Star Traks: BorgSpace

This is the place to discuss the various Star Traks series and stories.
Makin' Traks
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by borgcrazy »

Whoops! I seem to have missed feedback for a story!

Best in Show
Well, that was ... interesting. I like how you established that the status quo was going to be restored at the beginning of the story instead of making us wonder - that way we could just focus on the fun of the situation Prime found herself in.
And what a fun situation that was! I've always been a fan of "fish-out-of-water" stories, and this one was a great example. Seeing a mighty Borgified Flarn reduced to pet-status was hilarious. The whole time, we know she could - and would! - mop the floor with everyone at the show, but the fact she can't makes for great conflict. Sometimes it's the internal conflicts like this that are more interesting than the external conflicts (something that I need to work on in Governor's Song, I know) not only for the character-building aspect, but also for the fact that it's so darn entertaining. The risk, though, is too much internal conflict can become angsty, and that's less interesting IMO.
At any rate, you handled it well - it didn't become angsty - and yes, the mental image of a Flarn yo-yoing (a Borg Flarn, of all things!) was definitely the highlight of the story. I don't think I'm going to forget that mental image for a while.

Paved With Good Good Intentions
I guess I've been watching too much shows and movies with crazy twists, but I figured out what the twist to this one was going to be way early on in the story. By the time it was revealed, I was simply nodding and saying, "Yup, I knew it."
Still, that aside, I too love the outsider perspective stories, especially in BS. Like you said, it's easy to forget that the imperfectly assimilated are the villains of the Galaxy - just because you portray them so loveably doesn't change that fact. I understand how hard it is to balance character likeability with cultural distastefulness, and that's the value of these outsider stories - they remind us just how distasteful the culture is.
Finally, why do I get the feeling that the digital backdoor was put there by someone other that the resident drones? It doesn't make sense for a drone to create something like that, given that most of the accessed systems are readily available for all to use. It seems more to me that those are something an outside agent would need to monitor, and given Cube #238's recent experience(s) with stowaways, it wouldn't be surprising if they haven't completely purged themselves of unwanted passengers.
Traks Fan
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by Donald »

3.17 The Turtle Moves.

I know its old, but I'm still working my way through Season 3.

Congrats Maija, this is the funniest thing I've read in ages. Now, how are you going to work the Watch, or better still, Granny Ogg, into Borgspace?

Donald
Power is Nothing without control. That's why I'm not allowed either!
Captain Silverado
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by b-guy »

I'm also pretty far behind.

I just finally finished reading Season 9 of BorgSpace. Very much enjoyed it, and reading it was LONG overdue. I don't really have many comments on specific stories. I liked the way the Critics/Directors were explored, and given a role beyond 'omnipotent being that pops in from time to time'. And the 'Choose Your Own Adventure' idea was classic...I remember reading those old books when I was in middle school! 'So You Don't Want To Be A Borg' and 'Silence of the Dogs' stood out as well...entertaining storylines and some great scenes.

I really liked the way you handled the balance between story arc and stand-alone story in this season. You've got the overall Quest, and most of the stories relate to it, but each story maintains a very solid plot line on it's own. After doing the Matrian Uprising arc, I think I like your way a bit better than my seemingly-never-ending-story. Where you come up with some of your ideas (Xenig, Bugs) I'll never know, but they add a lot to your stories.

SPOILERS!

I will say that I was very dissappointed when everybody got blown up. You sent them out with a bang, that's for sure, but I was still pretty sad...

Overall though, a great season. Sorry I'm so far behind on commenting on it.
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El yerno no favorito
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by Star Traks »

Donald wrote:3.17 The Turtle Moves...Congrats Maija, this is the funniest thing I've read in ages.... Donald
I second Donald's observation on 3.17 The Turtle Moves.

Maija - that was an artistic work of both writing & entertaining art. 8-)

Take Care All - GTG
Distant Origin 3.23 Saurian Professor Gegen: It wasn't an invasion. We were on a field expedition to learn more about your species. We meant no harm. I'm a molecular paleontologist.
Chakotay: [referring to injury] Do you always harpoon the local wildlife?
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by Donald »

At 0125 hours GMT 27 August 2010, this drone completed a review of Seasons 1-9 of Borgspace .

Conclusions


1) I'm really going to miss this sub collective.

2) Although there was a story arc throught the last 4 seasons, I enjoyed the way it never became overpowering. There were always standalone episodes to leaven the mixture.

3) I refuse to believe Cube 347 was destroyed. The Writers won't allow it! I'm writing pink page amendments now. These may involve an unlikely combination of Phasic matter instability, a cosmic imbalance and 3 gallons of peach ice cream. Bring on Cube 347A.

Seriously, Maija. This was excellent. It's what my Sony reader was made for.

Donald
Power is Nothing without control. That's why I'm not allowed either!
Queen of BorgSpace
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by Meneks »

After real life changes, including new job location and moving, I am back! And with a new story! But, before I get to author comments (next post), I thought I would respond to the last couple of comments.

*****
The Turtle Moves - what can I say? Terry Pratchett is one of my favorite authors. He probably has one of the best takes on spoof and (good-natured) satire that I have seen in a long time. Of course, it seems that authors from the UK who delve into the realm of satire tend to write it much better than many others. I've not come across many US (or english-speaking North American authors, for that matter) who do satire well. Probably because the US audience, as a whole, tends to get all up-tight and take things literally. Gah...many people I've talked to about "Gulliver's Travels", assuming they have ever read it, think it is a children's story...which it very much is not.

Anyway, Turtle remains one of my favorite stories, and I'm glad I did not abuse Pratchett's characters too much when I borrowed them.

******
End of Season 9 and Cube #347 series?
You think I could leave my poor, overly abused Cube #347 sub-collective alone? Really? They've been blown up before, after all!

There are spoilers concerning the post-Season 9 fate of Cube #347. In addition to the last epilogue paragraphs of Finis Coronat Opus, spoilers may be found in the Cube #238 miniseries...and, perhaps, a few other places as well.

Yes, I was already planning for Cube #347's demise before the start of Season 9. I like arcs. I like arcs that take years to complete. And that is all I will say.
Currently working on -
Star Traks: BorgSpace - Book 3, Part 1 - "Invocation of the Birds - Ruffled Vulture, Dusty Pheonix"

--Time is merely an illusion perpetrated by the manufacturers of space
(Anonymous)
Queen of BorgSpace
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by Meneks »

Debugging the System

The hardest part of this story - other than finishing it in a timely manner given various real-life distractions - was the title. Many times I already have a title in mind when I start, or one becomes obvious in the course of writing, but this one had a big, bold "Untitled" on it from Day 1. Even after I had completed the editing process, a title remained elusive. The only thing I was sure of is that it had to include the word "bug", "insect", or similar in some manner. Then, as seems to happen often, my backbrain finally came up with a solution and forwarded it to my conscious self. Translation - I woke up one morning this last week, knowing what the title should be.

This is not as odd as it sounds. Many a time I have set myself to dream BorgSpace plots and stories. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, and sometimes I just end up with weird dreams. This time, however, the subconsciousness came through for me.

On to other comments about the story!

I knew when I was first outlining the Cube #238 miniseries that there had to be a story about livestock. When the sub-collective makes one of its appearances within the Cube #347 series, there is what appears to be a throw-away line by Engineer concerning how much he dislikes livestock. Therefore, it only seemed appropriate that I needed a story that revolved around why Borg and critters do not mix. Cube #347 never had a livestock-centric story - it was mentioned once or twice that Cube #347 had carried animals before, but it is unlikely such was a common occurance due to Doctor's nature - so, therefore, it seemed good to give Cube #238 some dillema it could call its very own.

Within the story itself, I took the time for a bit of character development or character maintenance. There is Doctor's very brief entrance whereupon he asserts his refusal to consider working on the captured millips, thereby allowing me to continue to build his towering ego as well as distance himself from his Cube #347 counterpart. Similarly (but without the ego), Cube #238 Weapons continues to show himself to be levelheaded and competant, and completely different from the admittedly scary personality which was Cube #347 Weapons.

And, of course, there is the underlying currents of Prime's "tutoring" of Engineer. Oh, and by the way, I did google "Chief Engineering for Dummies", just in case there was an actual book. I did not come up with anything, but you never know. If in the future I develop an odd memory lapse concerning the supposedly fictional book, well...

That pretty much sums it up for these comments!
Currently working on -
Star Traks: BorgSpace - Book 3, Part 1 - "Invocation of the Birds - Ruffled Vulture, Dusty Pheonix"

--Time is merely an illusion perpetrated by the manufacturers of space
(Anonymous)
Queen of BorgSpace
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by Meneks »

Going on a (Gender) Bender

This particular story is one that I've had in mind since I was first outlining the Cube #238 mini-series. I knew that there was to be an Assimilation story; and that, since her race is hermaphroditic, it was thus required to include some sort of gender confusion. On top of that, given Assimilation's background, there had to be an element of on-line gaming. And the alcohol? That part was self-evident, at least to me.

As always, it is the details that make it difficult. If only there was a machine that could translate what I see in my head into words on the paper or computer screen.

Then again, on second thought, perhaps it is best that such a device does not actually exist. ;)

This is one of those stories where I do not have too much to say, once completed. I did like the concept of poking fun at the rabid gaming community. I admit, I've had those obsessive-compulsive moments when I see a new computer game I have to own, but I've never gotten caught up in the on-line rigamarole. Okay, I'll confess to a fling at times with the Discworld MUD, but that is an old-school text-based game that is really easy to walk away from when real-life (and the sun) beckons.

I think the primary purpose of this story was as a break from the trek Cube #238 is on. I wanted to play around with a bit of character development, something I feel is important given that the mini-series is a limited run: unlike Cube #347, there are not seasons-worth of development setting a foundation for the characters. In this way, I start to further turn them into 'people' in an of themselves.

Okay, that's enough!
Currently working on -
Star Traks: BorgSpace - Book 3, Part 1 - "Invocation of the Birds - Ruffled Vulture, Dusty Pheonix"

--Time is merely an illusion perpetrated by the manufacturers of space
(Anonymous)
Queen of BorgSpace
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by Meneks »

And...as a preview of what will magically appear on the BorgSpace site sometime mid-February, I took a little break in the last month from Cube #238 to work on the Assimilations, Part II mini-run I've been thinking of doing. Well, I've gone beyond 'thinking' and worked my way into 'doing'. Here's an excerpt from "Prime Duty":

*******
Many have tried, and failed, to describe a Flarn. 'Beatle', 'bug', and 'insect' have all been used, often in conjunction with variations upon 'lizard' and 'dinosaur'. Mammals such as 'bear', or whatever equivalent creature might be within the speaker's lexicon, are occasionally invoked, despite the fact that no hair has ever graced a Flarn hide. Most do agree that Flarn are 'big' and 'strong', and that terms such as 'beautiful' should only be utilized with a strong dose of irony.

Flarn are often considered to be an amalgam of insectoid and reptillian characteristics. For most people, the initial impression upon meeting a Flarn for the first time is one of height: adults average 2.5 meters, with some individuals on record to be pushing the 3 meter mark. In other words, a Flarn towers over most of the galaxy's bipeds. The next focus of attention is often the large, multi-faceted eyes dominating the face. For species equipped with a more conventional ocular structure, conversing with a Flarn is somewhat unsettling because none of the traditional eye-orientated cues are present. Finally, one cannot but help not notice the epidermis. Typically dark in color, the pseudo-exoskeleton that encases a Flarn is a light-weight chitin, less robust than that possessed by true insectoids, but tougher than mammalian skin or reptilian scales. Because of limitations imposed by the exoskeleton, Flarn mood is rarely conveyed via facial expressions, instead minute variations in body posture performing that role. A traditional calcium-based skeleton is present - it has to be, anchoring the extremely powerful musculature required to carry the natural armor.

With a physiology that mixes the attributes from several generalized clades, all attempts by purveyors of the systematic sciences to place Flarns in one biological bucket or another have long been stymied. Perhaps if the Flarn homeplanet, with its distinct fauna, had been available for study, those scientists who agonize where each creature should be pigeonholed in the grand tree of life might be less defensive when the question of systematics arose. However, the majority of species upon the homeplanet were lost in the First Federation era following invasion by the Borg, an intense exploitation that left the surface hostile to non-drone lifeforms larger than a bacteria.

On the other hand, descriptions of an /angry/ Flarn are much more unified in content. All are agreed that 'somewhere else, preferably far, far away' is the best place to be.

"You have damaged me!" protested the Peach drone. He was holding his non-cybernized limb close to his abdomen, the sharp bend in the forearm where no joint was present attesting to a severe injury. Head was craned back to focus upon the face of his attacker, although the whole eye kept rolling sideways and down towards the object of assault.

Janzki glared down at the Borg, wishing she had permission to boot it, and its buddies, out the nearest airlock. Despite many vid calls and much pulling of strings from those who owed her favors, she had been unsuccessful in banning Doctor Austis's Colored backers from placing representatives upon her ship. Ten of the hated things - seven Ultraviolet and three Peach - along with their alcoves, transceiver booster, and other equipment, had been allowed to board, regardless of Janzki's warnings. The psychologists claimed her attitude to be based upon an 'extreme racial shock translating to an unfounded xenophobia against vectors similar to, but fundamentally unlike, the founding trauma'. Hah! That was one way to spin psycho-babble to say that Janzki's race had been subject to assimilation by the Borg. But once a Borg, always a Borg...Colors were just another flavor of Borg waiting to happen.

The concession Janzki /had/ obtained was that the Borg were to be confined to a pair of storage rooms and the lab where Eugene was undertaking his experiments. Movement in the hallways between the two destinations was to be kept to a minimum. Additionally, the Borg were /not/ to infiltrate the Newton's systems. A small and heavily firewalled dataspace had been set aside to allow the drones limited comm function to maintain connection with their respective Minds. Via Figgy, Newton's Personality, Janzki had been obsessively monitoring that temporary dataspace, convinced it was only a matter of time until the Borg, and the espionage-specialized Peach in particular, attempted to sneak into the main systems. She had not been disappointed.

In the last hour of second-shift on the fourth day of the tour, when Janzki was in her quarters considering the merits of a couple of hours of sleep, Figgy had alerted her of the intrusion on deck six-forward. The lab deck in question was well outside of where the Borg were allowed to roam. Janzki had left her room at a heavy-footed jog, too peeved to even think to call for one of the four crew who served at Newton's security department.

"You are damned lucky I did not smack you in the head," growled Janzki in response to the Borg's complaint. In one hand she was holding what some might call an adjustable crescent head wrench, but most an ungodly huge spanner. The traditional weapon of an engineer defending his or her turf, notwithstanding the usual function of the tool, it was fundamentally a length of heavy metal. This particular spanner was normally utilized to tighten hullside bolts. Janzki felt it to be a fine Borg-basher.

When Janzki had found the Peach interfacing an access port, the spanner had made a nice meaty-metal-crunch sound hitting the Borg's arm.

Two of Newton's security guards came skidding around a corner. They slowed as they took in the scene. While Figgy had obviously alerted the pair of the impending confrontation, neither was stupid enough to actually intervene between the Chief Engineer and the object of her loathing.

"We had permission," objected the Peach drone, invoking the plural. "We will soon be initiating the first stage of the Fractulator experiment; and to ensure success, we required additional information concerning-"

"I don't care if you had a revelation from the Directors themselves," interrupted Janzki. "You dare to touch /my/ systems without /my/ permission, you risk /my/ displeasure."

A third figure had joined that of the loitering security guards. It was Ricky. He grimaced as he took in the scene, then loudly cleared his throat. "Um, Janzki...we need to talk."

The Chief Engineer shifted her attention towards the command staffer, although her grip upon the spanner never relaxed. "Not now, Ricky. I've got a Borg to deal with. I figure if I beat it to death, that will keep the others in line."

"Er, this is sort of official, Janzki. Command to engineering, and so forth. The captain was going to talk to you tomorrow morning at the start of first-shift, but it seems the Colors must have decided to jump ahead of schedule."

"You mean /this/ was sanctioned?" Janzki was aghast. She waved the spanner in the general direction of the Peach. The Borg was forced to duck to avoid being beaned on the head.

"Yes, and no. It is complicated, which is what the conference in the morning was supposed to cover. Until then, er, Peach whatever your designation is, go back to your quarters. These two-" the security detail was indicated "-will see you there. Janzki, by now the captain is awake and waiting in her office on the command deck. Accompany me. Please." The polite request barely masked the fact that the instruction was an order.

Janzki snorted, then sheathed the spanner in a specially sewn pocked on the back of her vest using an over-the-shoulder motion. "I await explanation of this travesty," she said.
*******
Currently working on -
Star Traks: BorgSpace - Book 3, Part 1 - "Invocation of the Birds - Ruffled Vulture, Dusty Pheonix"

--Time is merely an illusion perpetrated by the manufacturers of space
(Anonymous)
Queen of BorgSpace
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Re: Star Traks: BorgSpace

Post by Meneks »

Prime Duty

I always knew I wanted to put together an Assimilations compilation featuring the main characters of the Cube #238 mini-series. As well as complimenting what was done for Cube #347, it would help me better understand the characters. To that end, I've been keeping several files of running notes, but I honestly did not expect it to bear fruit so quickly.

At the end of December, while taking a break from work to visit relatives, the ending scene of Prime Duty came to me in a flash. Cliche, yes, but I suddenly /knew/ how I wanted Prime's story to end. It did undergo some alteration from the first vision, but overall it remained fairly close to how I first saw it. And, of course, with an ending, there had to be a beginning and middle to get there. Once started, the story came together quite quickly.

Yes, there were a few false turns here and there. For instance, I can still see a much more in-depth back story between Janzki and Ricky, but for the sake of not weighing the story down I had to largely delete it except for a few allusions. Now, if I had another hundred pages for character development and several sub-plot lines...well...I'd have a novel, and I'd still be writing the dang thing.

Moving on....

This is a stand-alone story. One does not need to know who Janzki is (or will be), nor read any Cube #347/#238 stories in order to follow along. However, I do feel the story is a bit richer and more complex if one has kept up with developments in the Cube #238 mini-series.

For instance, Janzki's attitude towards the Colors (and Hive). Hostile, to say the least. Contrast that with her Prime view of her place with in the Borg (and, presumably, its Hive progenitor). It has /completely/ altered. Think for a moment what this means. Not nice, eh? It is a subtle reminder that as much as I like writing about the Borgverse, they /are/ villains. After all, it isn't all that often that one reads of the 'good' side routinely breaking a person's psyche so completely that their new personality has aspects that are 180 degrees to the original.

Janzki's hostility is one I was very careful to cultivate throughout Prime Duty. Among the more subtle touches is when the story tends towards her point-of-view, I ensured that she very much considered the Colors as 'things'. She barely acknowledged that the drones had designations (and she /never/ used them); and she always considered them with the 'it' pronoun, never gender-specific (even as her non-Flarn colleagues did use 'he' or 'she').

Going back to tie in Prime Duty to the primary stories, I did include a nod to Cube #347; and, specifically, the idea of deep Peach operatives. That is a plot bunny that raised its head in Season 9 with Lena (and, technically, as early as Season 5, but it didn't really come out until the finale). Timeline-wise, Prime Duty takes place in 2893, a date I omitted in the story, which is well before Lena entered Peach (2906), and even further from Season 9 (2923). I did mention in Season 9 that Peach had been running its deep operatives for awhile. Prime Duty suggests that the Black Ops organization at the time of the story knows that Peach has some sort of spy hanky-panky happening, although they are quite a bit off as to what sort of hanky is actually pankying (hypnotized non-assimilated persons vs. radically transformed drones).

And, of course, since I just /cannot/ leave the Super Grand Arc concept alone (damn you, Babylon 5....as well as several literary authors), Prime Duty may even have a hint or two about where I foresee BorgSpace going once the Cube #238 mini-series is complete. Again, there is no need to have read Prime Duty when I do go there, but I've re-invoked the Brotherhood of the Spanner for this story. The Brotherhood normally does not concern itself with the rise and fall of civilizations or series...when you've been a secret organization for hundreds of thousands of years, why worry about ten centuries of absolute dictatorship? Just as long as a Chief Engineer is present, all is good. However, in this case, the Brotherhood was directly responsible for ensuring Janzki not only accepted assimilation, but /did not/ push that Fractulator button. There is a reason for that....

Finally, something a bit lighter: did you figure out the Black Ops name puns? Did you? Pretty bad, eh?
Currently working on -
Star Traks: BorgSpace - Book 3, Part 1 - "Invocation of the Birds - Ruffled Vulture, Dusty Pheonix"

--Time is merely an illusion perpetrated by the manufacturers of space
(Anonymous)
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