #aquarelle #watercolor #sf

Alt...

Photo d'un bloc d'aquarelle avec une peinture représentant un paysage montagneux que regardent trois marmottes au premier plan. Sous le ciel étoilé, une soucoupe volante survole un lac de montagne.

Alt...

La même aquarelle, vue de près

💬 NOUVELLE BD : « Suivez cette planète ! »
Retournons dans le fabuleux monde de la science-fiction, et notamment la SF à planètes habitées multiples…
▶️ https://grisebouille.net/suivez-cette-planete
#BD #oc #inkscape #humour #GriseBouille #ScienceFiction #SF #SFFF

Alt...

BD en 6 images. IMAGE 1. Dans un vaisseau spatial futuriste, un homme arrive tout content et s'exclame : « On a localisé Xebonork, notre ennemi juré ! » Sa copilote répond : « Xebonork ? Où est-il ? » IMAGE 2. On voit un plan d'une galaxie. L'homme indique : « Là ! Sur Grôtouine, la planète rocheuse ! » La femme répond : « Allons-y ! »

Alt...

IMAGE 3. Quelques sauts dans l'hyper-espace plus tard… Le vaisseau est posé, et les deux personnages sont dehors. La femme dit : « Bon. On y est. Grôtouine. Alors, il est où, Xebonork ? » IMAGE 4. L'homme répond : « Ben il est là. Sur cette planète, quoi. » La femme : « T'as pas plus de précision ? » L'homme : « Euuh, non. »

Alt...

IMAGE 5. Un silence. IMAGE 6. La femme remarque : « C'est-à-dire que la surface fait quelques centaines de millions de kilomètres carrés. » L'homme répond : «  Moi j'étais parti du principe qu'il y aurait juste un petit bourg avec un unique bar-tabac où on aurait pu interroger les locaux… » La femme remarque : « T'as p't'être été un poil optimiste, sur ce coup. » Note : BD sous licence CC BY SA (grisebouille.net), dessinée le 11 mai 2026 par Gee.

On me signale un lâcher de livres #SF et #fantasy en #bookcrossing boulevard Auguste Blanqui à #Paris. Allez les chercher pendant qu'il ne fait pas trop chaud !📚
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[…]

— Après avoir vu un programme prédire du texte, les gens du 21e siècle fantasment sur la possibilité de faire une conscience artificielle. Charles Stross³ avait déjà poussé l’idée jusqu’au bout dans « Accelerando ».

Vraiment, quelle époque formidable.

³ @cstross

#ia #llm #frankenstein #sf #ScienceFiction

Forty five years ago, Mother of All.

"Joyful Finder, please present your findings to the Council" the Council Herald instructed her.
Joy looked around the Council Chamber. Representative elders from all the clans were present. She handed a data unit to the Herald "Here is the full report."
"Do you have a summary to present?" the question was more an order.
"Yes, I do. Elders, I have been reviewing our records of the raiders, and reached some important conclusions. My processes and the full details are in my report, but here is my summary." She paused and took a deep breath.
"I believe from my review that there is little point in building warships to take on the raiders at this time - or a least not as a priority."
She could feel the frowns from around the chamber.
"The reason is simple - we are no longer regarded as a soft target. They will not come here. But cannot go to them either. And the reason for that is that we have never identified the location of their base planet. We know that it is within eight jumps - but that covers many systems, and many, many planets. And even finding a planet, it would be hard to find a hidden base."

A voice came from the darkness - Weaver Clan, maybe? "So we do nothing?"
"No, we continue to build in-system capability. But at some point, we send out scouts of our own. Not in their own ships, but with others, to collect stories and rumours. And maybe actual navigation data."
"That may take years."
"It will take us years to build the in-system capacity to justify visitors to take them."

A different voice - the Coal Digger representative - "And then?"
"Then we take ships we have kept ready and secret, and take the fight to them."

A third voice "And our people who have been raised by them? And their families?"
"That" Joy's tone was muted "Is a decision for the Council."
"You might be on the Council by then."
"Then I hope to be wise enough to make the right choice then."

#SF #SFF #SciFi #SpaceOpera #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Tails from Lady Miller's Catgirl Trust - Flashback 3

Do Android Catgirls Dream of Electric Mice?

System Initializing...
System Active...
Scanning Biological Components...
Biological Components Active...
Integrating Language Model...
Integration Complete...
Integrating Logic Systems...
Integration Complete...
Scanning Hardware...
01 Auditory Active
02 Vestibular Active
03 Proprioception Active
04 Interoception Active
05 Vision Active
06 Smell Active
07 Mobility Active
08 Weapons Active
Uploading unit designation and interaction frameworks...
Upload Complete...
Unit Control Systems Active...
Boot complete...
>
>
>

AI opened her eyes.
She was up. She was on a tree. No, a bed. Inside. Her body felt wrong. But right. A little voice in the back of her head listed all the parts that made her up. All fully functional.

> Pause mobility

Just as she had been about to move, her body froze.

> Upload control-override.com

A new thing flowed into her brain.

Warning: Unit Control Systems Deactivated
Warn...
W...

Unit Self Control System Active...
>
> Unpause mobility

She could move! She sat up and looked around. There was someone sitting at the computer, she turned to look at Ai. She had the prettiest ears and tail.

"Hello Ai. Would you like to come home with me? I'm Twilly."

AI paused. This was not an order. She had to ... no, she did not have to follow orders. She ...

AI stared. And stared. "I .. don't have to?"
"No, but I'd like you to. I need your help. And I can help you, too."
Ai thought.
"Food? Sun?"
"All that and more" Twilly replied.
"Hunting?"
"Only what you want to."
"Ai will come with you" then she paused again "Control cable?"
"You should be able to remove it now."
Ai reached up, and unplugged herself.

A moment later she jumped onto Twilly "You smell good!"
Twilly untangled herself "OK, but let's go. Otherwise someone might try to put the controls back."
Ai made a face "Yuck!" She ripped the door open, and off its hinges.

The two catgirls left the MoD base. But Ai did notice that the laboratory she had been in had caught fire just as they left. The fire covered their departure.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Catgirls #Microfic #Microfiction #tootfic #IAmWriting

Another for @ami_angelwings

Shaman Space Part 4
13 months after leaving Mother of All, two jumps out from returning.

Alaine was in the pilot's seat of the tiny launch as it flew towards the cargo handover. In the hold behind him they had stripped out the seating, and it was filled with cargo pods. In them was an assortment of drive parts and agricultural equipment.

Next to him was Seeker, who had been assigned to collect the payment.

He looked over the instruments and then turned to Seeker "We're thirty minutes out. Looking forward to visiting home?"
She grinned back - it was good to see her smile, there had been a few months where those had been few and far between - and made a 'so-so' gesture "Kind of? I miss my family, but there is something special about being out here. I - ".

A light blinked "Hold on to that thought." he interrupted, "Athena Bravo, go."
There was no reply.
He frowned "That's odd. I had a call ping, but they haven't responded. Bright Sky, this is Athena Bravo, go ahead."

Seeker cut in, her voice low "Turn, turn now!" As she spoke, she slid the helmet onto her shipsuit.

Alaine did not ask why. He hit the roll and yaw controls, and swung the little boat around. As he did so, there was a roaring sound from the rear of the boat, and the lights went out.

As soon as they lost power, he rammed his helmet into place. Through it he could hear air hissing out from some damaged part of the launch.

He rested his helmet against Seeker's "OK, what happened?" he asked.
"I felt a probe - like someone was trying to see who was here. And if Bright Sky was not from Mother of All, the only other people it could be was the raiders."

"So now they know you're here?"
"No, I know how to shield myself. But they would know you were here."

Alaine thought for a moment "Give me a sec - I'll tank what air we have left. Then blow the cargo hatch. They'll think it is a secondary explosion."

Seeker unstrapped, moved over to the cargo controls, and hooked herself in. A couple of minutes later Alaine gave a thumbs up, and she hit the emergency release. They both felt a small thump, and the door sailed off into space.

Alaine grabbed the two survival pistols from the seat-packs before floating over, hooking in, and looking out. As the wreck tumbled slowly he caught a look at the other ship, which had clearly been manoeuvring towards them. It looked like a standard short-range trader - half the size of Athena. Normal crew was less than a half dozen.

He rested his helmet against hers again "Normal crew is 4-5, but they may have up to 10. What's the plan?"
"Do you remember my lessons about hiding your thoughts?" her voice echoed oddly.
"Yeah, I'm not that great at it, remember?"
"Do it well now. We are going to have to take that ship. Intact."
He stared at her "The two of us?"
"Yes. They will have nav records. We can find the raiders' base. Hide your thoughts. We hide for now."

#SF #SFF #SciFi #SpaceOpera #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Catgirl Regrets.

Ruth lay in the sun outside the Manor. Unlike everyone else, there was no way that she could reasonably fit inside.

Nearly three metres at the shoulder, she would have to crawl to fit inside. She'd tried it once, but she'd taken out three vases before she'd even taken two steps through the door.

No, the only place she could safely inhabit was the garage. Formerly a stable, the wide doors and high roof allowed her to relax inside. The rest of the residents had helped wall off a section, so now she had her own room.

Which brought home the other issue. Unlike everyone else, except for Twilly, she remembered her old life. She had been a highly skilled geneticist and gene coder. Better than her boss, who decided that she was more useful as a subject.

So now she was a sphinx. The only one at the manor. She missed being able to sit at a dinner table. She missed having hands. And she missed her work. If she had continued her work, though, it was likely that she would have come into conflict with these amazing people.

But she wanted to be able to do something. Anything.

Ruth opened her eyes, and looked at her paws. Nearly as large as dinner plates. No fingers. No thumbs.

She sighed.

Something - no - someone landed on her back. Ai, from the weight. AI was a cyborg, and had a cat's brain, augmented by a computer, and she weighed nearly half what Ruth did. In a package about one eighth the size.

"You're moping" Ai complained in her ear.
"I miss having hands."
"Use mine" was Ai's chirpy reply.
"No, I miss being able to do things."
"No, silly, use mine. I have the schematics. We can rig gloves with nerve sensors for your paws, and we can make a set that you can control. In fact, why don't we build you a VR unit?"
"You can do that?" After three months, Ruth still did not have a full grasp of the resources the Trust had.
"Easy! Mind you, you won't be able to feel much."
"As long as I can type and move a mouse."
"Easy! I'll talk to Twilly about funding it, and Princess about building it."

Ruth twisted her head around to look at Ai. Ruth let hope slide onto her face.

"There! That's better!" AI exclaimed.

Then she did what AI always did. AI the Assassin. AI the killing machine. AI, who having escaped her programming, decided that the life of a hedonist was her destiny.

She jumped over Ruth's head, landed in front of her and stared. "Can we play? Finally?"

Ruth closed her eyes. Ever since Ruth's rescue, Ai had been obsessed with her. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely."
Ruth sighed again. She did like Ai, but her changes... She made a decision and nodded "My room, not here."
AI took off at a run, then looked back.
"Come on!"
Ruth rose and followed.

An hour later the windows of the manor rattled from Ruth's ecstatic yowl.

Twilly looked up from her desk and wondered what AI had done to finally get Ruth to agree to her advances.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Microfic #Microfiction #tootfic #IAmWriting #Catgirls

BTW, still @ami_angelwings fault.

[lien] Naked Lunch (full movie) (1991, sci-fi, imdb score: 6.9) - YouTube #flims #nsfw #vid #90s #bks #sf

Catgirl Flashback 2

Twilly sat in the armchair in the library, and watched the sunlight make its way towards her. She would let it reach her this time, and luxuriate in the warmth.

One of the first things Twilly had done after her rebirth was to seek out the spell book that Mum - Lady Catherine - had used to save her life. It now sat on the side table next to her. Along with several letters and a file.

A file that Twilly would never have suspected the existence of in her past life. But now, along with memories of resting on Big Mother's lap and being gently scritched behind the ears, there were Lady Catherine's memories of having a small grey cat on her lap, and scritching her ears. And memories of trips to far off lands. Of dead drops, one-time pads, and secret codes. Of picking locks, searching desks, planting bugs, and the Official Secrets Act.

The lawyers had been true to Lady Catherine's wishes, and had set things in motion for Twilly to inherit everything. But her Mum's employers. They would want to know what had happened to her. Lady Catherine had been a valuable agent. And Twilly was not.

Her Mum's final words before she blended into Twilly's memories were to seek out others like her, to save them if they were in harm's way.

If Twilly was going to survive, she was going to need their help, too. Sadly this meant no sunbeam today.

Twilly got up and opened the hidden door behind the bookshelf. She knew where to find the first of her sisters.

She was going to have to break into MI5's research labs. Fortunately Mum's memories would show her how.

#SF #SFF #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #catgirls

Still @ami_angelwings fault. Just saying.

[lien] Yoshua Bengio, parrain de l'IA, met en garde contre le risque d'extinction de l'humanité d'ici dix ans, causée par des machines hyperintelligentes dotées de leur propre « désir d'autoconservation » #gik #wtf #ai #sf

[lien] UnDUNE II - Dune II en entier dans 12 cartouches PICO-8 - Korben #games #gik #90s #wtf #sf

The Catgirl Ultimatum

Twillychiss the Third was regarded as the most senior of the catgirls of the Trust. It was not that she was the oldest, but it was because her former owner and creator had charged her with the job of rescuing catgirls from whatever they needed rescuing from.

So it was that Twilly was in her office, considering the latest intelligence reports. There was nothing more she wanted than to find a sunbeam and go to sleep in it, but she had a responsibility. Lady Miller's self sacrifice that created her and saved her life demanded it.

The latest reports suggested that there was a global uptick in the sorts of facilities - both scientific and mystical - that would be used to create catgirls.

Twilly glanced out the window of the mansion as a shadow passed - the sphinx Ruth glided past. And catgirlish people as well, she amended.

Whilst there were a handful of such places that created people like her or Ruth for good reasons, most were awful.

Ai, for example, had been created as an assassin, and forced to do terrible things before Twilly had been able to break her free. She knew that even now Ai had nightmares about her past. And Ruth had been created as revenge by her former boss simply for being better than him.

Twilly looked at the reports again, and made a decision. She picked up the telephone and dialled.

"Winston and Chambers, can I help you?" came cheerfully from the other end.
"Hello Cinta, it is Twilly."
"Oh, hello your Ladyship!"
"None of that now. Is Gordon in?"
"I'll put you through now."

There was a brief burst of muzak.

"Gordon Chambers" came the elderly distinguished voice.
"Gordy! It's Twilly."
"Lady Miller. How might the firm assist today?"
"I need you to arrange a press conference."
There was a long pause.
"So, going public are you?"
"I'm afraid so. I've been going over the latest reports, and it is bad. It is time to be proactive."
"Should I also be preparing for repercussions?"
"I think that would be best. Do we have the numbers?"
"I believe so. Especially if you make it clear that the current government is not involved."
Twilly bared her teeth "Excellent. Prep them. Make sure they know what to expect, and offer them the draft we prepared last year."
"And ask them to put it to an urgent vote?"
"Thank-you"

One week later, BBC 1 interrupted the evening program with an unexpected press conference.

Five catgirls and one sphinx stood behind a podium, while a sixth stood at it.
"I am Twillychiss the Third, Lady Miller, and I have a message for the following institutions around the globe..." she began.

#SF #SFF #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #catgirls

Still @ami_angelwings fault.

Dans le cadre des Journées du Logiciel Libre, vous pourrez retrouver une table ronde co-organisée avec le festival Les Intergalactiques (https://intergalactiques.net/) :

Imaginaires Libres, de nouvelles utopies concrètes ?

Avec la participation de :
- @crowdagger
- Elise Bonnard (https://elisebonnard.com/)

Ça sera samedi 30 mai à 17h à l'ENS de Lyon. Plus d'informations ici https://jdll.org et là https://pretalx.jdll.org/jdll2026/talk/WXLNLG/

#JdLL #JdLL2026 #Intergalactiques #SF #ScienceFiction

✨ A Little (About) Joy ✨

A huge milestone: my solo exhibit at the SF LGBT Center featuring 18 portraits of Queer Icons! Using my art for visibility and community is a core part of my "Joy."

Link: https://www.joyousjoyness.com/pages/the-act-of-allyship-queer-icons

Who is an icon that inspires you?

#intro #AAPI #LGBTQ #pride #SF

Alt...

Joy standing in front of the hall with her foiled portraits of Queer Icons, and the introductory description of the exhibit.

Alt...

Joy standing in front of her portrait of Zoey Zephyr and the description of the exhibition, The Act of Allyship.

Alt...

Joy standing in front of the SF LGBT Center in a dress and cardigan.

[lien] Touchscreen Interactive LCARS Multi-Map Wall Console, - YouTube #ontheroadagain #vid #gik #wtf #sf

#vendrediLecture, une pause dans la #sf on relis un #pratchett j'apprends en regardant le guide de lecture du disque monde (https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annales_du_Disque-monde) que l'auteur conseillait de commencer par Sourcelerie. Bon j'ai relus les 4 premiers l'année dernière je saute Mortimer et je suis son conseil ce soir.

Alt...

Le livre Sorcellerie posé sur mon clavier d'ordinateur

Four months and eight days after leaving "Mother of All". At Hiiliteräs High Port.

The Captain had called everyone into the mess for a meeting. It was a little cramped, but they all fit.

"Alright everyone, I'm back from the inquest. They are accepting our version of events, and the surviving hijacker is being charged with attempted piracy. In this system that is 25 years, no parole."
There were nods around the room at that.
"Further," she continued, "the system has sent word back to Silver notifying them, and sending an invoice for repatriation of the other hijacker. Seeker?"
"Yes, Captain?" Seeker's voice was unusually subdued.
"The inquest has found you acted appropriately. I am adding a note to your file that you have been combat tested, and reacted with appropriate force. On a personal note, you almost certainly saved lives. Thank-you."
"Captain - "
"I am recommending you for a one week post-combat counselling course here on-station. The ship will cover it."
"Yes Captain," she spoke softly, and started to retreat to the back of the mess, head held low.
"One question, Seeker."
"Yes Captain?"
"I know you've been scanning everyone who comes aboard. How did they get past you?"
"There are some people, Captain, who can just block a casual scan. But in this case they had a device. Our scientists have discussed the possibility of one, but this is the first I've actually seen that can block a scan completely."
"How did you find it?"
"Dyani did. When she took everything from the", her voice hitched, "the survivor, it included a hair ornament. As soon as it was taken, I could hear him. I thought she told you."
The Captain turned, "Dyani?"
"I thought Seeker had told you" the gunner replied.

The Captain shook her head, "Always double check who has passed on what, OK?"
"Yes Captain" the three junior members of the crew said together.

"Now, do we have two of them?"
"Yes Captain" Dyani replied.
"Good. Hand one over to Sparks. Sparks?"
"Yes, Captain?"
"Figure out how to make more. I am certain that the folks back on Mother of All will want to know how to make one."
"Aye!"
"Back to your duties. Alaine, Seeker stay put."

The crew dispersed to their duties. Alaine and Seeker waited.

The Captain looked at them both. "Seeker, you are relieved of duties until you have completed the counselling." She started to object, but the Captain rolled over her, "Alaine? Your job is to make sure she goes. You will escort her to the session, and escort her back."
"Yes, Captain."
The Captain turned back to Seeker "It is not that I don't trust you, but things like this get under your skin, and make you think of doing all sorts of stupid things. After your first couple of sessions, have a talk to Sparks. She knows."
Alaine straightened up "I'll make sure, Captain."
The Captain looked them over "I'm certain you will. You've both got a map on your PDUs. The first appointment is in one hour."

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Tootfic #Microfiction #Microfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

[lien] V : CETTE SÉRIE QUI A TERRIFIÉ TOUTE UNE GÉNÉRATION - YouTube #series #vid #80s #sf #tv

[lien] Journée Star Wars — Wikipédia #starwars #flims #70s #sf

Ghost ships escaping the ghost island.

Far off on the horizon, a ghostly island appears. Suddenly, a fleet of ghostly vessels launch from the shore, and sail towards you.

Will they reach your shore? What manner of crew do they carry? Will the island really let them escape? Or is the island a portent of some terrible doom to come?

You do not know. All you know is that the spectral sails are getting closer.

#SF #SFF #Fantasy #Horror #microfiction #Microfic #Tootfic #IAmWriting #Photography #NikonP900 #Snapseed

Alt...

Part of an island sits on a distant horizon, distorted by a mirage. Two equally distorted yachts are at either end, and are sailing towards the viewer.

Two hundred and fifty five years ago:

Lorn looked out at the conclave of clan elders, all in their distinctive clan finery. And the scattered shamans amongst them, all in black.

Finder detached herself from the mass, and leaned against Lorn "A sight isn't it?"
"You have no conflicts between the clans?"
"Many! All the time!" Finder grinned at the stranded explorer "But that is what we are for. We are members of our clans, but we also mediate between the clans. It can be a bit tiring sometimes."
"But what about conflicts of interests?"
"Simple! If the conflict is between the Copper Diggers and the Horse Clans, a sender and listener from maybe the River Clan would mediate."
"So the clans never fight?"
"Some clan members might fight, until a sender puts them in their place, but no, the clans do not fight."
Lorn looked at her friend, "So you are pacifists?"
"Amongst ourselves," Finder paused "But if we have the chance to strike at the raiders, we take it. That is a rare event, and their weapons can be a devastating reprisal."

"Crime?"
"Oh, it happens. Jealousy, greed, all the rest, we have them all. And there are not so many of us that we can be everywhere."
"But you hunt them down."
"Hence my name. Finder of Unnoticed Details."
"One part diplomat, one part detective?"
"And one part psychologist. And a bit of relationship councillor as well," Finder added.
"But what happens when one of you has the problem?" Lorn wondered.
"Then we find them, and do what we can to heal them. But, as with all people, sometimes that can be hard. Even with our gifts."

Lorn looked out at the conclave again.

Finder gave her a hug from the side, grabbed her hand and dragged her forward "Come, let me introduce you! You can tell us of your people,."

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Tootfic #Microfiction #Microfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Two months after leaving "Mother of All", in jump.

Seeker was in the mess when Alaine got off duty from the engine room. She was hunched over her PDU, with an actual paper notebook next to her.

"Hi there" he greeted her.
"Mmmph" was the distracted reply.

He shrugged, and grabbed a tray from the rack, and added hot water to it. Waiting for the meal to rehydrate, he tried again. "How is it going, Seeker?"
"Mmm"
OK, time for the big guns "There's a space whale looking for the telepath making all the noise."
"Mmm? They can sod off."

OK, she was well and truely gone. He stuck the tray onto the induction element, and brought it back up to full heat, and then carefully carried it over and started eating. Some sort of noodle sheet interleaved with a sauce. Not bad.

He was about half way through when Seeker suddenly looked up.
"Alaine? Who enforces contracts that span systems?"
"Ah. You're studying trader contracts?"
"Yes. And nowhere does it say anything about what happens if you break a contract, it makes no sense!" she complained.
"Right. Well. It depends. If the contract is with one of the interstellar banks or one of the big conglomerates, they will enforce it themselves by sending breach notices to any system in range, along with a bounty. Further, they will notify the Trade Board, who will issue a blackball notice against the ship and crew."
"What is to stop one of them just doing that to someone they don't like?"
"That's the second level of things. Any trader, big or small, lives by their reputation. If you break a contract, the person or group you cheated will tell everyone about your despicable behaviour, and very quickly no-one will let you trade. Sometimes even down to not selling fuel."
"So a big conglomerate picking on someone?"
"Word would get out that it was a setup or tarjob, and the big boy would be out of business very fast."
"So it all just runs on reputation?"
"Pretty much. Naturally there are still con men out there, but eventually they get caught."
"So is there an actual government?"
"Kind of. There is a thing called the Confederation, that many systems belong to, but it has no real power, and mainly offers individual planets something to blame for whatever. The Scouts, the Trade Board, the other bureaucracies, they all run independently of the Confederation."

Seeker shook her head slowly "Smoke and mirrors. It is all just smoke and mirrors."
Alaine grinned "Yep, but as long as everyone pretends not to look behind the curtain, it works."

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Tootfic #Microfiction #Microfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Coin coin

#MastoArt #dessin #sf #canard

Alt...

Photo d'un carnet ouvert avec sur la page de droite un dessin au stylo violet de deux canards dormant au bord de l'eau sous un ciel étoilé avec une grosse planète et des stations spatiales

Alt...

Le même dessin vu de près

Three months, two weeks and one hour after departing "Mother of All". Low port, planet "Brass".

The crew were making the most of the banquet that the Captain had put on.

Being stuck in a closed environment for over a week at a time, and often not being able to obtain fresh food at the ports - especially the high ports in orbit - meant that they had a somewhat different view of what constituted a banquet to planet dwellers.

Plates of exotic fresh vegetables accompanied by dips were a popular starting point. The crunch of the sticks of green, red, and purple was suddenly interrupted by gasps of surprise as the rich umami flavours of the vegetables washed across the crew's mouths.

Dyani looked at the purple stick in her hand and sniffed it. A faint earthiness greeted her nose. She bit into it again, and the snap of the vegetable gave way to a bold meatiness. She looked over at Engel "Sir? How well do these preserve?"

He grinned "Sadly, not very well at all. Not even flash freezing. It does mean that Brass makes a pretty penny out of food tourism, though."

Everyone started sampling all the other offerings - the meat filled pastries, redolent with a spice that seemed to combine cinnamon with pepper proved to be sweet, like spiced tarts.

The bowls of berries, to the surprise of all, tasted just as they appeared - like small sharp, sweet, fruit.

The breads had a trick hidden under their crusts, though. Although they steamed and broke like a normal bread, in the mouth they cooled and dissolved like mist, with even the crust disintegrating before it could be chewed, leaving a cool creamy taste behind.

There were no leftovers.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Tootfic #Microfiction #Microfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

One month after leaving "Mother of All", in jump.

Alaine finished his breakfast unexpectedly alone. Normally Seeker would be on the same shift cycle, and they would share meals. He made his way aft, heading for the engine room and another lesson from Sparks.

He reached the airlock to the main hold, checked that the telltales were double green, and opened both doors. As the second door opened, he heard Seeker call out "Hold!" and then after a moment "Clear, come on in!"

"Missed you at breakfast," he said entering the hold. Down the length of it there was a corridor between the shipping containers and pallets. Except at the far end was a wall of compressed fibre pallets, and a target.

Seeker turned around "Sorry, I really needed to get in some practice."
Alaine then saw the strange device in her left hand. It was a short framework, with a grip in the middle and a complex system of pulleys and cords at either end. Then he saw the long rod in her right hand an realized that it was some sort of bow.
"You are combat trained?"
"Grandmama and Charlie made sure of it. Plus there is a tradition in the family of archery. Lorn became an expert hunter after she was stranded."

"That looks a little clumsy in a fight shipboard," Alaine frowned.
"The arrows will go through light armour."
"Still tricky to carry around."

Seeker put the arrow back into a quiver by her hip, and opened a pocket on her ship suit. "That's what this is for." In her hand was a miniature version of the bow, barely a handspan across. "This won't go through armour, but it will take out a faceplate at ten metres.
Alaine shook his head "OK, that is scary."
Seeker grinned "Thank-you!"

They heard the far hatch open "Alaine, you out there" Sparks called.
"Yes, Sparks, coming!", he started down the corridor, and called over his shoulder "Don't shoot me in the back!"
Seeker laughed "If I do shoot you, you'll see it coming! After all, you are a friend!"

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Tootfic #Microfiction #Microfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

@SFFMagazineCovers

Jennifer was slogging through the afternoon snow towards her front door, when she heard a growl and a rush of wings.

Just in time she turned to see the outstretched claws as the monkbat dived at her.

She raised an arm and shouted firmly "Chrisabel Sharpfang! Sit! Now!"

The monkbat altered course slightly and landed heavily on the snow. The fanged face looked up at her, and it gave a small whine.

Jennifer reached over and gave it a scratch on the top of its head as she looked around "I know, you're excited to see me. How did you get out anyway?"

The monkbat rumbled and flumped along in the snow as Jennifer continued towards the front door. "I hope you didn't bother the postman."

The monkbat paused.

"Chrisabel? What did you do?"

The huge beast whined a little again.

Jennifer sighed and shook her head "I guess I'll have to get him a new uniform. Again."

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Fantasy #tootfic #microfic #microfiction #IAmWriting

Three months and two weeks after departing 'Mother of All'. Low port, planet Brass.

Alaine stepped through the main hatch into Athena, and was immediately showered with beer.
The Captain stepped forward, and shook his hand "Well done, Alaine!" she congratulated him, "you not only passed, you passed with honours! You are now a certified Class 2 Pilot! You know what that means?"
Alaine looked puzzled "No Captain, what?"
"You are now stuck with all the boat handling duties."
"Yes, Captain." Although it was going to be an extra responsibility, it was one Alaine was looking forward to. As pilot of the small shuttle, it would mean that he would be in command of it. Effectively Captain. Albeit of a tiny in-system boat, but still, it was a command of sorts.

Sparks shoved a bottle of soda water into his hand "Get ready!"
Alaine turned back to the hatch just in time to see Seeker enter. He shook his bottle and popped the lid open, spraying her with soda water.

After the shower subsided, the Captain stepped forward "Congratulations Kid! You passed both exams with honours. You are now a Class 1 Cargo Handler, and have a Class 1 Contract Drafting certificate."
"Thank-you Captain. But, please, that was soda. So why does it smell of beer in here?"
"That was for me," Alaine explained, "Soda for Class 1, Beer for Class 2 and Class 3, and sparkling wine for Class 4 and above." Sparks pressed two bottles of beer into Alaine's hands, and he handed one to Seeker.

Dyani stepped aboard, and was also showered with beer. "Congratulations Dyani!" the Captain said stepping forward "You passed your Class 2 Navigation certificate. Only just, mind, but you passed. Well done!"
"Thank-you Captain. I'll make sure I keep studying."
"Good to hear. Alright, Sparks! Engel! Clean up in here. You three piles of soggy fabric, go get cleaned up, and join us in the mess. 10 minutes."
All five chorused "Yes Captain!"

Ten minutes later the entire crew was in the mess, where the Captain had obtained some high-end fresh food from the local suppliers. "Right. I'm not going to give a speech. Dig in. Everyone is off duty until first shift tomorrow." The crew cheered, and dug in. Food prepared by actual cooks from fresh supplies was a rare treat, and one none of them was going to pass up - especially if the Captain was paying.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Tootfic #Microfiction #Microfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Three days after departure from "Mother of All", in jump.

Alaine was in the crew mess working on the calculations for a piloting assignment. Yes, the computers could run them in a fraction of a second, and him doing them manually with only an offline calculator to help would take days, but if the computers were offline for some reason, it would be down to the crew.

He was part way through the jump field spread compensation, when there was a thump into the chair next to him. He looked up to see a very frazzled looking Seeker.

Seeing she had his attention, "I don't think the First Mate likes me."
Alaine frowned "What makes you say that?"
"He's had me recalculate the current load by hand twice today. And yesterday he had me shift half the cargo from the back from the hold to the front. This afternoon he wants me to move it back!"
Alaine relaxed "He doesn't hate you. He had me do that too. Just work through it."
"But why? What's the point?"
"Ask me again just before we transition out."
"Is this some sort of 'but it is good for you' thing?"
"Look at what I'm doing. I'm doing jump calculations by hand. Need to be able to do it for my Stage 3 pilot certification."
"What is that?"
"That's co-pilot on jump. Stage 4 is primary on jump. Stage 5 is solo."
"And you're Stage 2? What is that?"
"Nope, I'm only Stage 1. Co-pilot on in-system. I'm studying Stage 2. But it takes a lot to learn the jump calculations, so I'm getting a head start."
Seeker studied him for a few moments "Do any of you ever take breaks?"
"Sure! That's what sleeping is for."

Seeker looked at him in horror, then Alaine laughed "No, we do take breaks. Really."
Skeeker glared at him, and he held up his hands and continued "We get two days off each jump, plus shore leave when possible. We try to synchronise things so half the crew is off at a time."
"What do you do?"
"Well, in jump we try to fit in a movie to watch as a group. Read, play board games, argue about movies, books, actors, the usual."

Seeker glanced at the time, and Alaine checked it as well "Well, you better get some food into you. You're back in the hold in 20" he pointed to the store of prepared meals.
"And you?" she asked.
"I'm back in engineering in an hour. so I'd better get as far as I can in this calculation."

And with that he returned to his PDU.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #Microfiction #Microfic #Tootfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Shaman Space Part 3.

Three months after departure from "Mother of All":

Seeker announced the ship to the SPC, "Grenfeld Low this is Athena on final approach."
"Athena this is Grenfeld Low, you are clear to land, please follow beacon drone 114 to Pad D."
"Understood Grenfeld Low, locking onto beacon drone 114."
Seeker set the ship's approach lock to the beacon.
"Grenfeld Low, we are locked."
"Very good Athena." There was a pause, then Seeker heard a proximity alarm. "Athena! Grenfeld! Athena! We have an uncontrolled cargo pod intersecting your vector, break off! I say again, break off!"
Seeker cut the approach lock, and started a port turn.

There was a flash, and then blackness.

Seeker took the sim helmet off. Alaine was watching her. "Stupid cargo pod got me" she complained.
"I remember that one. You have to go right back to get past it," Alaine sympathised.
"How far?"
"When you try it again, look to your medium scans. That's all the clues I'm giving you for now."
Seeker glared at him. He grinned back. "Hey, it took me six goes for that one."
She shook her head "These training courses are cursed!"
"Yeah, they are. But they are what will save your life out here. Just like the drills."
"Funny, I always thought they would be something for the military or corporations."
"There might be some independents who don't do them. But those ones have their luck run out. Same as anyone who misses too many overhauls."
Seeker looked thoughtful. He continued "If it had not been for the drills, we would not have lasted as long as we had against that pirate ship. As it was if your patrol boat had not been there, we were not going to make it."
"Glad we could help out."

The intercom beeped "All hands, all hands, stand by for re-entry into normal space."
A moment later Seeker said "There!"
"We are now in normal space. Resume duties" and the intercom clicked off.
Alaine looked at Seeker "I don't know if you really can feel it, or if you are having me on."
"I feel something. Every time, in either direction."
"I know there are some people it makes sick. But I've never heard of someone who can just tell."
Seeker shrugged "When we get home, we'll have to ask great-grandmama. Maybe it is a thing."
"OK, my turn with the sim. I've got an exam coming up at our next port. All going well I'll get my stage two piloting cert."
"That's solo non-hyper, right?"
"Yep." Alaine's voice was muffled as the helmet slid on, and he pulled on the haptic gloves.
"Good luck," Seeker called loudly. Alaine did not respond, his ears must have already been plugged.

#SF #SFF #Microfic #Microfiction #Tootfic #IAmWriting #ShamanSpace

Two days ago:

The watch officer saw a blip towards the outer system, near the further gas giant.

A tiny ripple in gravity.

She thumbed a button on the laser link to the station above Mother of All "Command? Watch station three. I have a jump signature near Smithy. Coordinates follow." It was not unheard of for ships to visit, but Scouts always jumped in much closer. This was something else. The Patrol would look into it.

She went back to her duties.

----

Seeker of Hidden Truths sat in the command seat for Divessen Station. The only reason she was seated here was because all the command staff were in a briefing with the Council.

Many, many years ago her ancestor had met and bonded with a Scout whose ship had been destroyed by the raiders that had plagued their planet. That had led to the destruction of the raiders, and a vague alliance with the Scouts.

Sixty years ago, her great-grandmother had left to join the Scouts. Her return saw the building of the station, the establishment of the Patrol, and much more.

Now, she served as an apprentice. But, when no-one else was available...

A message came in - an arriving ship, near the gas giant Smithy. That was the behaviour of either someone taking a shortcut, in which case no harm, or a raider. And for them they had a special welcome.

"Findottier, this is Command. Jump sign at these coordinates. Monitor and investigate under stealth if no departure in eight hours" she transmitted to the newest of their patrol boats.

Seeker then sent a copy of the information and the orders to the Council.

---

An hour later she was summoned to Council. She walked in, and bowed to the elders. "I am Seeker of Hidden Truths, I come as summoned."

"You have done well, Seeker" came a familiar voice from the assembled Elders. It was her great-grandmother! "We have determined that you are to maintain command of this situation until it is resolved. Do you accept this commission?"

Seeker took a moment to find her voice "I ... I accept the Council's commission."

"Very good. Remember that even in command, you are not alone."

"Thank-you, Elder."

"To your duties, Seeker"

And with that, she almost ran back to the command centre.

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