This is in no way a suggestion or insistence that you must consume Wicked, the 1939 film, or any Oz any related media as part of any kind of "canon" or connected continuity. How you consume media is entirely up to you. Just some interesting tidbits I originally posted in the Wicked sub and I thought I'd share with you guys...
\**Preamble: A prequel is “a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative”. It is just a word to describe the type of narrative Wicked and Oz the Great and Powerful are. Just like Journey Back to Oz and Return to Oz are “sequels” made by different production companies. It in no way connotes an “official” connection between legally distinct IPs. It is just a way to describe the function of the narrative.*
...Also, I am not a copyright lawyer, I'm not any kind of lawyer, nor am I making an accusation that anyone or any entity is infringing on the copyright or trademark of any other entities. That being said…
So, I have a theory that Wicked -- both Maguire's novel (Wicked: the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West), 1995) and more so the musical (Wicked, 2003 Universal Stage Productions) -- solely functions as a prequel to the 1939 MGM film the Wizard of Oz(now owned by WB), and not that film's public domain source novel the Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. Let me explain...
Maguire started writing Wicked in response to the Gulf War, presumably starting around 1990 through its publishing date in 1995. The 1939 film had a big boom in 1989 for its 50th Anniversary resulting in deluge of promotional material -- including an animated TV show adaptation by DIC, where Glinda was redesigned to look like Barbie -- complete with long blonde hair!
Maguire's clever use of Oz characters passed scrutiny during publication in 1995 because the Baum novel had long been in the public domain… as well as Ted Turner arranging to sell the MGM catalog to WB, circa 1997, making the timing ideal for Maguire's novel to skirt any copyright/trademark scrutiny for using elements from the non-public domain film.
We know what happened next, the book was a raging success and soon it was popular enough to be optioned by Universal and turned into a stage musical (produced after film & TV productions with Demi Moore and Salma Hayek separately attached failed to materialize). The musical opened first in San Francisco for try-outs and then Broadway in 2003. And writers Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman liberally peppered even more direct homages and winks to the 1939 film into leitmotifs and other elements of the book, score, and staging.
But, Wicked has TOO many elements from the 1939 film, and NOT ENOUGH from Baum's original book, to merit it being called a prequel to the book (this is also true of Disney’s 2013 admitted attempt to cash-in on Wicked’s success, Oz: the Great and Powerful – which is even more egregious than Wicked, and ironic, as its own title is directly lifted from the 1939 film misquote of the book’s moniker of “Oz the Great and Terrible”).
So now, let's look at some of key differences between the book the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (WWoOZ) and its film adaption from 1939, and how Wicked (and that Disney rip-off - though I don’t want to have to keep mentioning that movie so just assume most of what I say applies there too) reinterprets these events and characters:

• In the book WWoOz it is established that there are four cardinal witches in the land of Oz. Dorothy vanquishes two unrelated Wicked Witches in the East (WWotE) and West (WWotW) as well as encountering the benevolent unnamed good witch of the North at the start of her adventure and a separate good witch, Glinda of the South, who helps her home in the end. MGM condensed the good witches into one character “Glinda the Good Witch of the North” as well as adding a subplot turning the Wicked Witches into sisters (providing Margaret Hamilton’s Witch more direct motivation to pursue Judy Garland’s Dorothy via the Witch’s presumed right to collateral inheritance of her sister’s shoes). Both Maguire and Disney follow the 1939 film’s continuity regarding these relationships making the wicked witches siblings, and Glinda the sole “good witch” in opposition to them.
• WWotW as depicted in Baum’s novel bears little to no resemblance to the green-skinned Margaret Hamilton in the 1939 film, and subsequently Maguire’s Elphaba. Oz illustrator W. W. Denslow, whom Baum worked closely with when designing the characters, depicts the witch as a hunched old hag with three pigtails and an eyepatch, tall brimmed hat, ruffed collar, coat and skirt. While MGM’s design team, led by legendary costumer Adrian, initially tested several looks for WWotW (including a glamorous sequined look inspired by Disney’s Evil Queen in Snow White). MGM screenwriter, Herman Mankiewicz (who expanded the role of the wicked witch from book to screenplay, and wrote several key lines for her including, “I’ll get you my pretty!”) insisted "witches should be ugly!" leading to Gale Sondergard's replacement of Magaret Hamilton in the role. But the severe all-black silhouette cast by Hamilton's witch is nothing like the silly witch of Baum's text and Desnlow's art. And Susan Hilferty’s stage designs for Elphaba retain the 1939 film’s silhouette and dark color palette.
• Speaking of ugly witches... while green skinned characters, like folkloric swamp-hag Jenny Green-teeth, were not unheard of (even some promotional material for Disney's Snow White has their flesh-colored Hag looking a jaundiced yellow) it is widely acknowledged Margaret Hamilton’s Witch is the first in popular culture, and certainly on film, to be depicted with green skin. Likely, inspired by Universal's 1931 Frankenstein), promotional material for which depicted the Creature with sickly green skin, and chosen to accentuate the technicolor process, broadcasting the Witch's “wickedness” as well as helping Hamilton's frightening face and spider-like performance stand-out against her black costume, MGM producers chose green copper-based makeup for Hamilton's witch. The 1939 film's success in popular culture lead green-skinned witches to be accepted as "canon" in the public zeitgeist and now from Halloween make-up brands and Looney Tunes' Witch Hazel), the green skinned witch is mainstream. But as Professor Marion Gibson, associate professor of Renaissance and magical literatures at the University of Exeter and an expert in popular depictions of witches, explains, before 1939 "there are a few images of witches – for instance, on Halloween postcards – with odd coloured faces (usually red/orange, surprisingly) but MGM's green-faced witch is the first to make a key feature of a completely non-human skin colour." Needless to say this film element of green-skin became a major plot point of Maguire's Wicked.
• Another difference in Baum’s WWotW is that she only had one eye, but that it "was as powerful as a telescope", and this is how she spies on her enemies. MGM was again inspired by Snow White's Queen, and popular imagery of fortune tellers, giving Hamilton’s Witch the ability to scry in a large crystal ball, which made for some of the most memorable visuals of the film, of her looming eerily over the heroes. Unlike Baum’s WWotW, Maguire’s Elphaba retains vision in both eyes, and inherits her film counterpart's scrying abilities (primarily using a blown-glass orb).
• Baum’s WWotW importantly carries an umbrella, not a broomstick, as a source of protection for her aquaphobia. She has no need for transportation, her location is limited to her castle in the West of Oz. MGM’s script, howvever, gave Hamilton’s Witch a means of transportation that had long been popular in witch mythology, a broomstick, involving her more directly in the narrative (as well as giving the Wizard a macguffin to send Dorothy after). Maguire also chose to make a broomstick a means of travel for Elphaba, and Stephen Schwartz's “Defying Gravity”, the centerpiece of the musical, which sees a scene not included in the novel, where Elphaba defiantly flies over the Emerald City in protest of the Wizard, cemented the broom’s icon status within the framework of the Wicked franchise.
• The Flying Monkeys in Baum’s novel have a rich backstory involving their enslavement at the hands of a sorceress named Gaylette. The monkeys’ terms of imprisonment require they obey three commands given by whomever possess a Golden Cap, which the WWotW owns and uses to capture Dorothy and her friends. Dorothy comes into possession of the Golden Cap after WWotW’s demise (similar to her inheriting the slippers) and is able to command the monkeys to her own benefit later in the book. The Golden Cap subplot was scrapped from the MGM film in favor of giving the witch a more ambiguous command over her uniformed simian air force (though it still appears in the final cut as a prop tossed by Hamilton's Witch to Nikko, the flying monkey). Maguire’s Wicked makes no mention of Baum’s golden cap, giving Elphaba a monkey factotum -- who cannot speak similar to MGM’s Nikko (In Baum's Oz all animals can speak perfectly, including the leader of the Winged Monkeys... more on that below) -- now called Chistrey. The monkeys are given a vivisection backstory in Maguire's novel and are a result of the Grimmerie’s levitation spell in the musical, but Elphaba’s willful command of the their legions, without the limitations of the Golden Cap, is much more reminiscent of MGM’s Witch than Baum’s.
• Famously the slippers Dorothy inherits from the WWotE in Baum’s novel are made of silver metal (sterling silver shoes were popular as decorations and sugar bowls in Baum's day). The Slippers in the 1939 film were famously changed to ruby, so as to be more eye-catching against the technicolor yellow road. After some initial designs, MGM designer Adrian landed on the iconic red sequined pump seen in the film. in Maguire's work he is very careful not to make the famous slippers silver or ruby, and instead they are made of beaded glass, which has sentimental value to Elphaba's family, and utilizes the film’s sibling backstory to motivate Elphaba. The beaded glass slippers, in the musical referred to as "jeweled", refract multiple colors, notably a fiery red glow, again skirting copyright while paying homage to both the ruby slippers and silver of the Baum book. Susan Hilferty’s choice of silver sequined pumps for the musical, given a red special lighting cue at a crucial moment, distinctly resemble Adrian’s 1939 design.
• Dorothy is a young child of roughly seven or eight years old in Baum’s novel and its illustrations. In Maguire’s take on the character she is depicted as a husky teenager prone to cloying musical outbursts. Teenage Judy Garland was famously derided at MGM for her weight, especially filming Oz, with Louis Mayor allegedly calling her his “little hunchback”.
• Animals in Oz in Baum’s text are all Imbued with the power of speech. Toto himself is able to speak in the land of Oz (revealed in the fifth Baum book), as well as a myriad animals from our world who travel to the Land of Oz, who all gain sentience upon entering the fairy land. In the 1939 film, the Lion is the only animal that appears capable of speech, while other animals that appear, like Toto, birds, horses, cats and monkeys, are all incapable of human vocal communication. Maguire’s text relies heavily on the implication only some Animals (signified by capitalization of the word) in Oz can talk, their subjugation by the Wizard playing huge role in the plot of both Maguire’s book and the musical adaption.
• While sharing some similarities with Baum's Oz geography, 1939 film has a distinct layout for their Oz which is covered in great detail in very few lines of dialogue. In Munchkinland Glinda says "That was her sister--the Wicked Witch of the East. This is the Wicked Witch of the West. And she's worse than the other one." That establishes Munchkinland in the East of Oz, later we can place the Wicked Witch's castle in the West, with the Emerald City presumably in the center of Oz, while Glinda is from an unspecified "North". Funnily enough, those areas of Oz featured in the 1939 film are the same areas of Oz Maguire’s Wicked novel primarily deals with, namely Munchkinland (Nest Hardings), Emerald City, and the West (Kiamo Ko) and North of Oz (Shiz). Maguire also eschews Baum’s Glinda’s native Quadling Country in the south of Oz in favor of time spent in the North (the one land of Oz we never visit in Baum's first book). Maguire's Quadling Country (a backwater quagmire) shares none the colorful geography of Baum's Quadling Country -- which in WWoOZ is full of porcelain towns, jungles, mountains, and Glinda's majestic palace.
• Boq, a character indeed invented by Baum, plays a much less significant part of the novel Wicked than he does in the musical (in the musical he is composite of several novel characters), and his function in the novel the WWoOZ is very similar to that of the Munchkins featured in the 1939 film (he hosts a party celebrating the East Witch's death that Dorothy attends while staying at his home overnight on her journey down the Yellow Brick Road). He and the subplot featuring the Tin Woodman's backstory appear as trivial vignettes with little actual influence over Elphaba’s overall character arch in both the novel and musical.
• And while the inclusion of Elphaba using wolves, crows and bees to attack Dorothy and her friends is a point in Maguire's favor (but only applies to the novel, not the musical) it also has little significance over the elements from Baum’s book he leaves out in favor of the 1939 film’s continuity of a broom-riding, green-skinned witch after her sister’s collateral inheritance. And let us not forget that 1939's Witch also uses bees as a threat..
• But what I find most telling is that none of the witches in Baum’s novel directly interact with one another (later novels in the Oz series withstanding). The famous confrontation between the two witches in Munchkinland was entirely a fabrication of the 1939 film’s screenwriters. The musical’s entire premise, and a large portion of the novel’s, relies on the idea that these two opposing witches shared some past which informs their conflict in that scene, but that moment is solely a product of the 1939 film.

I think it is very important to view Wicked (especially the musical) as intended... as a revisionist adaption of, and prequel, to the 1939 film (and not Baum's book). In Wicked, Dorothy's journey of self discovery -- finding wisdom, love, and courage through community and questioning authority -- is subverted through Elphaba's journey -- where wisdom, love, and courage come at great personal cost, and questioning authority means also becoming a target of that authority's wrath. Whereas Dorothy returns home in the end, Elphaba must go into exile in the musical (and she is ding dong dead in the book).
By the end of the 1939 film Dorothy is literally transformed -- excellently visually expressed through her full glamour makeover - curtesy of the Wizard's employees - and adornment in her fallen enemy's fabulous footwear. The 1939 narrative in psychoanalytic terms is one of adolescent Dorothy being chided and ignored in Kansas -- she is without the protection of the adults around her, and therefore subjected to trauma at the hands of threatening Older Female and left vulnerable to the advances of a dubiously intentioned Conman. She learns the importance of embracing the power of appearances ("Are you a good witch or bad witch?.... only Bad witches are ugly.") therefore earning the protection of the adults who once ignored her. In turn she is able to utilize traits inherited from those adults to finally assume assume her full power, vanquishing the Older Female threat and rendering the Conman impotent.
Elphaba and Glinda similarly grow from children ignored -- Elphaba subject to rejection and bullying without the protection of her family or peers, and therefore vulnerable to machinations of a threatening Older Female and the advances of a dubiously intentioned Conman. She then learns the power of embracing appearances ("pink goes good with green") but, this being a subversion of the Oz narrative we see that in embracing her unconventional appearance (the skin she was born in and an outfit literally designed by Glinda) she further alienates herself from protection. While Glinda's journey of superficial beauty equating to goodness, also subjects her to persecution from the Older Female and Conman.
Through traits inherited from one another, and their enemies -- Elphaba uses the Wizard's methodology of deception and flim-flam to fake her death and win her freedom, while Glinda quite literally uses Morrible's own words against her in her defeat -- they are both able to assume full power vanquishing the Older Female threat and rendering the Conman impotent.
In the musical's Finale, a reprise of both "For Good" and "No One Mourns the Wicked", we have been made the whole show to ask ourselves the question "was she a good witch or a bad witch?" Then the audience watches a well intentioned, but woefully incompetent leader, ascend to power under the monicker "Glinda the Good" while the arguably more qualified person has their "death" celebrated, only to be mourned in secret.
The line, "who can say if I have been changed for the better, but because I knew you I have been changed for good" ties together the the concept of metaphorically wearing the traits of those we've known and encountered, loved ones and enemies alike. Like a well worn hat or pair of ruby slippers, we cloth ourselves in the intelligence, love, courage, and even the wickedness and deception of those we encounter.
Wicked tends to suggest truth is subjective. Goodness or wickedness, beauty and ugliness, whether someone is a "traitor or liberator, thief or philanthropist" is all subjective. The Wizard's malleable grip on truth ("Elphaba, where I'm from we believe all sorts of things that aren't true we call it history!") is ultimately inherited by Elphaba and Fiyero in the end ("It's not lying! It's looking at things another way") as well as Glinda ("Good news!"). Much like Dorothy's journey leaves her with the knowledge that her heart's desires lie in her own self fulfillment, Elphaba and Glinda are left knowing that their potential, good or bad, has always been theirs to posses.
Maguire used something called "fair use doctrine", technically publishing Wicked as a parody (which does not always mean a comical work). It was well within his legal right to do so. The musical tiptoes the lines he walked a little more, but ultimately Wicked being "legally distinct" from the 1939 -- but still using more elements from that movie than the public domain book -- is still a legal use of the characters. However, I think the way Maguire skirted copyright is incredibly clever, and I find it wild that such a popular franchise as Wicked has basically used legal gray areas to bring a rainbow of color to Oz, all while claiming use of public domain versions of characters, and clearly mining the trademarked versions of those characters for most of their inspiration.
Various Oz media has used elements of the 1939 film without voiding copyright. For example the 1982 anime film has red slippers, and 1972's Journey Back to Oz features a green skinned witch Mombi. And the 1939 film itself borrowed elements from numerous previous adaptations of the Oz story from silent and animated films to stage plays). The history of Oz is always evolving with each new iteration and how the story was told one hundred years ago isn't always going to be how we tell it in the future.
Just know, how anyone chooses to interpret the "canon" of Oz, or relate to any specific piece of media -- for example finding continuity between various adaptations, etc. -- is entirely up to them. Oz is a place that supports diversity, creativity, and inclusion! But if you're gonna be a witch, a green one is a good one to be!
TLDR: Wicked does not function as a prequel to the book by L. Frank Baum, but only serves as a prequel to the 1939 film, starring Judy Garland. This is evident because the Witch in Baum's book isn't green, doesn't ride a broom, only has one eye, no sister, and never interacts with Glinda (who is an amalgamation of two separate characters).

** ALL WEEKEND (FRI 5/24 - MON 5/27) *\*
High Desert Cluster Memorial Day Weekend Show Expo New Mexico, 300 San Pedro Dr. NE Join the High Desert Cluster for new traditions with an ALL INDOOR show on Memorial Day weekend. Conformation will continue in the Lujan Complex Halls A&B and expand to the Creative Arts Center instead of The Farm and Youth Hall. Obedience and Rally will continue in the Horse Arena. 4 All Breed Shows with NOHS and Juniors. 2 Toy Group Shows. Many Breed Specialties. Coming as a spectator? Here's what you need to know. Entry is free and parking is $10. The event is held in the Lujan Complex, Creative Arts Center and Horse Arena. Shows start each day at 8am and end with awarding that day's best in show or high in trial. Want to know when your favorite breeds show? Download the judging program. We also have a great lineup of vendors with products for show dogs and family pets. For human and dog safety, please keep unentered dogs and strollers at home. They will NOT be allowed in the buildings. Of course, ADA qualified service dogs and miniature horses are welcome. Learn more about dog show etiquette
** FRI 5/24 - SUN 5/26 (3 DAYS) *\*
Graduation Tea Snapdragon Tea, 115 Harvard Dr. SE Our Graduation Tea is the perfect way to celebrate the ending of one of life's chapters and the beginning of another! We welcome kids of all ages, and provide children’s menus upon request. Special gluten free/vegan/vegetarian menus available upon request. Reservations are required. Tea party cost is $18.50 for the children's menu and $34.95 for the full 3-course tea party
Sabaku Con 2024 Albuquerque Marriott Pyramid North, 5151 San Francisco Rd. NE Don't miss Albuquerque's largest and longest-running anime, gaming, and cosplay convention!
** SAT 5/25 - MON 5/27 (3 DAYS) *\*
12 - 6 PM New Mexico Wine Festival Balloon Fiesta Park, 5600 Balloon Fiesta Pkwy NE The New Mexico Wine Festival at Balloon Fiesta Park is an annual Memorial Day weekend tradition, with over 200 wines from New Mexico's top wineries, great food, art, and live local music, what's not to love. We welcome you to wander in the wine garden with us and enjoy the beautiful New Mexico sunshine (tickets)
**BOTH SAT 5/25 AND SUN 5/26 *\*
Sat 9 AM – 5 PM and Sun 10 AM - 4 PM Brick Fest Live Rio Rancho Events Center, 3001 Civic Center Cir NE, Rio Rancho Looking for a fun event for the whole family? With hands-on activities, life-size models, and celebrities, Brick Fest Live is the #1 event for BRICK lovers of all ages. Your family will have a blast building memories together while engaging in creative play (tickets)
12 - 6 PM Bear Fest 2024 Boxing Bear Brewing, 8420 Firestone Ln. NE FREE ADMISSION: In honor of our 10th Anniversary. Cheers to 10 years! Beer samples, music, craft vendors, food trucks. 21+ (click link for full music lineup and list of vendors)
1 - 2:30 PM THE LOVELESS - award winning director Kathryn Bigelow & iconic actor Willem Dafoe's feature debut! The Guild Cinema, 3405 Central Ave NE Check out the trailer. Dir. Kathryn Bigelow & Monty Montgomery - 1981 - 82m. AS PART OF OUR ONGOING ARTHOUSE CLASSICS & FAVES SERIES! The feature debut of both its star, Willem Dafoe (TO LIVE AND DIE IN LA), and its directors, Monty Montgomery (producer, David Lynch's WILD AT HEART) and future Academy Award-winner Kathryn Bigelow (NEAR DARK). A motorcycle gang roars into a small southern town en route to the Daytona races, unnerving and angering the locals with their standoffish attitude and disrespect for social niceties. When gang member Vance (Dafoe), hooks up with sportscar-driving Telena, he incurs the wrath of the girl's father, setting the gang on a collision course with the rest of the town as simmering tensions boil over into violent retribution. Raw, angry and honest, THE LOVELESS is fully restored by Arrow Films and ready to roar into theaters (tickets)
** Fri 5/24 *\*
Fri 1 – 11 PM Steph Ramirez Benefit Night Unhinged Brewing, 251 98th St. NW, Ste F For those of you who have been our patrons since our very early days a little over a year ago you may remember Steph's smile and charisma lighting up the room as she worked the taproom. We've been missing her for a while now as she's been fighting a stage 3 breast cancer diagnosis since late 2023. Unhinged Brewing will be holding a "Steph Ramirez Benefit Night", donating $1 for every beer sold all day to help with the financial burden of her treatment. We're really looking forward to having her out, having drinks, listening to good music, and sharing in the memories. Come out and have a beer! Catch RND Band performing live from 7-9 pm
Fri 5 PM Key Lime Pie Gose Release Tractor Brewing, All Locations We're celebrating Tractor Beer Week right with an all new sour we've never released before! Come try the new Key Lime Pie Gose made with real lime and graham crackers!
Fri 5 – 10 PM Sour Hour with Rowley Farmhouse Ales Tractor Brewing - Wells Park, 1800 4th St. NW Come quench that sour palette with a little taste from Rowley Farmhouse Ales for our first event to kick off Tractor Beer Week 2024. They'll be showcasing some of their favs, while we will be showcasing one of our very own sours as well. Grab a flight of four sours that will keep your mouth watering! Or just grab a goblet on one! Or both!
Fri 6 PM Variety Social Dance CSP Dance Studios, 1624 Eubank Blvd. NE Dive into the joy of dance among friends who inspire! For just $10 cash at the door, you'll have the opportunity to sample and practice social dancing a variety of dances including ballroom, latin, country, swing and line dancing. This is your invitation to try something new, meet like-minded individuals, and social dance in a welcoming, supportive environment. The night kicks off with a welcome lesson from 6:00-6:30pm, making it ideal for beginners or anyone to meet new people before the dance floor opens up. Step into a night of dance, discovery, and community. CSP welcomes you!
Fri 6 – 8:30 PM Sol De La Noche Live El Vado ABQ, 2500 Central Ave SW Prepare for an electrifying evening as we proudly present Sol De La Noche! Live music is back with a bang, and this week's performance promises to be a fusion of Latin, R&B, and Hip Hop that will have you dancing all night long. Get ready to be swept away by the infectious rhythms and soulful melodies of Sol De La Noche as they take the stage and ignite the atmosphere with their dynamic blend of musical styles. Indulge your taste buds with a delectable selection of culinary delights from our diverse food pods, offering everything from savory Latin flavors to mouthwatering desserts. And don't forget to quench your thirst with a refreshing craft beer from Ponderosa Brewing Company, available at the El Vado Tap Room. Let's create memories together under the starlit sky!
Fri 7 – 9 PM SIP FLOR // A Night of Local Art + Great Tastes Lapis Room, 303 Romero St. NW Let's shake our tail feathers! This is an intimate gathering with limited tickets available. Must be 21+ to attend. Live music by Lara Manzanares. Artist demo by Thomas Christopher Haag. Culinary bites by Honey Bee Kitchen
Fri 8 PM Salsa Night with Calle 66 Juno, 1501 1st St. NW Dance to Live Salsa with Calle 66, featuring Jackie Zamora with DJ Henry (Salsa, Bachata) on the new indoor stage. 21+. $10 at the door or presales online. VIP reserved seating available thru Eventbrite
Fri 8 – 10 PM Beer & Jazz: Tractor Beer Week Edition Tractor Brewing - Wells Park, 1800 4th St. NW We're doubling down with Sour Hour at 5pm and then jazz tunes. We'll have very special beers on tap as well as our Key Lime Pie Gose and then one of the best Jazz groups NM has to offer with Swing Magique at 8pm
Fri 8 PM – 1 AM Hot Club Time Machine Sister, 407 Central Ave NW Warm grooves, hot wax, and dancefloor magic. DJs Tech Rider and Trans Europe Caress at the helm of musical vessel. Trains, planes, and automobiles! We're really going places! Let the Hot Club Time Machine move your body through time and space on a dancing odyssey with engines powered by boogie, house, disco, ebm, synthpop, and funk from all eras and kingdoms. The ticket is free so don't hesitate! Hop on board as we fly above the clouds and trip the light fantastic!
Fri 9 PM - 12 AM Benefit Show Fundraiser for Tony Chavez Fighting Cancer Backstage at Revel, 4720 Alexander Blvd. NE Shawn Brooks, Daniel Solis, and Sal Vigil, 21+, $10 cover
Fri 9 PM – 2 AM Rewind Video Dance Party 80s/90s/2K Effex, 420 Central Ave Rewind Returns! All your favorite music videos from the 80s vs 90s vs 2000s on 7 large screens. Expect to hear music from Madonna / Kesha / Spice Girls / Madonna / Britney / Black Eyed Peas / Depeche Mode / TLC / Lady Gaga / Eurythmics / Nysnc / Nelly / Back Street Boys...and all of your other favorite hits
Fri 9:30 PM The 30 & UP R & B Experience Bama's 1865, 6001 Osuna Rd. NE Vegas Resident & Bash Town Touring DJ SupaJames will be our special guest. Tables and VIP Sections are limited... get them now 505-269-3301
** Sat 5/25 *\*
Sat 8 AM – 12 PM Downtown Growers' Market Robinson Park, 810 Copper Ave NW Every Saturday from 8 am - NOON! This vibrant community event connects local farmers, growers, artisans, wellness makers, and hot food vendors with the local community from mid-April to early-November. Bring friends / family or come solo to enjoy fresh food made on sight, a variety of seasonal produce, unique arts and crafts, live music, and special programming all in the heart of downtown
Sat 9 AM Viva Vino Run Casa Vieja, 4541 Corrales Rd, Corrales This 21-and-older event is one you won't want to miss! Casa Vieja Brewery in the Village of Corrales sets the stage for this flat and fast 5K. Each participant will receive an event t-shirt, a participant medal, a commemorative Viva Vino wine glass, and a serving of wine at Casa Vieja. So lace up those running and walking shoes and register now! (The start of the race is south of the Wells Fargo on West La Entrada Rd. Please stay on the side of the road or parking lot until the race director directs you to the start)
Sat 9 AM Unity Explorers at Plaza Bianca Unity Spiritual Center, 9800 Candelaria Rd. NE Unity Explorers Hike: A rare opportunity to hike in Plaza Blanca, inspiration for some of Georgia O’Keefe’s most famous paintings! Located 20 miles from Ghost Ranch this 2.8 mile hike is rated as “easy”. The canyon is on the grounds of Dar al Islam Monastery. One can only enter it with a permit, which we have! After the hike we may visit the Mosque as they love to have guests! We will meet at Unity and then carpool up to the hike, about a 2 hour drive. Bring a trail lunch, sturdy hiking shoes or boots, sunscreen as there is little to no shade and plenty of water
Sat 9 – 10 AM U.S.S. Bullhead Memorial Clean Up! 1606 San Pedro Dr. SE Trash bags and gloves will be provided to you at the 9AM check-in; please meet me in the parking lot. I also have 4 extra litter pick up sticks to loan for the hour so be there early to grab yours! Please remind your family and friends not to litter!
Sat 9 – 11 AM Memorial Day Grave Cleanup San Carlos Cemetery, Alameda and Edith Please join us in cleaning our fallen brothers’ & sisters’ graves. We will also honor them by placing new U.S. Flags on their graves. Please RSVP “going” for a breakfast burrito
Sat 9 AM – 1 PM Summer at the ATC Street Fair Alvarado Transit Center, 100 1st St. SW You're invited to attend a series of events the last Saturday in the Summer of 2024. We will have music, education, non-profits, local vendors, food and drinks! Saturdays - May 25 - June 29 - July 27 - August 31. Park for FREE at the 1st and Gold Parking structure, a QR code will be provided at the event to waive the parking fee. Take a stroll through our Street Fair, then head to the Saturday Farmer's Market at Robinson Park. We are so excited to provide another way to revitalize our downtown area and provide ways to enjoy your weekend!
Sat 9 AM – 3 PM 8th Annual Fundraiser Ride & Chili Cookoff Indian Motorcycle, 4509 Alameda Blvd. NE 8th Annual Fundraiser Ride & Chili Cookoff with 100% proceeds going to families of veterans killed in motorcycle accidents. $20 registration fee for riders & $10 for passengers. Register at Indian Motorcycle of Albuquerque Day of event. $20 registration fee per pot of chili. $10 All you can eat tasting – includes (1) vote; additional votes $5 per ticket. Raffle prizes!
Sat 10 AM Flamenco Para Todos New Mexico Veterans Memorial, 1100 Louisiana Blvd. SE Get ready for our student showing! Join us for a showcase featuring the incredible talents of our students from the Conservatory of Flamenco Arts at the National Institute of Flamenco, alongside students from Flamenco in Your Neighborhood Classes across Albuquerque! Come witness the culmination of their dedication and artistry!
Sat 10 AM Seed Bomb Craft! Corrales Community Library, 84 W. La Entrada, Corrales Join us for this free craft event!
Sat 10:30 AM – 4 PM Garfield Fest Flix Brewhouse, 3200 La Orilla Rd. NW Enjoy photo ops, freebies, an in-theater giveaway, and activities for the whole family. All ages are welcome!
Sat 11 AM Cannabis Farmers Market Mama and the Girls Dispensary, 915 Yale Blvd. SE Connect with Local Growers: Meet the passionate and knowledgeable cannabis growers in our community. Engage in conversations, learn about cultivation techniques, and gain insights into the art of the cannabis business. Support Small Businesses: By attending our farmer's market, you are directly supporting local small-scale cannabis producers. Embrace the opportunity to contribute to the growth of our local economy and the sustainability of our community. Admission is free, must be 21+ (or 18+ w/med card). Support local growers, discover premium cannabis products, and celebrate the vibrant cannabis community at our Farmer's Market. See you there!
Sat 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM Morning Toons New Mexico Entertainment, 2408 Hendola Dr. NE New Mexico Entertainment is back with its Summer event, Morning Toons. Grab your pajamas and blanket, and participate in this Saturday morning event with your family and friends. Come out to watch old-school cartoons from your childhood on the big screen. Cereal is included with your ticket! So kick back, have some breakfast, and enjoy the toons! Your ticket includes admission and breakfast. Morning Toons is a LIMITED seat event
Sat 12 – 4 PM Mimosa BRUNCH Saturdays Oak & Ivy, 3109 Central Ave NE Every Saturday from noon till 4p we are here to provide your two favorite Saturday afternoon things to do.... Brunch and drink Champagne! $25 bucket specials and table shareable items
Sat 12 – 5 PM Live Music with Lani Nash & Adoption Event Noisy Water Winery, 301 Romero St. Come hang out for great music and meet your new best friend from Cross My Paws Animal Rescue!
Sat 12 – 11 PM Ciderday Night Fever Tractor Brewing, 122 Tulane Dr. SE We're featuring some of our amazing delicious ciders in flights and of course in goblets for you goblins. Then at 8pm DJ Wae Fonkey will be laying down some disco on the ones and twos to get your apple tree shaking!
Sat 2 – 6 PM Birds of a Feather Parrot Rescue Fundraiser Juno, 1501 1st St. NW Fundraising event for Birds of a Feather Parrot Rescue. Live music by Ross Brothers Band. Visit with the birds and volunteers. Raffles. Portion of all drink sales goes to the organization. Families welcome
Sat 6 – 8 PM KUNM Dance Party feat. DJ Aimie Jane! Smith Plaza in front of Zimmerman Library on the UNM Campus We'll be broadcasting to the headphones in front of the Library, so you can hang out there or go up the hill to the Cornell mall or hang out on the grass at the duck pond. This is a great place to skate, skate board, bike, etc. (but please be aware of your surroundings when headphones are on...). there is cover across the plaza with the Humanities and Language arts buildings so we will be jamming even if we have some weather! Plenty of nice places to throw a blanket down or sit at a table and enjoy some food with friends and family as well! *DJ Aimie Jane will be spinning live on Smith Plaza via Channel one! * Channels two and three will have special mixes created by KUNM's amazing DJs! Normally, we would use this as a fundraiser for KUNM but the station's and University bylaws make it tricky for us to do that, but if you feel like pitching in to pay our fabulous mixer, DJ Aimie Jane, we will gladly accept anything you want to give!
Sat 6 – 9 PM Gone Country Saturdays with DJ Gonzo Supreme Ponderosa Brewing, 1761 Bellamah Ave NW The fun starts with free dance lessons at 5 pm, followed by family-friendly entertainment until 9 pm. Come and join us for an evening of music, dancing, and good vibes!
Sat 7 PM Zia's Birthday Show! OutPost 1706 Brewhouse, 2034 S. Plaza St. NW Join us to celebrate Zia's birthday and catch some of the finest in entertainment including Helena Handbasket from Chicagoland! You will not want to miss this party because we will have raffles, contest games, and of course, plenty of delicious beverages available! Featuring Kardio and Karmelita Karbdashian, La Lorena, Gabby Oh!, Zia Sandia, Helena Handbasket, Vitani Williams, Cookie, Ruthifer, and Ale Bruja. Doors 7p, show 8p, 21+ (tickets)
Sat 7 – 9 PM Drag Queen Bingo: Pride Edition Tractor Brewing - Wells Park, 1800 4th St. NW It's back again and just in time for Tractor Beer Week and the start of NM Pride! Join us for a special Pride-themed night of sexy fun and bingo that will benefit our BBB non-profit Elevated Roller Derby! Hosted by the always hilarious Lady Hawk, come party with the best Queens in Albuquerque and win some prizes while you're at it
Sat 7 – 9 PM Sesh N' Flow at the Bside! Los Ranchos Bakery, 6920 4th St. NW, Los Ranchos Canna-Yoga Sesh N' Flow! Bring your mat and a friend and join us for a chill sesh and fun yoga flow! Please BYOB (no canna items for sale... and there's always plenty to go around) Limited space available, get your tickets early! Ticket link has further details
Sat 7 – 10 PM "Soccer Salutes Service" & Paws and Stripes Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park, 1601 Avenida Cesar Chavez SE Paws and Stripes are hosting a fundraiser by selling tickets for the match. Tickers are priced under $25, with $5 of every ticket sold being donated directly to Paws and Stripes! Please consider purchasing your tickets through this link and supporting Paws and Stripes. Your support makes impacts possible for Veterans and service dogs. Saving Lives, Two At A Time
Sat 7 – 11 PM Rawk Out Brew Lab 101, 3301 Southern Blvd SE, Rio Rancho Rawk Out takes over the Brewlab with our Hard Rawkin covers paying tribute to the best of the best
Sat 8 PM Cumbia Night with El Gozao Juno, 1501 1st St. NW Cumbia dance party with high-energy band El Gozao. Crowd-pleasing favorites, including hits by Selena. DJ Double OG will keep you dancing between sets. On the Outdoor stage. 21+ (tickets)
Sat 8 PM – 1:30 AM Frikitona: A Reggaeton Experience Backstage at Revel, 4720 Alexander Blvd. NE Prepare for an evening filled with pulsating rhythms and infectious beats spun by renowned DJs Julio, Shatta, & Soiree. Join us as we transform Backstage into the ultimate reggaeton playground, where you can lose yourself in the music and embrace the vibrant energy of the crowd (tickets)
Sat 8:30 PM – 1 AM SABOR Latin Night - SATURDAYS Bama's 1865, 6007 Osuna Rd. NE DJ Gabriel Goza & DJ Pedro will be serving you the saucy Salsa, Bachata, Cumbia, Merengue y Mas! Ample Parking, Safe Environment, Beautiful Venue, Good Food, Good Music, Good Vibes. 21+ / $10 cover
Sat 9 PM Sugar: The Nu Metal Party Launchpad, 618 Central Ave A Nu Kind of 90's / 00's DJ Night. Doors 9pm Show 930pm. All ages (tickets)
** Sun 5/26 *\*
Sun 10 - 11 AM Yoga & Tea Lost Cultures Tea Bar, 1761 Bellamah Ave NW, Ste C EVERY SUNDAY. It's a special space where you can release what no longer serves you and rejuvenate your soul. Join us for a truly enriching experience. The first 3 Sunday's will be with @ yoga.birch and the last Sunday of the month will be with @ curvaceousmermaidgoddess. $25 per person. 1 drink from the menu included (tickets)
Sun 10 AM – 2 PM Indigenous Peoples Day Rail Yards Market, 777 1st St. SW Celebrate all things Indigenous at the Rail Yards Market (Tiwa land). New Mexico is home to 19 Pueblos, according to the Pueblo beliefs and actions are still guided by Pueblo Core Values, which include love, respect, compassion, faith, understanding, spirituality, balance, peace, and empathy. Celebrations and ceremonies are continued throughout the year, maintaining the connection to Pueblo communities, ancestors, and to the Earth. (Source: Indian Pueblo Cultural Center). New Mexico is a place of rich and painful history, where Indigenous cultures have resiliently thrived. Indigenous people implemented innovative and sustainable agricultural practices that have been utilized for centuries in New Mexico. The Rail Yards Market is proud to host many talented Indigenous vendors, and work with strong community partners, like New Mexico Community Capital, Native Health Initiative, and more. You can look forward to finding community tables by the Office of Equity and Inclusion - Native American Affairs, Americans for Indian Opportunity, and Indigenous Women Rising! A'he'hee means Thank-you in Navajo! Everyone is welcome! EBT doubled with Double-Up-Food-Bucks. Senior and WIC programs welcome. Fresh local produce! Breakfast & lunch prepared food options. Handmade Art. ADA Accessible. Free Parking. FREE :: LOCAL :: FAMILY FRIENDLY :: PET FRIENDLY
Sun 11 AM – 4 PM May Shop Small Sunday Sunday Service Motor Co, 2701 4th St. NW This month we teamed up with some truly rad shops to bring you the best ABQ has to offer. Stop in for local vendors, crafts, live music, food and drink!
Sun 11 AM – 5 PM Sunday Funday ABQ Food Park, 6951 San Antonio Dr. NE Bring the entire family for an unforgettable day filled with games, a bounce house, and face painting! There's something exciting for everyone, so gather your loved ones and join in on the fun! Challenge each other to lively games, bounce around in the inflatable wonderland of our bounce house, and enjoy our face painting station with Local Locas Face Painting. It's the perfect way to spend quality time together and make lasting memories
Sun 11:30 AM Twilight Historic Lobo Theater, 3013 Central Ave NE THE HISTORIC LOBO THEATER is excited to bring Twilight to the big screen! Showing Starts at 11:30 am Tickets are ONLY $10 for General Admission $25 Brunch and a Movie Ticket $21 Brunch Only ticket
Sun 3:30 – 6:30 PM Clark Andrew Libbey and Dave Barclay Casa Rondeña Winery, 733 Chavez Rd NW, Los Ranchos Come on out to the lovely Casa Rondena Winery for an afternoon of acoustic guitar and accordion with Clark Andrew Libbey and Dave Barclay
Sun 5 PM Lag B'omer BBQ Party Chabad of New Mexico, 4000 San Pedro Dr. NE Get ready to fire up your taste buds with a BBQ dinner in honor of Lag B'omer! Burgers, hot dogs, chicken wings, coleslaw, potato salad, drinks, jumping castle for the children! (tickets)
Sun 6 – 11:55 PM Nob Hill Cruise for Tattoos Albuquerque Ink Tattoo, 4815 Central Ave NE AND 2820 Central Ave Cruise from shop to shop on Route 66 every Sunday and receive discounts at both locations

Marhuk, leader of the Sentinels of Arhasak, led Lord Palanu and his entourage through the city. The wagon was taken in by servants from the palace itself, Palanu saw them struggle with eight men and realized how truly strong the men of his party were when faced with such a task.
The young noble’s attention was turned back to the guide as Marhuk pointed with his spear at a statue of a woman holding a shield as if it were an offering to the sun. The plaque at her feet said in a vaguely familiar form of Joti (the Fursaglan tongue), “Burning Father, take thy shield Feast on flesh and bone Lest men seek not to atone Send your flames of righteous fury Make them big and shine as bright To show the world you’re inexorable might And darken shadows that hide behind The power of your ever present light”
The statue was in an open square where men and women strolled about and clumped together in loud conversations. A man and a woman could be seen kissing gently in a corner while an old man watched, looking at the young couple as they reminded him of his own lost youth. A few here and there stayed in the shade offered by the colonnades from the sun’s bright, grasping fingers.
“This is the statue of the Mother’s Faith. Here Sentinels come to kneel before her and make their oaths to the Lords of Fursagla. I took my own oath here twelve years ago”, said Marhuk.
The Aroloth noble stared at the statue’s eyes and saw a faint fracture crisscrossing her thin lips. He pondered how this could’ve happened when a serving girl piped up, “Woman’s got men kneeling before her and couples fucking next to her. I’d be praying too if I had to deal with that shit happening around me”.
Palanu glowered at the servant while another of the serving girls slapped the back of her head. However, Marhuk threw his head back in laughter. Several of the men and women in the group chuckled nervously as they watched their lord’s mood darken.
“I never thought of it that way, having lived here all my life. Let us continue, my lord, to the palace”, said the Sentinel.
When they reached the elevated steps up to the palace, Palanu saw a group of men in cloth of silver surrounding a man in cloth of gold. He correctly guessed that the man standing out could only be Lord Gyholt of Fursagla. The men that surrounded him were advisors and servants. Gyholt had a thick drooping mustache and scar running across his cheek from the now famous Battle of God’s Wrath in which Emperor Zukir defeated the united hosts of Lord Gyholt and Jarl Kulak.
The palace itself was made of white marble, colonnades shined brightly and reflected the sun’s light back at it as if to defy its power.
Marhuk looked at his lord and sighed sadly, “It seems my lord still mourns his young son’s death. Little Gulast was taken by evil spirits and he hasn’t accepted it yet”.
Palanu and Marhuk walked side by side until they reached the group of men. Then the Sentinel joined his lord’s side and cleared his throat, “Lord Gyholt, I introduce to you Lord Palanu of Aroloth. He comes at the behest of Emperor Zukir and brings gifts from His Holiness’ treasury”.
Lord Gyholt’s expression was emotionless, not a hint of what he thought was shown, “What are these gifts that the God would bring to this humble lord”, said the man in cloth of gold.
Palanu made sure to keep his back straight to show a more dignified servant of the God of Aroloth and said, “His Holiness sends gifts of ivory, the traditional gold dust, and gold armor with jewels, with the faces of the twin gods carved in, worked into the shoulders”.
Lord Gyholt spoke through crescent shaped lips, “I thank the God, Zukir, for these gracious gifts. He is a most merciful and compassionate lord of men”, then dropped the smile afterwards and said, “Walk with me, Lord Palanu. I would have words with you”.
Intrigued, Palanu complied though he expected to be dismissed and shown his quarters for the night in the palace by a servant or noble born attendant.
“Is everything alright?”, he ventured.
The Fursaglan lord looked at him with a raised eyebrow and replied, “Yes, I merely wish to converse with a man who fought on the other side when the war raged. It occurs to me that I have never done so until today”, he then looked down at his attire and said, “Please forgive me for meeting you in such a manner. I wear my mourning clothes for the death of my son”.
The Aroloth man nodded, “I understand, there’s no need to apologize. I’m sure he would’ve been a fine man had fate allowed him the opportunity”.
Both of them continued the conversation as Gyholt led Palanu through a series of corridors. They spoke of a myriad of things for a good while until the subject of war came up.
The lord from Aroloth said, “War is a strange subject. Men love it and hate it in equal measure. Well, in truth it depends on which men we speak of. Commoners hate it for the disruption in daily life while young nobles love it for the glory of battle and the chance to prove their mettle”.
Gyholt nodded approvingly, “That is so. Though not even that is the full picture. Strohinites love war for the glory and wealth that they gain from it. Plunder is a major source of wealth for them. In Fursagla, your words ring truer than in Strohin”.
The Fursaglan led the Aroloth to a door with emerald handles and a large dark brown eye painted in the ash wood. Inside, there was a whole wall covered in scrolls and tablets of dried clay. The shelves were of wood and animal bone while several chairs with ivory legs and feather stuffed cushions were placed in a neat row in front of a table with several more tablets and stacks of parchment.
“You are a scholar as well as a warrior. You surprise me, my lord”, said Palanu.
Gyholt pulled a chair and wordlessly offered it to the Aroloth man before taking a seat himself, “It was my father who was both scholar and warrior. I’m not as much of a scholar as he was though I’ve been told I look like one. But anyway, we were speaking of war”.
The younger noble took the seat and said, “Yes we were, though I don’t see why we have to bring such a dreary subject to a place of knowledge”.
“That’s because this place of knowledge is also a place of mystery”, the Fursaglan lord took a piece of parchment from one of the stacks and said, “In this one, my father wrote to a mistress he hid from the public for many years before his death. He had several children with her and supplied them with enough food and water to last them a year. I tried to track this second family of his down but to no avail. It’s a shame, I would’ve liked to have met these half brothers and sisters that my father murmured of with his dying breath. Clearly he loved them more than he did his first family”.
“I’m sorry. I’m sure it must’ve been difficult to learn such a truth”, said Palanu. ‘What is the point of all this? I’m certain he has a motive here’.
Gyholt continued, “War and death are subjects which contain mysteries as yet unsolved by modern man. The next words we utter next should be reported to the Emperor especially as they will concern him”.
This surprised Palanu. Caught off guard, he was at a loss for words.
Gyholt put the parchment back, “Rumors have been circulating of a planned attack on Mofnarak. I would advise against it. Although he may conquer the world if he wants to, Zukir cannot possibly hold it all. His sons nor grandsons will hold it after him. He’s already had to face rebellions here. Can you imagine the logistical nightmare that would await us if the rebellion broke out overseas? Blood will be spilt and for what? Resources he could just as easily trade for rather than take by force”.
Palanu pondered on this for a while before saying, “If the God of Aroloth wishes to conquer the world then that is his prerogative. He’s a god after all. Gods don’t have the same concerns as lesser men”.
“Then perhaps they should. They cast those out at their peril. Well, at everyone’s peril. I don’t want to lead men to their deaths in unnecessary wars”, said the former rebel.
If Arhasak was wealthy in anything, Asgena would say in smoke. The city had metal workers like seeds scattered into an open field by a shit poor farmer. He would spit it out but knew it would only make the taste even worse as more would get in the moment he opened his mouth. That day had been especially bad as craftsmen prepared for trading season and worked vigorously to keep up with the new demand for tools, and all manner of spell bound sorceries. The mephitic smell of the arcane energies mixed with the smoke produced the foulest and most nauseating smell Asgena had ever experienced. He preferred his home region at the border between Fursagla and Tocro where men produced plywood and were sane enough to want a place for decent living.
A young man in a dark brown cloak approached the lord and bowed his head slightly, “Father, the men are ready. The sun sets and people are going to sleep. Shall we attack now?”.
Asgena looked at his son’s eyes and said in an eager voice, “Yes, let’s get out of this little corner of the market and set the plan in motion. You remember your role don’t you? Don’t groan like that, I need to know that you do”.
His son rolled his eyes and replied, “Yes Father, I am to kill a couple of peasants to attract some guards and then open the gates for the rest of the men to enter the city. I don’t know why you would even want Arhasak in the first place. This place smells worse than shit”.
Asgena smiled in understanding and harshly patted his son’s shoulder. He looked at the rest of his sons and nodded. It was time to begin the attack. His men disrobed themselves to reveal panoply armor and some chest plates and greaves. Several of those men gave the lord his greaves and chest plate with stars painted on the shoulder guards to strap on. Another one brought a helmet with intricate multicolored squares etched in and a nose guard in the shape of a boar’s head. Asgena took it and put it on.
Marhuk and two other Sentinels walked back to the gates after patrolling the area. Even though he was the leader of the famed Sentinels of Arhasak, he still took time to do grunt work so as to remain a humble man and not grow in arrogance as he believed he would if he did not. He hailed a fellow Sentinel who stood with three comrades in front of the gates to the palace.
“Lord Marhuk, how’s the perimeter?”, the Sentinel asked.
The man said, “It is quiet. How about your end?”.
“No man has sought Lord Gyholt’s blood yet. I would say things are going well enough”, said the Sentinel.
Marhuk nodded and gestured at the other two Sentinels that he patrolled with to get inside. He would’ve done the same had a man not dashed towards them.
At the blink of an eye, Marhuk and his Sentinels grabbed their weapons and shouted for the man’s name, “Wait, wait, wait! It’s me, Jasiad. I come with news!”. Yet instead of telling them the news, it dripped from his mouth in the form of blood as an arrow pierced a lung.
“Jasiad!”, yelled Marhuk who had known the man for several years, “Men, ready yourselves! Yolguna, go and warn the palace. Now!”.
Jasiad fell to the ground and bled to death as another group of men, these being in panoplies and wielding swords of obsidian and bronze, charged at them.
The archers behind them managed a single volley that killed a Sentinel, Garjag he believed his name was, and wounded two others.
Marhuk and the Sentinel he hailed, Glargen, were the last ones left. They stood side by side to meet the first wave of intruders to the palace grounds. They were overwhelmed and killed. Glargen had a sword shoved into his mouth and explode at the back of his head. Marhuk lost an arm and had his throat slit once he was in the ground.
Asgena looked at the scene with a nasty grin, “Well done, boys. Ready yourselves for the rest of the Sentinels. They won’t be as easy to kill as these two”.

So, I have been trying to fix something for a few days but I can't seem to fix.
The other day I was playing and I was doing the Railroad Side Quests. After a while I realized my characters voice lines would not play. So, what I did was I reloaded from a previous save that wasn't too far back. But, the problem still persisted. After testing previous saves, I found one where the voice lines did play, but, if I were to start from this save, I would have lost 29 hours worth of progress.
I have done multiple things that people have claimed to fix their issues with a problem similar to this (e.g. submerging in water, saving, loading said save, and stepping out of water).
I do not have a mod like "Silent Protagonist," that can't be a contributor to this issue.
Also, I have tried turning all my mods off, but even with that, the problem still persisted.
Do I really have to lose a ton of progress just to get my characters voice back? Or is there a tool or something I could use to fix this issue?
Also, here is my load order:
PLUGINS:

\[ 0\] Fallout4.esm \[ 1\] DLCRobot.esm \[ 2\] DLCworkshop01.esm \[ 3\] DLCCoast.esm \[ 4\] DLCworkshop02.esm \[ 5\] DLCworkshop03.esm \[ 6\] DLCNukaWorld.esm \[ 7\] ccrzrfo4001-tunnelsnakes.esm \[ 8\] ccswkfo4001-astronautpowerarmor.esm \[ 9\] cczsef04001-bhouse.esm \[ A\] cctosfo4001-neosky.esm \[ B\] cczsefo4002-smanor.esm \[ C\] cctosfo4002\_neonflats.esm \[ D\] Unofficial Fallout 4 Patch.esp \[ E\] HUDFramework.esm \[ F\] ArmorKeywords.esm \[10\] TortureDevices.esm \[11\] Loads.esm \[12\] NewCalibers.esp \[13\] Devious Devices.esm \[14\] AutoUnequipPipboy.esm \[15\] TacticalReload.esm \[16\] MaleBodies.esm \[17\] Homemaker.esm \[18\] BbaronxScriptLibrary.esm \[19\] AAF.esm \[1A\] Armorsmith Extended.esp \[1B\] WeightlessMods.esp \[1C\] WeightlessJunk.esp \[1D\] Stm\_DiamondCityExpansion.esp \[1E\] MojaveImports.esp \[1F\] NAC.esp \[20\] Vivid Weathers - FO4.esp \[21\] CheatTerminal.esp \[22\] BoundInPublic.esp \[23\] Backpacks of the Commonwealth.esp \[24\] Mercenary.esp \[25\] DOOMMerged.esp \[26\] Eli\_Armour\_Compendium.esp \[27\] RealHandcuffs.esp \[28\] Vioxsis\_Strap-Ons.esp \[29\] AnS Wearable Backpacks and Pouches.esp \[2A\] AnS Wearable Backpacks and Pouches - AWKCR.esp \[2B\] WIPAG\_Power Armor Overhaul.esp \[2C\] F4NVServiceRifleRedux.esp \[2D\] 01SAA\_Colt.esp \[2E\] LString\_Bow.esp \[2F\] M2Agency.esp \[30\] 3dscopes.esp \[31\] WestTekTacticalOptics.esp \[32\] TAC.esp \[33\] PoliceWeaponPack.esp \[34\] SkyrimInspiredPowerArmor.esp \[35\] AnS Wearable Backpacks and Pouches - Power Armor Carry Capacity.esp \[36\] AnS Wearable Backpacks and Pouches - AWKCR Power Armor.esp \[37\] clothingoverhaul.esp \[38\] ClothingOverhaulSP\_XB1\_PC.esp \[39\] AtomicAnnieLagrieGun.esp \[3A\] SigMCX.esp \[3B\] TFRangerGear.esp \[3C\] Schofield No.2.esp \[3D\] SW1905.esp \[3E\] FPAttributes.esp \[3F\] SettlementMenuManager.esp \[40\] SimplyCosmeticPipboyPaintjobs.esp \[41\] SimplyCosmeticPipboyPaintjobs-FactionPack.esp \[42\] Tactical Flashlights.esp \[43\] Tactical Flashlights - Settings.esp \[44\] RemingtonNewArmy.esp \[45\] DakJudgeRevolver.esp \[46\] FV20\_DreadHG.esp \[47\] HuntingRevolver.esp \[48\] TacticalReloadDLC.esp \[49\] AWKCR-WA CC Patch.esp \[4A\] Extended weapon mods.esp \[4B\] TacticalReloadVanilla.esp \[4C\] mjp\_PTRS41ATR.esp \[4D\] M14.esp \[4E\] UCO\_CCPatch\_MorganSpaceSuit.esp \[4F\] Vadermania\[AAF\_anims\].esp \[50\] VendorCaps.esp \[51\] VisibleWeapons.esp \[52\] WastelandFashionAccessories.esp \[53\] WastelandFashion.esp \[54\] AnS Wearable Backpacks and Pouches - Ballistic Weave.esp \[55\] WeightlessAid.esp \[56\] WeightlessSpecialAmmo.esp \[57\] AAF\_BadEnd\_Animations.esp \[58\] Fusion Core Charging.esp \[59\] ImmersiveAnimationFramework.esp \[5A\] Loads of Ammo - Leveled Lists.esp \[5B\] NAC-FH.esp \[5C\] NAC-NW.esp \[5D\] Radiant Clouds and Fogs.esp \[5E\] AAF\_GrayAnimations.esp \[5F\] AAF\_CreaturePack01.esp \[60\] FunctionalDisplays-Collectibles.esp \[61\] More Power Armour Mods.esp \[62\] PAMAP.esp \[63\] Prisoner Shackles.esp \[64\] PowerArmorNightVision.esp \[65\] Professional Ammo Crafting Breakdown Addon.esp \[66\] Professional Ammo Crafting.esp \[67\] FunctionalDisplays.esp \[68\] FunctionalDisplays-MISC-Weightless.esp \[69\] PigAAM1911.esp \[6A\] DakSW59.esp \[6B\] PMC Operators Pack.esp \[6C\] MojaveImports - Combat Addon.esp \[6D\] NewCalibers\_extendedWeaponMods.esp \[6E\] Lever Action Reload Fix.esp \[6F\] NewCalibers\_LeverActionReload.esp \[70\] Modern Military Pack.esp \[71\] MoreSkinColors.esp \[72\] Mutated Lust.esp \[73\] LegendaryModification.esp \[74\] LegendaryModification - DLC Far Harbor.esp \[75\] K9TacticalHarness.esp \[76\] LegendaryModification2LM.esp \[77\] LegendaryModification2LMAKPatch.esp \[78\] LegendaryModificationCSA.esp \[79\] LegendaryModificationGroknak.esp \[7A\] LegendaryModificationMisc.esp \[7B\] LongerPowerLinesInf.esp \[7C\] LMBTOverlays.esp \[7D\] LooksMenu.esp \[7E\] Lots More Facial Hair.esp \[7F\] Lots More Male Hairstyles.esp \[80\] 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05-22-2024 REVISION: Hey Everyone, I posted a truncated version of this the other day, but I kept ruminating and wanted to expand a little further, clear up some ideas, as well as address some of the feedback I initially got. I ended up basically rewriting the original post with enough new information I figured it would be worth it to delete the original, and share the idea again, but more succinctly. So if you already read some of this, I think I provide enough new information it is worth the re-read, but if not I apologize for wasting your time. And if you have not yet read it, please enjoy. Also, this is in no way a suggestion or insistence that you must consume Wicked, the 1939 film, or any Oz any related media as part of any kind of "canon" or connected continuity. How you consume media is entirely up to you.
\**Preamble:* A prequel is “a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative”. It is just a word to describe the type of narrative Wicked and Oz the Great and Powerful are. Just like Journey Back to Oz and Return to Oz are “sequels” made by different production companies. It in no way connotes an “official” connection between legally distinct IPs. It is just a way to describe the function of the narrative.
...Also, I am not a copyright lawyer, I'm not any kind of lawyer, nor am I making an accusation that anyone or any entity is infringing on the copyright or trademark of any other entities. That being said…
So, I have a theory that Wicked -- both Maguire's novel (Wicked: the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West), 1995) and more so the musical (Wicked, 2003 Universal Stage Productions) -- solely functions as a prequel to the 1939 MGM film the Wizard of Oz (now owned by WB), and not that film's public domain source novel the Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. Let me explain...
Maguire started writing Wicked in response to the Gulf War, presumably starting around 1990 through its publishing date in 1995. The 1939 film had a big boom in 1989 for its 50th Anniversary resulting in deluge of promotional material -- including an animated TV show adaptation by DIC, where Glinda was redesigned to look like Barbie -- complete with long blonde hair!
Maguire's clever use of Oz characters passed scrutiny during publication in 1995 because the Baum novel had long been in the public domain… as well as Ted Turner arranging to sell the MGM catalog to WB, circa 1997, making the timing ideal for Maguire's novel to skirt any copyright/trademark scrutiny for using elements from the non-public domain film.
We know what happened next, the book was a raging success and soon it was popular enough to be optioned by Universal and turned into a stage musical (produced after film & TV productions with Demi Moore and Salma Hayek separately attached failed to materialize). The musical opened first in San Francisco for try-outs and then Broadway in 2003. And writers Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman liberally peppered even more direct homages and winks to the 1939 film into leitmotifs and other elements of the book, score, and staging.
But, Wicked has TOO many elements from the 1939 film, and NOT ENOUGH from Baum's original book, to merit it being called a prequel to the book (this is also true of Disney’s 2013 admitted attempt to cash-in on Wicked’s success, Oz: the Great and Powerful – which is even more egregious than Wicked, and ironic, as its own title is directly lifted from the 1939 film misquote of the book’s moniker of “Oz the Great and Terrible”).
So now, let's look at some of key differences between the book the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (WWoOZ) and its film adaption from 1939, and how Wicked (and that Disney rip-off - though I don’t want to have to keep mentioning that movie so just assume most of what I say applies there too) reinterprets these events and characters:

• In the book WWoOz it is established that there are four cardinal witches in the land of Oz. Dorothy vanquishes two unrelated Wicked Witches in the East (WWotE) and West (WWotW) as well as encountering the benevolent unnamed good witch of the North at the start of her adventure and a separate good witch, Glinda of the South, who helps her home in the end. MGM condensed the good witches into one character “Glinda the Good Witch of the North” as well as adding a subplot turning the Wicked Witches into sisters (providing Margaret Hamilton’s Witch more direct motivation to pursue Judy Garland’s Dorothy via the Witch’s presumed right to collateral inheritance of her sister’s shoes). Both Maguire and Disney follow the 1939 film’s continuity regarding these relationships making the wicked witches siblings, and Glinda the sole “good witch” in opposition to them.
• WWotW as depicted in Baum’s novel bears little to no resemblance to the green-skinned Margaret Hamilton in the 1939 film, and subsequently Maguire’s Elphaba. Oz illustrator W. W. Denslow, whom Baum worked closely with when designing the characters, depicts the witch as a hunched old hag with three pigtails and an eyepatch, tall brimmed hat, ruffed collar, coat and skirt. While MGM’s design team, led by legendary costumer Adrian, initially tested several looks for WWotW (including a glamorous sequined look inspired by Disney’s Evil Queen in Snow White). MGM screenwriter, Herman Mankiewicz (who expanded the role of the wicked witch from book to screenplay, and wrote several key lines for her including, “I’ll get you my pretty!”) insisted "witches should be ugly!" leading to Gale Sondergard's replacement of Magaret Hamilton in the role. But the severe all-black silhouette cast by Hamilton's witch is nothing like the silly witch of Baum's text and Desnlow's art. And Susan Hilferty’s stage designs for Elphaba retain the 1939 film’s silhouette and dark color palette.
• Speaking of ugly witches... while green skinned characters, like folkloric swamp-hag Jenny Green-teeth, were not unheard of (even some promotional material for Disney's Snow White has their flesh-colored Hag looking a jaundiced yellow) it is widely acknowledged Margaret Hamilton’s Witch is the first in popular culture, and certainly on film, to be depicted with green skin. Likely, inspired by Universal's 1931 Frankenstein), promotional material for which depicted the Creature with sickly green skin, and chosen to accentuate the technicolor process, broadcasting the Witch's “wickedness” as well as helping Hamilton's frightening face and spider-like performance stand-out against her black costume, MGM producers chose green copper-based makeup for Hamilton's witch. The 1939 film's success in popular culture lead green-skinned witches to be accepted as "canon" in the public zeitgeist and now from Halloween make-up brands and Looney Tunes' Witch Hazel), the green skinned witch is mainstream. But as Professor Marion Gibson, associate professor of Renaissance and magical literatures at the University of Exeter and an expert in popular depictions of witches, explains, before 1939 "there are a few images of witches – for instance, on Halloween postcards – with odd coloured faces (usually red/orange, surprisingly) but MGM's green-faced witch is the first to make a key feature of a completely non-human skin colour." Needless to say this film element of green-skin became a major plot point of Maguire's Wicked.
• Another difference in Baum’s WWotW is that she only had one eye, but that it "was as powerful as a telescope", and this is how she spies on her enemies. MGM was again inspired by Snow White's Queen, and popular imagery of fortune tellers, giving Hamilton’s Witch the ability to scry in a large crystal ball, which made for some of the most memorable visuals of the film, of her looming eerily over the heroes. Unlike Baum’s WWotW, Maguire’s Elphaba retains vision in both eyes, and inherits her film counterpart's scrying abilities (primarily using a blown-glass orb).
• Baum’s WWotW importantly carries an umbrella, not a broomstick, as a source of protection for her aquaphobia. She has no need for transportation, her location is limited to her castle in the West of Oz. MGM’s script, howvever, gave Hamilton’s Witch a means of transportation that had long been popular in witch mythology, a broomstick, involving her more directly in the narrative (as well as giving the Wizard a macguffin to send Dorothy after). Maguire also chose to make a broomstick a means of travel for Elphaba, and Stephen Schwartz's “Defying Gravity”, the centerpiece of the musical, which sees a scene not included in the novel, where Elphaba defiantly flies over the Emerald City in protest of the Wizard, cemented the broom’s icon status within the framework of the Wicked franchise.
• The Flying Monkeys in Baum’s novel have a rich backstory involving their enslavement at the hands of a sorceress named Gaylette. The monkeys’ terms of imprisonment require they obey three commands given by whomever possess a Golden Cap, which the WWotW owns and uses to capture Dorothy and her friends. Dorothy comes into possession of the Golden Cap after WWotW’s demise (similar to her inheriting the slippers) and is able to command the monkeys to her own benefit later in the book. The Golden Cap subplot was scrapped from the MGM film in favor of giving the witch a more ambiguous command over her uniformed simian air force (though it still appears in the final cut as a prop tossed by Hamilton's Witch to Nikko, the flying monkey). Maguire’s Wicked makes no mention of Baum’s golden cap, giving Elphaba a monkey factotum -- who cannot speak similar to MGM’s Nikko (In Baum's Oz all animals can speak perfectly, including the leader of the Winged Monkeys... more on that below) -- now called Chistrey. The monkeys are given a vivisection backstory in Maguire's novel and are a result of the Grimmerie’s levitation spell in the musical, but Elphaba’s willful command of the their legions, without the limitations of the Golden Cap, is much more reminiscent of MGM’s Witch than Baum’s.
• Famously the slippers Dorothy inherits from the WWotE in Baum’s novel are made of silver metal (sterling silver shoes were popular as decorations and sugar bowls in Baum's day). The Slippers in the 1939 film were famously changed to ruby, so as to be more eye-catching against the technicolor yellow road. After some initial designs, MGM designer Adrian landed on the iconic red sequined pump seen in the film. in Maguire's work he is very careful not to make the famous slippers silver or ruby, and instead they are made of beaded glass, which has sentimental value to Elphaba's family, and utilizes the film’s sibling backstory to motivate Elphaba. The beaded glass slippers, in the musical referred to as "jeweled", refract multiple colors, notably a fiery red glow, again skirting copyright while paying homage to both the ruby slippers and silver of the Baum book. Susan Hilferty’s choice of silver sequined pumps for the musical, given a red special lighting cue at a crucial moment, distinctly resemble Adrian’s 1939 design.
• Dorothy is a young child of roughly seven or eight years old in Baum’s novel and its illustrations. In Maguire’s take on the character she is depicted as a husky teenager prone to cloying musical outbursts. Teenage Judy Garland was famously derided at MGM for her weight, especially filming Oz, with Louis Mayor allegedly calling her his “little hunchback”.
• Animals in Oz in Baum’s text are all Imbued with the power of speech. Toto himself is able to speak in the land of Oz (revealed in the fifth Baum book), as well as a myriad animals from our world who travel to the Land of Oz, who all gain sentience upon entering the fairy land. In the 1939 film, the Lion is the only animal that appears capable of speech, while other animals that appear, like Toto, birds, horses, cats and monkeys, are all incapable of human vocal communication. Maguire’s text relies heavily on the implication only some Animals (signified by capitalization of the word) in Oz can talk, their subjugation by the Wizard playing huge role in the plot of both Maguire’s book and the musical adaption.
• While sharing some similarities with Baum's Oz geography, 1939 film has a distinct layout for their Oz which is covered in great detail in very few lines of dialogue. In Munchkinland Glinda says "That was her sister--the Wicked Witch of the East. This is the Wicked Witch of the West. And she's worse than the other one." That establishes Munchkinland in the East of Oz, later we can place the Wicked Witch's castle in the West, with the Emerald City presumably in the center of Oz, while Glinda is from an unspecified "North". Funnily enough, those areas of Oz featured in the 1939 film are the same areas of Oz Maguire’s Wicked novel primarily deals with, namely Munchkinland (Nest Hardings), Emerald City, and the West (Kiamo Ko) and North of Oz (Shiz). Maguire also eschews Baum’s Glinda’s native Quadling Country in the south of Oz in favor of time spent in the North (the one land of Oz we never visit in Baum's first book). Maguire's Quadling Country (a backwater quagmire) shares none the colorful geography of Baum's Quadling Country -- which in WWoOZ is full of porcelain towns, jungles, mountains, and Glinda's majestic palace.
• Boq, a character indeed invented by Baum, plays a much less significant part of the novel Wicked than he does in the musical (in the musical he is composite of several novel characters), and his function in the novel the WWoOZ is very similar to that of the Munchkins featured in the 1939 film (he hosts a party celebrating the East Witch's death that Dorothy attends while staying at his home overnight on her journey down the Yellow Brick Road). He and the subplot featuring the Tin Woodman's backstory appear as trivial vignettes with little actual influence over Elphaba’s overall character arch in both the novel and musical.
• And while the inclusion of Elphaba using wolves, crows and bees to attack Dorothy and her friends is a point in Maguire's favor (but only applies to the novel, not the musical) it also has little significance over the elements from Baum’s book he leaves out in favor of the 1939 film’s continuity of a broom-riding, green-skinned witch after her sister’s collateral inheritance. And let us not forget that 1939's Witch also uses bees as a threat..
• But what I find most telling is that none of the witches in Baum’s novel directly interact with one another (later novels in the Oz series withstanding). The famous confrontation between the two witches in Munchkinland was entirely a fabrication of the 1939 film’s screenwriters. The musical’s entire premise, and a large portion of the novel’s, relies on the idea that these two opposing witches shared some past which informs their conflict in that scene, but that moment is solely a product of the 1939 film.

I think it is very important to view Wicked (especially the musical) as intended... as a revisionist adaption of, and prequel, to the 1939 film (and not Baum's book). In Wicked, Dorothy's journey of self discovery -- finding wisdom, love, and courage through community and questioning authority -- is subverted through Elphaba's journey -- where wisdom, love, and courage come at great personal cost, and questioning authority means also becoming a target of that authority's wrath. Whereas Dorothy returns home in the end, Elphaba must go into exile in the musical (and she is ding dong dead in the book).
By the end of the 1939 film Dorothy is literally transformed -- excellently visually expressed through her full glamour makeover - curtesy of the Wizard's employees - and adornment in her fallen enemy's fabulous footwear. The 1939 narrative in psychoanalytic terms is one of adolescent Dorothy being chided and ignored in Kansas -- she is without the protection of the adults around her, and therefore subjected to trauma at the hands of threatening Older Female and left vulnerable to the advances of a dubiously intentioned Conman. She learns the importance of embracing the power of appearances ("Are you a good witch or bad witch?.... only Bad witches are ugly.") therefore earning the protection of the adults who once ignored her. In turn she is able to utilize traits inherited from those adults to finally assume assume her full power, vanquishing the Older Female threat and rendering the Conman impotent.
Elphaba and Glinda similarly grow from children ignored -- Elphaba subject to rejection and bullying without the protection of her family or peers, and therefore vulnerable to machinations of a threatening Older Female and the advances of a dubiously intentioned Conman. She then learns the power of embracing appearances ("pink goes good with green") but, this being a subversion of the Oz narrative we see that in embracing her unconventional appearance (the skin she was born in and an outfit literally designed by Glinda) she further alienates herself from protection. While Glinda's journey of superficial beauty equating to goodness, also subjects her to persecution from the Older Female and Conman.
Through traits inherited from one another, and their enemies -- Elphaba uses the Wizard's methodology of deception and flim-flam to fake her death and win her freedom, while Glinda quite literally uses Morrible's own words against her in her defeat -- they are both able to assume full power vanquishing the Older Female threat and rendering the Conman impotent.
In the musical's Finale, a reprise of both "For Good" and "No One Mourns the Wicked", we have been made the whole show to ask ourselves the question "was she a good witch or a bad witch?" Then the audience watches a well intentioned, but woefully incompetent leader, ascend to power under the monicker "Glinda the Good" while the arguably more qualified person has their "death" celebrated, only to be mourned in secret.
The line, "who can say if I have been changed for the better, but because I knew you I have been changed for good" ties together the the concept of metaphorically wearing the traits of those we've known and encountered, loved ones and enemies alike. Like a well worn hat or pair of ruby slippers, we cloth ourselves in the intelligence, love, courage, and even the wickedness and deception of those we encounter.
Wicked tends to suggest truth is subjective. Goodness or wickedness, beauty and ugliness, whether someone is a "traitor or liberator, thief or philanthropist" is all subjective. The Wizard's malleable grip on truth ("Elphaba, where I'm from we believe all sorts of things that aren't true we call it history!") is ultimately inherited by Elphaba and Fiyero in the end ("It's not lying! It's looking at things another way") as well as Glinda ("Good news!"). Much like Dorothy's journey leaves her with the knowledge that her heart's desires lie in her own self fulfillment, Elphaba and Glinda are left knowing that their potential, good or bad, has always been theirs to posses.
Maguire used something called "fair use doctrine", technically publishing Wicked as a parody (which does not always mean a comical work). It was well within his legal right to do so. The musical tiptoes the lines he walked a little more, but ultimately Wicked being "legally distinct" from the 1939 -- but still using more elements from that movie than the public domain book -- is still a legal use of the characters. However, I think the way Maguire skirted copyright is incredibly clever, and I find it wild that such a popular franchise as Wicked has basically used legal gray areas to bring a rainbow of color to Oz, all while claiming use of public domain versions of characters, and clearly mining the trademarked versions of those characters for most of their inspiration.
Various Oz media has used elements of the 1939 film without voiding copyright. For example the 1982 anime film has red slippers, and 1972's Journey Back to Oz features a green skinned witch Mombi. And the 1939 film itself borrowed elements from numerous previous adaptations of the Oz story from silent and animated films to stage plays). The history of Oz is always evolving with each new iteration and how the story was told one hundred years ago isn't always going to be how we tell it in the future.
Just know, how anyone chooses to interpret the "canon" of Oz, or relate to any specific piece of media -- for example finding continuity between various adaptations, etc. -- is entirely up to them. Oz is a place that supports diversity, creativity, and inclusion! But if you're gonna be a witch, a green one is a good one to be!
TLDR: Wicked does not function as a prequel to the book by L. Frank Baum, but only serves as a prequel to the 1939 film, starring Judy Garland. This is evident because the Witch in Baum's book isn't green, doesn't ride a broom, only has one eye, no sister, and never interacts with Glinda (who is an amalgamation of two separate characters).

Conrad felt the Dhampir’s almost animalistic growl in his spine, a predatory grin on his own face as the vral light cruiser fired, harsh red light missing the hull by a few feet off the starboard side. Batz actually laughed, Dev’s normally small and polite brazilian accent spun in some of the harshest curses Conrad had ever heard. The visor rested comfortably on him, Batz feeding him exterior views over a Heads Up Display. The external feeds of the cameras gave him nearly three hundred and sixty degrees of vision, the piloting stick in his hand responded like a fighter on steroids. “We’re on it! Give me more power Crispy!” He roared as he shot past a Terran destroyer’s bow that was engaging a pair of vral corvettes. Beyond the subject of Conrad’s attention a vral battleship seemed to shudder, a flash of light causing his vision to dim as a MAC accelerator round hit it squarely amidships. A dim red haze etched around his vision, letting him know that someone out there had weapons lock on them, the small numerical icon let him know that that only one ship had the lock, the light cruiser itself.
“Red line.” Crispy’s voice came through the small transmitter on the bridge, and Conrad laughed. Did he actually need more power? No. Did the HUD he was pointedly ignoring show him that the reactor was at full power? Oh yes. In fact he could feel the power of this ship reverberating through his bones. A V marker superimposed on the HUD showed him he was in a full dive towards the light cruiser, who unfortunately for the vral had noticed the Dhampir a little too late. The Dhampir shook as the corvette took a stray shot, but no one paid the sudden jolt any mind. Batz finally locked onto the light cruiser now that they had gotten it’s attention, then promptly began sending a wave of electronic countermeasures to baffle their tracking. Distance readouts continued to count down, and Conrad’s heart hammered into his chest. Chaos reigned, and all around them the rest of the fleet was engaged, cruisers were set up in a line formation, the carrier Stormbird anchoring the fleet flanked by two battleships. The destroyers were driving the line forward, but the Dhampir? The other corvettes? They had no formation. Conrad couldn’t believe as the distance to the vral light cruiser counted down that he had ever wanted to do anything but this. If he had gotten command of a destroyer he would have been standing tall in his command station, he could almost imagine him calling out in a stately voice orders and commands, coordinating fire. Any kills made by his ship would have been seen at a distance, impartial. Stately. Ordered. Dignified.
Not on the Dhampir.
The vral were trying to fire at them, but their turret transit speed was almost comically slow at this range. The light cruiser began trying to turn like a wild animal trying to avoid a predator. “Broadcast the target. It’s ours. No fucking touchy!” Cass yelled. The light cruiser was less than ten kilometers away, and he was still closing. This wasn't the engagement range for his ship. The railguns of the corvette could reliably be accurate well over two hundred kilometers against a ship the size of the vral light cruiser. This wasn’t even knife fighting range. As the numbers continued to count down to nine kilometers and the vral vessel loomed larger Conrad’s lips parted to a snarl.
No, there was going to be no stately, ordered, and dignified end for this vral ship. Conrad and his crew were going to murder it, violently.
“Cass, you see those turrets turning to us?” Conrad yelled as he yanked the stick right, the Dhampir tilting widely before he pulled the stick towards him hard, another shot from the light cruiser sailing wide as the corvette went into a hard turn that overtaxed the artificial gravity and pushed him down in his seat.
“Don’t want to see it any more? But it’s playing with us!” Cass wailed in protest even as he saw target markers appear over sections of the light cruiser, with over Six green markers swung onto his vision over the light cruiser, becoming one right at the centerline. Bordering the red haze, a light yellow haze began to flash but disappeared, and Conrad breathed out a thanks to whoever had distracted whatever ship that had been trying to acquire them. “Weapons Free Rev Dev!” She called out, and although the human eye couldn’t see the rounds of the railguns the shield blooms from their impacts washed out. Rev and Dev, the weapons operators, had already turned the primary armament of the Dhampir on the light cruiser. Twenty four top mounted railguns, mounted in groups of four, all fired at once, and Conrad saw the bloom of the vral shields screaming in protest as all twenty four rounds hit squarely at the same moment, even as he was jostled in his seat by the recoil. Five seconds later, another salvo of the 130mm rounds slammed into the light cruiser’s shields at a little over twenty kilometers a second, hammering over forty two gigajoules of raw kinetic power per round against the vral’s shields. The light cruiser tried to roll to bring it’s turrets to bear a little faster, but there was no escape. The third salvo did it, and for a brief instant Conrad could see a faint bubble around the light cruiser flash. Another, larger flash came from the light cruiser itself, as the railgun rounds cut through the armor of the light cruiser and bit deep. Primary and secondary detonations rippled from the impact.
“That’s their shields!” Batz yelled out, even as Conrad yanked hard on the stick, turning the Dhampir a hundred and eighty degrees, rapidly decelerating the corvette to match the speed of the injured cruiser. A trail of debris and gass blossomed out from the wounded vessel. Conrad watched as green markers, signifying the individual railgun mounts, locked onto the targets that Cass had pushed through. Another yellow haze began to flash inside the red, then promptly vanished. The numerical readout for weapons lock switched. He grimaced, knowing that somewhere in this chaotic mess, another vral ship had just locked on and was making a run on them. He felt the jolts in his seat even as the Dhampir started to defang it’s prey, rounds punching through the turrets, silencing the vral light cruiser even as it continued to turn away. “We’ve got a corvette mad at us, it’s locking on, fifty kilometers and closing hard. Two forty, minus fourty six!” Conrad relaxed a little, but just a little. As long as it was just a vral corvette he didn’t have to worry nearly so much. Compared to his Dhampir, a vral corvette was nothing.
“Rev, take it down.” Cass called out, focused on the light cruiser, continuing to mark targets as the two operators stripped the light cruiser of the ability to defend itself. Conrad turned his head, using the coordinates Batz had called out to him. He had already marked the contact. As he turned his head he could see flashes of vral weapons fire, and sometimes he saw a return from one of the Terran Front vessels. Two hundred forty bearing, minus forty six elevation. At this range, the corvette diving towards them was just a speck, even though it was over ninety meters long itself. Even as he looked, three green reticules moved over the yellow marker. Conrad used his free hand to quickly zoom in on the visor, even as he felt the bucking of the railguns. The vral corvette fired, the lasers striking instantly, and Conrad felt his seat jolt as the shields of the Dhampir dropped by ten percent.
“Cruiser’s toothless.” Dev called out, his focus still locked on the light cruiser. even as the Dhampir fired again.
“They’re fucking stupid.” Conrad growled, watching as this time he could have sworn he could actually see the rounds heading towards the vral corvette that Rev had launched before the Dhampir had been hit. He waited for the corvette to turn, like he would have, or take a different transversal approach. It shocked him how arrogant the vral still were. Two seconds later he saw a bright flash as the railgun rounds slammed into the corvette’s forward shields and collapsed them. The vral corvette seemed to shudder, then suddenly his visor’s dimmers came on as the entire corvette erupted into a bright flash. The numerical readout display showing how many ships were currently targeting the Dhampir dropped back to one. Conrad knew a reactor breach well by now. “Nice! Target destroyed.”
“Target’s fucked!” Rev called back.
When the dimmer relented Conrad could see that the corvette had entire sections of it’s hull missing, and was completely blasted off of it’s deadlong charge of the Dhampir. Debris was flying from the explosion, forming a cloud that was quickly becoming invisible. The vral corvette who had recklessly charged to the aid of the stricken light cruiser began a slow, eternal, and stately path into the inner system, where it would either orbit the system until the star went nova, or it crashed into one of the six planets in system, or dove into the star itself. In either case, it didn’t matter anymore. Most likely a salvager would run it down. Conrad turned his gaze back onto the light cruiser, just as the dimmers came back on. The shields of the Dhampir were lit up facing the light cruiser, and while at first Conrad felt his pulse spike from the thought they had somehow missed a weapons system, but no alarms sounded. After a few seconds he realized what they were actually firing and actually snorted.
“Are they shooting us with point defense?” He asked incredulously. He heard Batz laughing. The Dhampir bucked again, then again as Rev lined his turrets back on the hapless vral vessel. “Someone turn that shit off!’ Almost as if his crew could have done it for him, the lightshow stopped. Point defense could kill a fighter, but it wouldn’t even scratch the Dhampir’s paint. He saw the engine exhaust glow on the light cruiser sputter, then die out. “Cease fire, Cass, put it down.” He looked in the top right of his display, checking the shields of his ship and seeing they had barely begun to be dragged down in efficiency from the burst of small lasers the vral used for anti-fighter cover. Crispy would already be compensating. The target icons from Cass shifted on the hull of the light cruiser, multiplying.. It was strange just how quiet everything became, even though the music was still blaring. Conrad felt like a hunter crouching over a kill, the light cruiser derelict and drifting, it’s power out, it’s weapons destroyed. If they had noticed the Dhampir coming for them earlier, if they had begun to fight them earlier, the vral might have been able to make a fight out of it. They could have engaged at equal terms, but at less than fifteen thousand yards they were all but helpless against the Dhampir. The target icons lingered over the light cruiser, Cass had targeted engine relays, life support systems, power junctions. He growled in satisfaction, looking at his kill through the eyes of his ship. He heard Rev call out for sequential fire, and the Dhampir began to shake.
Individual rounds thundered out, the vral vessel being needled with pinpoint strikes instead of the bludgeoning sledgehammer strikes that had crippled it. Debris flew out from small stab wounds. Some of them flashed, sometimes a secondary explosion sent jets of flame out of the entry wounds. One by one, each yellow icon from Cass was met by a green marker from Rev or Dev, was eliminated, and the duo moved on. He pulled his visor off, looking over at Cass’ station, she noticed the movement and her bright red hair whipped around her head as she spun in her chair. She flashed him a predatory grin. He winked at her, then glanced around at the rest of his bridge crew, Cass following his gaze. Rev and Dev were still tapping on their panels, the light cruiser spitting debris each time the Dhampir rumbled. Batz was engrossed in his sensor readouts, meanwhile Fidget was, well, fidgeting, all the while mouthing the words to the song that was blaring over the ship’s speakers, even as he pressed both hands over the earpeices of his headset.. “The bitch is dead. Marking for salvage” Rev called out, and Conrad pulled his visor over his vision even as Cass spun back in her chair. “Batz! Find us something to kill!” Conrad yelled out, feeling his entire body surging as he kicked the throttle into high gear, gunning the corvette away from the derelict light cruiser. “Fidget, What’s fleet saying?” There was a bright flash against a small segment of the shields, something that Conrad dismissed almost instantly. If they had been locked onto they would know, it was probably a piece of wreckage from the corvette they had killed finally reaching them.
“Got one! One ten, twenty!” Batz called out, and Conrad felt the artificial gravity dig into him as he powered the Dhampir around. “Corvette squadron is making a run against the Melbourne!” Everyone on the bridge pressed back into their chair as Conrad threw the Dhampir into full throttle, and as the ship compensated for the thrust the shields were peppered once again, drifting remains of another vessel ejected into the void. “Chill! The vral fleet, they are coming apart!” Batz said, even as he solidified his sensor lock on the four corvettes that were even now trying to harass the Terran Front heavy cruiser Melbourne. Conrad turned his head, looking around the battlefield with the ship’s eyes. Even to the untrained eye there was a definite order to battle, even in one as chaotic and messy as this one. The vral ships that comprised it’s main line indeed looked as if they were moments from breaking formation. There was too much drift, too little cohesion. While the cruisers and battlehips of the Terran line kept their spacing to provide each other with protective and overlapping fields of fire, the Vral line was being filled with holes it didn’t seem like it was mending.
“Fidget, is anyone talking about their fleet?” Conrad said, even as he began angling for the first corvette. One of the corvettes harassing the Melbourne was flying at an oblique angle, turning towards the Terran Front cruiser’s stern, when suddenly took a hit and began tumbling in a straight line, spinning end over end. Conrad didn’t need to zoom in to know that that one wasn’t a threat anymore as large pieces of the hull flew off in different directions.. Rev and Dev didn’t need permission, and didn’t ask for it as they saw the angle of his approach and locked onto the corvette with all twenty four railguns. Vral ships, compared to the old United Earth ships, were powerful, resilient, and bore technology that gave them a distinct tactical advantage. Over the course of the near ninety years of the first through the sixth Orion Wars, or Vral Wars as Conrad knew them, that gap had been plugged, their technology analyzed, their weaknesses identified. As the Terran Front had poured it’s entire being into warfare, the Vral Empire had not changed. Now, compared to the Terran Front, the vral ships were seen as what they were. Relics, newly forged antiques, built by an empire that had not been forced to change it’s approach, and quite possibly didn’t know how to anymore. The Dhampir shuddered, and the railguns, designed specifically to counter vral shield weaknesses to kinetic impact, launched over three times the ordinance needed to collapse the vral corvettes’ shields. Seconds later, the shields of the vral corvette ceased to exist, and the hull seemed to blossom outwards. Rev and Dev were already aligning their railguns to the third target as the second’s eviscerated hull flashed, splitting in half. It wasn’t the flash of reactor breach, Conrad could only assume a railgun round had struck a weapon’s magazine.
The Dhampir shuddered again, and another lethal combination of shells flew out, and seconds later the third vral corvette began to lazily spin, it’s drive plume sputtering out as it careened in a straight line out into the void between stars.Conrad turned his head towards the fourth.
“Holy shit! Batz, the Paris!” FIdget yelled, his voice a mixture of shock and concern.
“What is it Fidget?” He heard Cass call out even as the Dhampir shuddered one more time, and both Rev and Dev cursed as one as the vral corvette spun in the vacuum, causing both their shots to go wide.
“Chill, 45, minus 110.” Batz called out, and Conrad wanted to pull off his visor. If Fidget sounded concerned, Batz sounded more fatalistic. Conrad turned his head, and his eyes widened.
Rev and Dev both loudly protested as their shots went wide again, the compensators for the railguns not enough to handle the sudden and violent turn of the Dhampir. “Crispy, we need everything, and don’t give me that shit about Red Line right now!” Conrad yelled as the Dhampir rocketed towards the eight kilometer long Terran Front battleship in the distance. No one needed to talk, no one needed clarification. It wasn’t the Paris itself, it was the three vral heavy cruisers bearing down on it, and the battleship that was burning towards it. Even as they watched, a vral corvette slammed into the Paris’ shields near the bow of the massive battleship, debris erupting everywhere as the vral hull collapsed against the energy matrix. The light show coming from the Paris came from hundreds of rail guns, two MAC cannons, and a host of large lens lasers.
“Oh shit…” He heard Rev say, even as a sudden surge hit the ship, evidence Crispy had pushed the ships reactor past it’s safety point. “Oh shit!” Rev yelled in alarm, realizing what he was seeing, and three of the green reticles that signified his controlled railguns centered on the drive plume of the vral battleship, even as another form shot past it, another vral corvette, slamming a few seconds later at full speed into the shields of the Paris.
“Cass, target the drive! Now!” Conrad yelled as he wanted to do something, anything. He could only watch as yellow target indicators flashed onto the distant vral battleship as it plunged down towards the Paris, on what was clear to anyone as a clear intent to ram it. Conrad knew Terran ships were tough, but he knew they weren’t that tough. Rev and Dev began firing salvos as fast as the autoloader would allow. They weren’t the only crew that had spotted the danger. The Paris was twisting in space, it’s fire still focused on the heavy cruisers bearing down on it for much the same reason as the battleship itself. The behemoth was a graceful thing, sleek and proud, and as it began to adjust it’s course Conrad saw dozens of Terran ships disengaging to re-engage on the vral ships trying to ram her. The vral battleship’s shields, battered from the damage it had been taking throughout the course of the fight, were already out. The hull was being torn open from the attentions of the other two Terran battleships that were actively throwing everything they could at the vral vessel. Streams of thrusters from missile pods terminated against the increasingly ruined hull of the vral warship, even as the Paris’ own guns turned towards it, the missiles detonating within and blasting sections of the hull as large as the Dhampir away. The Paris’ weapon systems opened up at point blank range, an absolute cascade of blistering railgun rounds and laser batteries. The Paris’ top mounted missile pods seemed to all erupt at once, sending their entire payloads the scant kilometer directly into the port forecastle of the vral battleship, and for a brief moment Conrad wondered if the missiles had been too close to arm.
The entire front quarter of the Vral ship, a prow at least half a kilometer wide, erupted outwards in a silent death scream that painted the Paris’ shields with it’s death. The near nine kilometer long vral battleship seemed to buckle in on itself, the very hull appearing to ripple. It seemed to come to a dead stop in space as secondary explosions ripped through it’s core, before a final flash from the impact of a MAC accelerator round tore through it’s midships. The drive plume guttered out, the monstrous symbol of vral might transformed into a twisted mass of metal. Conrad’s joy was short lived. The Paris’ helmsman manuvered to avoid the dead battleship bearing down on her, and had only managed to give one of the heavy cruisers a clean shot. The Paris turned it’s gun ports back to the heavy cruisers, the first a floating wreck propelled only by inertia. The second was ignored as it was currently beginning to drift off course, having garnered the attention of the strike craft. It’s drive section was a ruin, a cloud of fighters taking shots while dancing around larger corvettes and even larger destroyers that were pounding away at it with every sort of munition they could muster. Even as Conrad saw the third he knew it was too late. The vral were too close, going too fast, and even with the combined fist of the Paris’ armament she wouldn’t be stopped. The Paris’ shields were tortured under the spray of debris from the dead battleship above her, giving the massive battleship what almost appeared to be a halo.
The heavy cruiser, five kilometers of alloy, drove into the shields of the Paris, and the halo vanished. For a moment Conrad hoped the impact had slowed the vral ship, but a split second later he watched the entire battleship jarred to the side as the heavy cruiser slammed into it’s starboard side fore. Lazer batteries opened up from the cruiser as it continued to drive against the Paris, scars pitting into the hull seconds before plumes from missile pods streaked the short distances from the pods to the Paris itself. Conrad watched in fascinated horror as the point defenses of the Paris lit up the area between them, entire sections of the heavy cruiser simply ceasing to exist under a torrent of fire from the Paris herself. A fraction of a second later the running lights of the Paris went dark along it’s entire starboard side, secondary explosions rippling along the hull. For a horrifying moment, Conrad thought the Paris itself was going to fall apart, fracturing just like the vral battleship that was now harmlessly floating past it had. The hull stayed together. The music on the bridge was suddenly cut off, and Conrad kept holding his breath. A moment later, Conrad’s horror returned as he watched a Vral destroyer eclipse over the dead battleship only to angle down towards the Paris. His mouth fell open as he watched it fly at near full speed into the hull of the beautiful warship, and the sudden silent explosion that sent shrapnel out in all directions was more than enough to snap him out of his stupor.
“Batz lock anything inside of twenty kilometers of the Paris. Rev, Dev, corvettes and destroyers, Cass, we’re looking for things we can kill. If it’s heavier than a cruiser, leave it to the cruisers!” Conrad yelled as turned his head, looking with the ships eyes as they looked past the Paris. “Fucks sake.” He whispered, then promptly turned to the first target that showed itself. For the next ten minutes, kill marks didn’t matter, targets of pride didn’t matter. The Dhampir orbited the Paris like a bee guarding a bear, the Paris itself drifting slowly, it’s weapons tracking nothing. Conrad didn’ know if he was guarding a corpse, but he wouldn’t allow the vral to defile her further. Apparently more than the Dhampir’s crew itself felt the same. A swarm of fighters angled after every Vral ship that still bore a drive signature, a flight of corvettes took up the orbit of the Paris itself, and a full destroyer squadron positioned themselves along the drive section of the Paris, which had gone, according to Batz, completely silent. As the heavy cruiser Talladega pulled up alongside the Paris Conrad noticed that the vral heavy cruiser was actually embedded by it’s prow in the very hull of the Paris itself. The vral were pushed back, but the Dhampir remained, slowing it’s orbit and eventually falling into a stationary role beside it, drifting through space.
Conrad said nothing, even as the few remaining Vral ships were being chased out of the system. Later he would learn that none had made it out. He slowly turned the Dhampir to face the Paris, and he reached up, taking off the visor. He looked around the bridge, seeing Fidget leaned over his console. Cass was looking out of the small viewport in front, her hand over her mouth. Rev and Dev were both leaning back in their chairs. Rev’s hand was rubbing his forehead. As Conrad pulled himself out of his chair he heard Batz cursing under his breath. He looked through the viewscreen at the Paris and blew out a breath, moving towards the viewport, only to feel Cass’ hand slide around his arm as he passed her, pulling him towards her. Both of them stared at the drifting debris, the running lights on the port side dimming every so often.
“They still have power, so that’s good at least.” Cass whispered to him, and he nodded, hopeful.
A few moments later Dev pointed towards the port side, near midships. “Looks like they are docking fighters.” Conrad leaned forward and then half turned to go back to his chair to put his visor back on, but Cass’ hand tightened on his arm. He felt too drained to argue. Dev pointed again, “That’s exactly what they are doing. The strikes are docking.”
“Looks like they have a few shuttles coming in too.” Rev added, and Conrad looked to Fidget.
“Are they still quiet over there?”
Fidget looked to Conrad and nodded once. “No main line broadcasts, but apparently someone on the Paris is talking. Not sure what they are using but we’re not picking it up.”
“Put it up on the bridge speakers.” Conrad ordered, and a few seconds later voices started coming through the small transmitters sequestered throughout the bridge. Conrad listened to the back and forth, and leaned against Cass’ chair and Cass herself.
“... teams are there already. We’ve got a good amount of corvettes and the second and fourth destroyer squadrons out there poking the bodies.” “Melbourne this is Fourth Tac Wing, permission to dock with mothership.” “Granted Fourth Tac Wing.” “Sri Lanka actual requesting line to Melbourne actual.” “Standby Sri Lanka, code 223.” “Sri Lanka actual confirms code 223.”
Conrad listened to the fleet wide channel, staring at the drifting Paris, and he didn’t look away. More than anything he wanted to hear Calhoon’s voice come over the channel, but he knew that even if Calhoon was alive, it would most likely not be him that spoke. For the first time he truly realized what that ship and it’s captain had meant to him. It was something he couldn’t put into words, but seeing the Paris drifting, damaged, scarred by vral weapon fire, it was a feeling like his own hometown had been attacked. The way the hull had jarred when the heavy cruiser had slammed into it, to the unknowing, may not have looked even dangerous. Anyone who actually knew what they were seeing would know well that the Paris had been suddenly and violently moved almost a hundred meters by a force of mass that was at the very least half of the weight of the Paris itself. Anyone not strapped into a chair would have been thrown, no, hurled, if not for the artificial gravity of the Paris itself. Even then, with as strong as those systems were, Conrad knew very well they had never been tested like that before. A few weeks prior, the Dhampir had been hit hard by a errant missile from a dying vral ship, and the impact had thrown Conrad back into his seat so forcefully that when the impact rebounded he was folded double in his chair, and almost thought he had broken his neck.
“Fleet, this is Melbourne, begin post combat breakdown and report status.” “Sri Lanka, TrafalgarI have sitrep on the Simmons, 211.” “Sri Lanka copies 211.” “Melbourne, Paris.”
Conrad felt his breath hitch.
“Paris go ahead.” “Melbourne Paris, Paris actual wants to speak to the Fleet Admiral, earliest convenience.”
Conrad let go of the breath he was holding and relaxed, and he felt Cass’ hand leave his back. He listened to the chatter a few more seconds then turned back to his chair. Calhoon was alive. At least there was that, the old man was alive. He slid back into his chair and pulled one of his side panels closer. “Alright, get that off.” He said, looking to Batz, “Find out who I’m sending this report to.” As he began to bring up the Dhampir’s vitals he glanced over at Cass again. She met his gaze and mouthed ‘You ok?’ He just nodded once, tapping his chest and pointing at the Paris, he then gave her a thumbs up. She might not have understood what he meant, but she nodded and got to her work. Conrad took a look at the report that was displaying on his screen and blew out a breath as updates from his crew started coming in. The fight had lasted almost an hour, and in that time Rev and Dev had run through nearly half of their railgun ammunition. When he had taxed the reactor apparently he had ruined a fair amount of coolant too. “Batz who am I bitching to?” He called out.
“The Falmoth Chill.” Batz called out, “554.”
He reached up, pulled his headset from it’s placeholder, and pressed five five and four on his keypad next to his headset. He waited for a few seconds then hit his transmit button. “Falmoth, Dhampir actual.” He said once, then he looked down at his sitrep, waiting for the reply.
“Dhampir go ahead.” Came the reply.
“All systems online, no damage to report, request ammo resupply. Sending full sitrep.” Conrad finalized the report, then sent it through to the Falmoth. He sat back into his chair and began drumming his fingers on his armrest.
“Understood Dhampir, take station at twenty kilos at 180 from Melbourne and stand down until 2330 hours.” Came the reply, and Conrad looked to the clock. It was only 1400. Nine and a half hours between then and now.
“Wilco Falmoth. Dhampir actual out.” He said, putting his headset back in place. Instead of manually guiding the Dhampir, he used a panel to plot his course, setting the autopilot and station keeping, and making sure he set up object avoidance. He double checked his settings, then removed the visor, setting it in it’s holder and pushing himself out of his chair, reaching up and pressing a stud so he could talk to his entire crew. “Alright. Stand down until 2330. Crispy and Fidget you’re on station until 1800, Batz and Doc, you’ve got 1800 onwards.” Around him, his bridge crew started taking off their straps and stretching, except for Rev and Dev, who began beelining away, and he pulled themselves out of their path. Cass smirked as they passed, securing her station. Conrad began securing his own, locking his displays in place. After a moment he straightened and looked out of the viewport as the autopilot made a slow and graceful turn away from the Paris. Seeing the Paris slip away he was glad he wasn’t still on it, and that he was on the Dhampir now. There was nothing he could do about it in any case. As he left the bridge he made the sharp turn to the right and half lunged, half crawled up the cramped ladderwell, opening the secured door. It was only then he saw Cass behind him, and he left the door open for her. She shut it behind her as he continued to his quarters, and he slid open his door and moved sideways inside. The closing of his door was interrupted by Cass’ hand. She drew herself around the corner, stepping in the doorway.
“You ok?” She asked in a low tone, and he nodded once before he stepped away. He sat down on his bed, then drew down the desk from the wall and brought up the panel. “Don’t look ok.” She continued, stepping in his quarters and shutting the door. He started to bring the panel to life, but instead of bringing it up all the way he just tapped on the side of the panel for a few moments.
“Just rough to see the Paris in that kind of shape.” He said, closing the panel back down and pushing the desk back into it’s place on the wall. “I spent a few years on that ship. I don’t know, it’s hard to explain.” He glanced at her as she reached up and ran her fingers through her hair leaning against his wall locker.
“Well, I get it. For me it’s the Tigerlily.” Cass said, reaching up and unzipping her uniform top. She pulled it and the t-shirt underneath to the side, showing a small symbol on her shoulderblade. She leaned in and he leaned forward, looking at the small, quarter sized tattoo. The fine lines showed a ship’s prow and a service number, and he grinned as he leaned back. She leaned back against the locker. “Spent four years there, forward rail carriage four was my home.”
He laughed, and leaned back against the wall. “Command and control. I think I saw two decks of the Paris the entire time I was there.” She shrugged as if to say she knew the feeling. Suddenly there was a silence that descended between the two, and they just stared at each other. The scent of her in the tightness of his room was a different experience, and it took him a minute to realize that the silence had stretched into uncomfortable territory. Well, uncomfortable for him at least. A slow smile creeped it’s way onto her face, when finally something popped in his head to say. “Well I don’t have a tattoo of it or anything.”
“Well, this isn’t the only one I have.” She said, and she pushed herself up, reaching for the zipper of her suit and for a second, he though she was going to draw it down the rest of the way. He was suddenly and starkly aware of how tight her t-shirt was clinging to her, the way her hair was drifting down one side of her neck, the swell of her chest and the curve of her hips. She stepped closer to him and he raised an eyebrow. He became starkly aware of the fact he was staring at her chest, and raised his eyes to hers. His eyes narrowed at the expression on her face, the broad teasing smile, the glint in her eyes. “Maybe I’ll show you someday.” Her hand snapped up, zipping the suit back to her neck. He closed his eyes and breathed in slowly. She laughed, “Let me know if you need anything Chill.”
He stared at her for a few seconds, and honestly felt cheated. He turned back to his desk and began pulling it down again. “You too Cass.” He almost growled out, glancing at her as she opened his cabin door and slid back into the passageway. She stopped at the doorway and looked back at him over her shoulder, sliding her hand on her hip. She stayed there, staring at him, his expression flat until finally he burst out, “Well close the damn door!” She laughed and slammed it shut.

Getting main menu crashe after around 10 seconds. No missing masters, esps have been esl-ified, unpacked ba2, and freshly sorted complex sorter. As far as I know I shouldnt be over any limits. It worked before with more mods than currently.
Booted previous to this before a general cleanup and some mod removals.
Full mod list exported from MO2, in load order:

Mod_Priority,#Mod_Status,#Mod_Name

"0000","+","DLC: Wasteland Workshop"
"0001","+","DLC: Vault-Tec Workshop"
"0002","+","DLC: Nuka-World"
"0003","+","DLC: Far Harbor"
"0004","+","DLC: Contraptions Workshop"
"0005","+","DLC: Automatron"
"0006","+","Creation Club"
"0007","-","Utilities_separator"
"0008","+","Address Library for F4SE Plugins"
"0009","+","Backported Archive2 Support System"
"0010","+","PrivateProfileRedirector F4 - Faster game start (INI file cacher)"
"0011","+","Console Commands Extender"
"0012","+","Better Console - F4SE"
"0013","+","High FPS Physics Fix"
"0014","+","RobCo Patcher"
"0015","+","Baka MaxPapyrusOps"
"0016","+","Random Encounter Framework"
"0017","+","Lighthouse Papyrus Extender"
"0018","+","Garden of Eden Papyrus Script Extender"
"0019","+","RAW INPUT - The Ultimate Mouse Sensitivity Fix"
"0020","-","ZUtilities_separator"
"0021","+","Settlement Keywords Expanded v1.60"
"0022","+","Console Util"
"0023","+","UCO Unified Clothing Overhaul includes Costume Party and Immersive Crafting series"
"0024","+","Armor and Weapon Keywords Community Resource (AWKCR)"
"0025","+","Armorsmith Extended"
"0026","+","Immersive Animation Framework"
"0027","+","Settlement Menu Manager"
"0028","+","Workshop Framework"
"0029","+","Workshops Warning Suppression - For Old Saves"
"0030","+","M8r98a4f2's Complex Item Sorter"
"0031","+","Equipment and Crafting Overhaul (ECO) - Redux"
"0032","+","New Equipment Overhaul (NEO)"
"0033","+","Legendary Effect Overhaul (LEO)"
"0034","-","Bug Fixes_separator"
"0035","+","Unofficial Fallout 4 Patch - UFO4P"
"0036","+","Ownership Fixes"
"0037","+","Community Fixes Merged"
"0038","+","The Midnight Ride - Glitchfinder All-In-One"
"0039","+","Weapon Mod Fixes"
"0040","+","Community Fixes Merged - Weapon Mod Fixes Patch"
"0041","+","Buffout 4"
"0042","+","Sprint Stuttering Fix"
"0043","+","Hostile NPC Respawn Fix - F4SE - Garden of Eden SE"
"0044","+","Companion Jump Fall Pose Fix - F4SE - Garden of Eden SE"
"0045","+","Combat Shutdown Grenade Fixes - F4SE - Garden of Eden SE"
"0046","+","Jet Script Bug Fix"
"0047","+","Armor Penetration Bug Fix - F4SE"
"0048","+","Energy Weapon Calculation Fix"
"0049","+","Outfit ReDress Fix"
"0050","+","Interior NavCut Fix"
"0051","+","Long Save Bug Fix"
"0052","+","3rd Person Behavior Fixes"
"0053","+","Reload Fix"
"0054","+","Melee Sneak Locomotion Animation Blending Fix (Behavior Edit)"
"0055","+","Wetness Shader Fix"
"0056","+","Fixed Protectron Textures"
"0057","+","Fixed Gobo Effects"
"0058","+","Marine Combat Armor Material Fix"
"0059","+","Marine Wet suit Material Fix"
"0060","+","NPC Drinking Fix"
"0061","+","Flutter Flicker Fixer For Foliage"
"0062","+","Simple Puddle Reflection Flicker Fix (Water and Blood)"
"0063","+","Weapon Debris Crash Fix"
"0064","+","Papyrus Script Runner"
"0065","+","Godrays Performance Fix Redux - ESPless"
"0066","-","ZBug Fixes_separator"
"0067","+","No Aggro Impact Landing (Power Armor)"
"0068","+","Third-Person Movement Speed Fix"
"0069","+","Baka ScrapHeap - Script Memory Limit Expander"
"0070","+","Lever Action Rifle Reload Fix"
"0071","+","Tweaks_separator"
"0072","+","Unlimited Survival Mode - F4SE"
"0073","+","Bullet Counted Reload System (BCR)"
"0074","+","BCR- Lever Action Rifle v1.02"
"0075","+","Classic Holstered Weapons System (CHW)"
"0076","+","Remove Ammo from Dropped Guns"
"0077","+","Remember Lockpick Angle - Updated"
"0078","+","Less Annoying Berry Mentats"
"0079","+","To Your Face FO4"
"0080","+","Deadeye Weapon Effect Fix"
"0081","+","Simple Offence Suppression F4"
"0082","+","Faster Workbench Exit"
"0083","+","Dogmeat Follow Behind"
"0084","+","Gunplay_separator"
"0085","+","Tactical Reload"
"0086","+","Recoil Shake and Low Ammo Sounds"
"0087","+","Real Time Cover Penetration Framework"
"0088","+","Bullet Penetration and Ricochet (BPR)"
"0089","+","Real Time Cover Penetration Framework - ECO"
"0090","+","NPC Behavior_separator"
"0091","+","Companion Stealth Distance Fix (No Free Hugs) - Now with No Dogmeat in Crosshairs"
"0092","+","Dogmeat - Doors are NOT for Dogs (No Door Opening)"
"0093","+","Lazy Dogmeat"
"0094","+","Everyone's Best Friend (Dogmeat and Companion At Same Time - No Console - No Hack)"
"0095","+","Fallout 4 AI Overhaul"
"0096","+","Realistic Conversations Fallout 4"
"0097","+","Better Companions - No Conflicts"
"0098","+","More Smarter Companions Mod"
"0099","+","RED"
"0100","+","Hotfix for 2.8"
"0101","+","STEALTH AND DETECTION SYSTEM"
"0102","+","ZTweaks_separator"
"0103","+","Achievements"
"0104","+","Weightless Junk and Other Items"
"0105","+","Consistent Power Armor Overhaul"
"0106","+","Free Weapon Downgrades"
"0107","+","Sanctuary Dead Raider and Dog Removed"
"0108","+","Power Armor Fast Exit and Enter"
"0109","+","Glowing Animals Emit Light"
"0110","+","Baka Wait Anywhere"
"0111","+","VAFS Redux"
"0112","+","QuickTrade"
"0113","+","FO4 Photo Mode"
"0114","+","Realistic Ragdoll Force"
"0115","+","Faster Reloading Speed mod"
"0116","+","Sprint AP Drain Revised"
"0117","+","Carry Weight Modifications"
"0118","+","User Interface_separator"
"0119","+","Mod Configuration Menu"
"0120","+","MCM Settings Manager"
"0121","+","The Midnight Ride Resources"
"0122","+","Extended Dialogue Interface"
"0123","+","Crafting Highlight Fix"
"0124","+","Outline Workshop Highlight Only"
"0125","+","UI_separator"
"0126","+","HUDFramework"
"0127","+","DEF_UI"
"0128","+","MCM Booster"
"0129","+","No Bethesda and S.P.E.C.I.A.L Intro"
"0130","+","Faster Terminal Displays"
"0131","+","FOV Slider and Player Height"
"0132","+","FallUI - HUD"
"0133","+","FallUI - Confirm Boxes"
"0134","+","FallUI"
"0135","+","FallUI - Map"
"0136","+","FallUI - Sleep and Wait"
"0137","+","FallUI - Workbench"
"0138","+","FIS - The NEW FallUI Item Sorter"
"0139","+","FallUI - Icon Library"
"0140","+","BRAVOHUD - A FallUI Preset"
"0141","+","See region names on your save files"
"0142","+","Full Dialogue Interface"
"0143","+","Unused Map Markers - Cut Content Restored"
"0144","+","Immersive Power Armor HUD"
"0145","+","CCCleaner"
"0146","+","Classic UI Sounds"
"0147","+","Modofonto - Classic Fallout 3 and New Vegas Fonts (Monofonto and Fixedsys Font Replacer)"
"0148","+","Nameplates - Floating Healthbars"
"0149","+","Quests Tags"
"0150","+","Small blur Crafting screen background"
"0151","+","LevelUpMenuEx"
"0152","+","Companion Status HUD"
"0153","+","Fallout 4 Wheel Menu"
"0154","+","Fallsouls - Unpaused Game Menus"
"0155","+","Immersive HUD - iHUD"
"0156","+","Start Me Up - Alternate Start and Dialogue Overhaul"
"0157","+","NVIDIA Reflex Support"
"0158","+","Fallout 3 HUD - A FallUI HUD layout"
"0159","+","Kill Tips and Hit Indicator Sound"
"0160","+","Dusty Main Menu for Desperados Overhaul or Badlands"
"0161","+","Fallout New Vegas - A FallUI HUD layout"
"0162","+","Gameplay_separator"
"0163","+","Complex Vendors"
"0164","+","Blocking Overhaul"
"0165","+","NPCs Use Items"
"0166","+","Chemfluence - AI Combat Dynamics"
"0167","+","SPARS - Simple Power Armor Reduction System"
"0168","+","DLC Timing"
"0169","+","Vish's Patch Hub (UFO4P)"
"0170","+","Keep Radiants in the Commonwealth UFO4P Version"
"0171","+","Encounter Zone Recalculation (Continuous Level Scaling)"
"0172","+","Who's The General - Minutemen Quest Cleanup"
"0173","+","1 - Keep Radiants in the Commonwealth Patch"
"0174","+","Molotov Cocktail Nerf"
"0175","+","Legendaries They Can Use"
"0176","+","No Sneaking in Power Armor"
"0177","+","Content_separator"
"0178","+","The Attachment Pack"
"0179","+","Implementation Patch"
"0180","+","The Attachment Pack - Implementation WMF Patch"
"0181","+","Attachment Pack - Description Fixes"
"0182","+","Legendary Mutation Messages Fix - Cut Content Restored"
"0183","+","You And What Army 2"
"0184","+","Lore Friendly Weapons Pack_separator"
"0185","+","22LR Silenced Pistol"
"0186","+","9mm Pistol (Browning Hi-Power) Redux"
"0187","+","9mm Pistol (Browning Hi-Power) Update"
"0188","+","A Bundle of Tape - A weapons pack"
"0189","+","American 180 - .22 Submachine Gun"
"0190","+","AnotherOne Browning M1918A2"
"0191","+","AnotherOne BAR M1918A2 - Animation update"
"0192","+","AnotherOne BAR M1918A2 - Recoil update"
"0193","+","AnotherOne Laser RCW Reborn"
"0194","+","AnotherOne Laser RCW Reborn - Update"
"0195","+","AnotherOne Sten Mk II"
"0196","+","AnotherOne Sten Mk 2 - Tactical Reload - Up"
"0197","+","AnotherOne Sten Mk 2 - Animation update"
"0198","+","AnotherOne's Bren LMG Addon"
"0199","+","AUG A1 Assault Rifle - Aamage Modifiers"
"0200","+","Beretta M9-FS Pistol (92FS)"
"0201","+","Cowboy Repeater - Winchester '92"
"0202","+","Cowboy Repeater - Winchester '92 - Bullet Counted Reload PATCH"
"0203","+","Cranky-45796-1-3-1624564990"
"0204","+","Dak's Shoulder Mounted Machinegun (M2)"
"0205","+","DefenseGun"
"0206","+","EM 2 Rifle No.9 Mk1 - From Trash to Glory"
"0207","+","Fallout 3 10mm SMG"
"0208","+","Fallout London - Bren Gun"
"0209","+","FN FAL - SA58 (Plus Kukri)"
"0210","+","Grease Gun SMG"
"0211","+","Handmade Anti-Materiel Rifle (REDUX) -2K"
"0212","+","Handmade Lever Action Shotgun"
"0213","+","Heavy Select Shotgun"
"0214","+","Heckler und Koch - MP5 Complex"
"0215","+","HK CAWS"
"0216","+","HK G11 K2 - Kraut Space Magic"
"0217","+","HK G3 Family"
"0218","+","G3Family - See-Through Update (fixed)"
"0219","+","Homemade SMG . A Unique Weapons Concept"
"0220","+","IMI .50AE Desert Eagle"
"0221","+","Desert Eagle - 1.0.1 - UPDATE ONLY"
"0222","+","Institute Pulse Carbine"
"0223","+","Jury Rigged Anti Materiel . A Unique Weapons Concept"
"0224","+","LAER (Laser Assisted Electrical Rifle)"
"0225","+","LAER Automatron support version 3"
"0226","+","Lee Enfield No.4 Mk.1 - Britain's Finest"
"0227","+","M1 Garand"
"0228","+","M3D - Sig Sauer P220"
"0229","+","M60 Light Machinegun"
"0230","+","Makeshift Nailgun . A Unique Weapons Concept"
"0231","+","Makeshift Shotgun and Improvised Grenade Launcher"
"0232","+","Miniguns Rebirth"
"0233","+","Mk 41 Gyrojet Heavy Machine Gun"
"0234","+","Mosin Nagant - Sniper Rifle"
"0235","+","Pancor Jackhammer"
"0236","+","Rangemaster Remaster (Classic Hunting Rifle)"
"0237","+","SA80 British Rifle (L85 and L86)"
"0238","+","Select Rapid Machinegun"
"0239","+","Single Shotgun"
"0240","+","Springfield Armory M1A"
"0241","+","Springfield Armory M1A - 3rd Person Fix"
"0242","+","Steyr AUG A1"
"0243","+","SVT-40"
"0244","+","Tesla Heavy Autocannon"
"0245","+","The Zap Gun - a makeshift laser weapon"
"0246","+","Tinkerer's Raygun . A Unique Weapons Concept"
"0247","+","Varmint Rifle"
"0248","+","Lore-Friendly Weapons Project"
"0249","+","Weaponsmith_separator"
"0250","+","10mm Revolver Colt 6520"
"0251","+","AS Vektor"
"0252","+","Atomic Annie - Unique Gun"
"0253","+","G67 Battle Rifle - Standalone"
"0254","+","H and K UMP 45"
"0255","+","Loads of Ammo - Switchable Ammunition Types"
"0256","+","Modular Simonov PTRS-41 Anti-Tank Rifle"
"0257","+","New Calibers"
"0258","+","Lever Action Reload Fix Patch"
"0259","+","Extended weapon mods"
"0260","+","Extended Weapon Mods Patch"
"0261","+","See-Through-Scopes"
"0262","+","See Through Scopes - Night Vision"
"0263","+","Service Rifle"
"0264","+","12.7mm patch"
"0265","+","The M14 Standalone Rifle"
"0266","+","The M2216 Standalone Assault Rifle"
"0267","+","Weaponsmith Extended"
"0268","+","Weaponsmith Extended v2-23-2019 - WSE and UNPCs combo ini files"
"0269","+","Weaponsmith Extended v4-4-2019 - Plugin"
"0270","+","Grab the Damn Mag"
"0271","+","Weapons Level List Patches"
"0272","+","WEAPON LEVEL LIST PATCH COMPENDIUM"
"0273","+","Big Story_separator"
"0274","+","Outcasts and Remnants - Quest Mod Plus"
"0275","+","Project Valkyrie"
"0276","+","Depravity - A Harmless Bit of Fun"
"0277","+","Fusion City Rising - Quest Mod Plus"
"0278","+","Thug Co- The Companionator"
"0279","+","50 Ways to Die at Dr. Nick's - Quest Mod"
"0280","+","Combat Zone Restored"
"0281","+","Ransacked Relays and Shuddersome Subways"
"0282","+","Lima Detachment"
"0283","+","Atomic Radio and Tales from the Commonwealth"
"0284","+","Settlers of the Commonwealth"
"0285","+","Tales from the Commonwealth"
"0286","+","DLC Commentary for TFTC"
"0287","+","The Machine And Her"
"0288","+","The Machine and Her XDI patch"
"0289","+","Welcome to Goodneighbor"
"0290","+","The Bleachers - A Diamond City Story"
"0291","+","A Diamond City Story - Armor Keywords Patch"
"0292","+","New Location_separator"
"0293","+","Minuteman Watchtowers"
"0294","+","Small Story_separator"
"0295","+","Vault 1080"
"0296","+","A Raider's Lament"
"0297","+","A Cannibal In Concord"
"0298","+","Claustrophobia"
"0299","+","Commonwealth Encounter Pack"
"0300","+","NPCs Travel"
"0301","+","Settler and Companion Dialogue Overhaul"
"0302","+","Ketaros Treasures"
"0303","+","Children of Ug-Qualtoth"
"0304","+","Old Time Religion"
"0305","+","Children of Ug Qualtoth Patch"
"0306","+","Imrpove Location_separator"
"0307","+","The Sanctuary Bridge"
"0308","+","Settlements_separator"
"0309","+","Workshop Plus"
"0310","+","Craftable Turret Stands"
"0311","+","Increased Build Limit Enhanced 4K"
"0312","+","Better Generators"
"0313","+","Longer Power Lines"
"0314","+","Brighter Settlement Lights"
"0315","+","Quieter Settlements"
"0316","+","Homemaker - Expanded Settlements"
"0317","+","Immersive Scrapping"
"0318","+","Wall Pass-Through Power Conduits"
"0319","+","Place Everywhere"
"0320","+","cVc Dead Wasteland"
"0321","+","cVc Dead Wasteland 6 - DLC1"
"0322","+","cVc Dead Wasteland 6 - DLC2"
"0323","+","cVc Dead Wasteland 6 - DLC3"
"0324","+","Items_separator"
"0325","+","Wasteland Imports - Goodies from all across the Wasteland BASE"
"0326","+","Wasteland Imports - Goodies from all across the Wasteland"
"0327","+","Functional Displays v0.2.9.2 BETA"
"0328","+","Custimisation_separator"
"0329","+","Synth Uniform Distribution"
"0330","+","Armor Paint Extended"
"0331","+","PipBoySkinPack by GMH4589"
"0332","+","Gloves of the Commonwealth - Equippable Gloves"
"0333","+","Power Armor Materials AND Paints (PAMAP)"
"0334","+","Gloves of the Commonwealth - Craftable at cooking stations and Armorsmith Extended workbench"
"0335","+","DavesMods - In Game ESP Explorer Maintenance"
"0336","+","K-9 Harness -- Tactical Body Armor and Backpack for Dogmeat"
"0337","+","NCR Outfit Pack"
"0338","+","Stuff of Legend"
"0339","+","Visuals_separator"
"0340","+","Interiors Enhanced - Darker Ambient Light and Fog"
"0341","+","Gloomy Glass - All transparent materials revised"
"0342","+","Targeted Textures - Vanilla textures upscaled fixed and sized"
"0343","+","Fallout 4 Particle Patch - No More Glowing Objects"
"0344","+","WET"
"0345","+","WAVE - Wave Animation Vanilla Enhanced"
"0346","+","Enhanced Vanilla Armor and Clothing - EVAC"
"0347","+","Hair Specular Map Removal Thingy"
"0348","+","Depth of Field Effect ESP"
"0349","+","Diamond City Billboards"
"0350","+","Diamond City Supplements"
"0351","+","Goodneighbor View"
"0352","+","Remove Ironsight Blur"
"0353","+","Terrain Undersides - 2 Million Sunblock"
"0354","+","Textures Small_separator"
"0355","+","Chem Redux"
"0356","+","Chem Redux Weightless Patch"
"0357","+","Ammo Retexture"
"0358","+","High Poly Vanilla Weapons"
"0359","+","HD LockPick Interface"
"0360","+","Pipboy UHD"
"0361","+","holotape"
"0362","+","Nuka-Cola Classic"
"0363","+","Nuka-Cola Classic (Nuka World DLC)"
"0364","+","Better Fake Reflections"
"0365","+","Environment_separator"
"0366","+","NAC X - NATURAL AND ATMOSPHERIC COMMONWEALTH 10 - Legacy Edition"
"0367","+","NAC X Water LOD God Rays Fix and Enhancements"
"0368","+","Nac X Fogline Fix"
"0369","+","NAC X - MCM Settings Menu"
"0370","+","Radiant Clouds and Fogs"
"0371","+","illuminated AIO - Let there be light edition"
"0372","+","Better Landscape Grass"
"0373","+","No More Fake Puddles"
"0374","+","Fallout Texture Overhaul Stars"
"0375","+","Fallout Texture Overhaul Moons"
"0376","+","Spectrum - ENB for Lightweight Lighting"
"0377","+","Illuminated Billboards And Posters - Lighting - Cyberpunk 2077"
"0378","+","FogOut"
"0379","+","Dilapidated Roads (2K - 4K)"
"0380","-","Human Textures_separator"
"0381","+","Caliente's Beautiful Bodies Enhancer -CBBE-"
"0382","+","REDUCED Caliente's Beautiful Bodies Enhancer -CBBE-"
"0383","+","Unique NPCs - An Overhaul of the Commonwealth"
"0384","+","The Eyes Of Beauty Fallout Edition"
"0385","+","HiPoly Faces REDUX (Seamless Kit - CBBE - TWB - FG - AB)"
"0386","+","Expressive Expressions - For Females"
"0387","+","Expressive Expressions - For males"
"0388","+","LooksMenu"
"0389","+","Looksmenu Player Rotation"
"0390","+","Looks Mirror"
"0391","-","VFX_separator"
"0392","+","Enhanced Blood Textures"
"0393","+","Bloody Mess - Enhanced Blood Textures Mod ADD-ON"
"0394","+","Head wounds decals"
"0395","+","Gore Overhaul 3.0 -Reload-"
"0396","+","CROSS Crit Gore-verhaul"
"0397","+","Live Dismemberment"
"0398","+","Long Range Bullet Holes"
"0399","+","Visual Reload"
"0400","+","Shell Rain"
"0401","+","PipBoyShadows"
"0402","+","Spitfire (Enhanced Muzzle FX)"
"0403","+","HQIDR - High Quality Impact Decal Re-texture"
"0404","+","Radio_separator"
"0405","+","OLD WORLD RADIO 2 v1.3"
"0406","+","Jetfuel Radio Standalone"
"0407","+","Existence 2.0"
"0408","+","Audio_separator"
"0409","+","Reverb and Ambiance Overhaul - Tweaked"
"0410","+","Radio Reverb Fix (Subtle)"
"0411","+","Ambient Wasteland - Fallout 4 Edition"
"0412","+","Louder Rainy Sound"
"0413","+","Classic Fallout Ambient Music"
"0414","+","Digital Nightmare - Dark Apocalyptic Soundtrack"
"0415","+","Radium - A Music Mod"
"0416","+","Music Mods Merged"
"0417","+","Load Last_separator"
"0418","+","See Through Scopes Patch"
"0419","+","True Storms Wasteland Edition v1.4"
"0420","+","Nuka World Add-On (with TS Far Harbor Compatibility)"
"0421","+","NacX - True Storms Compatibility Patch"
"0422","+","Desert-like Weather Chances from Vanilla or True Storms - Dusty Dude Abides Mod Series"
"0423","+","Forest Fungus De-Lit"
"0424","+","More Rust - Washed Out Colours - v2.0"
"0425","+","More Rust - Rusty Rockets"
"0426","+","Desperados Overhaul"
"0427","+","Desperados Overhaul Fixes"
"0428","+","BADLANDS 2 - LANDSCAPE"
"0429","+","True Grass"
"0430","+","BADLANDS 2 - GRASSES"
"0431","+","LOD for Desperados Overhaul or DO and Badlands 2 Combo - Dusty Dude Abides Series Mods"
"0432","+","PRP Main"
"0433","+","PRP Plugins"
"0434","+","Desperados Overhaul PRP Patch"
"0435","+","Desperados Main Menu Theme Replacer"
"0436","-","Unsorted_separator"

As discussed in the first post, over on /eragon, this is my ongoing compilation of the remaining questions Christopher has answered online between August 1st 2023 and April 30th 2024 which I've not already covered in other compilations.
As always, questions are sorted by topic, and each Q&A is annotated with a bracketed source number. Links to every source used and to the other parts of this compilation will be provided in a comment below.
The previous post focused on the writing and publication of Eragon. This installment will cover the Writing of the Fractalverse, as well as some sci-fi based worldbuilding (Hence why this is being posted on this subreddit.). The next post will cover more general questions about writing, and will be back on /eragon.

Writing the Fractalverse

Idea for the Fractalverse

It's been, I guess, five years of basically thinking about Murtagh to publishing it. The horrible thing is I have stories that have been sitting in my brain since I was working on Eragon and I just have to get around to writing them. It's horribly frustrating. Well, the Fractalverse was one of them too. I'd had the idea for To Sleep all the way back in 2006 or 2008 [32]
Usually I have an image [when starting a new book]. Sometimes it’s static, sometimes it’s an actual scene. In either case, there’s always a strong emotional component to the image, and it’s that emotion that I want to convey to readers. Everything I do after that, all of the worldbuilding, plotting, characterization, writing, and editing—all of it—is done with the goal of evoking the desired reaction from readers. The image usually gives me an idea of setting right from the very beginning. In the case of To Sleep, it was the final paragraph in the book. In the case of Fractal Noise, it was the idea of a bare, rocky planet turning in the endless depths of space, and on that planet, a giant, perfectly circular hole that emitted a blast of noise every few seconds. [10]
There were a lot of reasons I wrote [To Sleep], but the main theme for me was the main character trying to come to grips with what happens when your body isn't really your own or kind of doesn't act the way you think it ought to act or the way it used to behave and all of a sudden is out of your control. And it was an important thing for me to write about. And I've heard some interesting reactions from readers because of that. What's the old saying? Writing is the cheapest form of therapy. So yeah. Personally, I find once I write something, it purges it for my brain. So my last sci fi novel [Fractal Noise] was all about existential fear. So hey, that helped. In some ways it's a heightened version of what everyone goes through. Although I think perhaps some people don't recognize that. And people who do have similar experiences with illness and other conditions pick up on it a lot faster. [33]
[Rebecca Yarros]: There's so much fantasy out there that's daunting for the general public that's not reading fantasy. I wanted to write something more accessible and easier to jump in and just go. It's funny you say that because that was actually my feeling for my first sci-fi novel, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. And I'm not saying it's the most accessible sci-fi ever. I've had some first time sci-fi readers who bounced off some of the terminology. Maybe we've moved away from it, but there was definitely a whole strain of sci-fi for a while that was so almost esoteric. It was hard sci-fi. It was so hard to get into. It's really well-crafted, but as an average casual reader, you bounce off of it. We had Asimov and Heinlein and Clark and Le Guin and all these others, and they're writing fairly accessible stories with interesting ideas. And then you get the next generation that already grew up reading that, and they're like, "okay, let's take that the next step further." You get three generations into that, and you're writing stuff that's fairly disassociated from anything perhaps we're familiar with. [33]
In your novel, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, you explored space. Do you believe this is the future? Well, if it's not the future, we're all dead. It's as simple as that. We know that the sun is going to expand and make the Earth uninhabitable in about three billion years. And shortly after that, will envelop the Earth. So that's it. If we don't get off this planet, then we don't survive, our descendants won't survive, and there's a good chance that all the life on this planet won't survive either. Now you can make an argument that if humans go away, another intelligent species could evolve. The counter to that is that in all the history of this planet, only one self-aware technological species has ever evolved. And the odds of another one happening, hard to calculate, but in the time that's left on Earth might not happen. And a lot of the easy to get resources are getting gobbled up now. It's very possible that another species that came along wouldn't find easily accessible oil or coal or things like that. Getting off this planet later on would be difficult. So getting off of Earth is imperative, and especially if we care about all the other life on this planet, [as] we are probably the only hope that life has to survive. Aside from that, I just think it's a crying shame if we don't get out to explore more, given the sheer size of the universe. It's like look how big Earth is and everything we've done here. And then you imagine, like, we could go to an entirely another planet and we've got multiple planets we could go looking at. Maybe we could go to another star system. Even without FTL, it is actually possible to explore and colonize the Milky Way. It would be difficult, but it's not impossible. So I'm a big proponent of that. I love fantasizing and dreaming about the future I hope our species will have out beyond Earth, although Earth is special and beautiful, and I hope we protect it as much as possible. That's one the reasons I love reading science fiction. So you wrote, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars because you know that that's our final outcome? No, I wrote it because I had a story I wanted to tell and I felt passionate about. But my other interests played into that as well. [34]
If there were a spaceship that were available to take me out to explore this universe, I would take it tomorrow. With my family. [21]

Switching Genres

You recently switched gears from writing fantasy to science-fiction. What prompted this change? I grew up reading as much sci-fi as fantasy, and I love both genres equally. After spending over a decade writing about swords, magic, and dragons, it seemed like fun to switch things up and write about spaceships, aliens, and explosions for a while. Plus, I love thinking about the universe and the future that (I hope) humanity will have out in space. [10]
So what was it like making that switch from fantasy to science fiction? It really wasn't as difficult as you might think, because so many of the skills that you build writing fantasy or science fiction are applicable to the other genre. In many cases, they're both genres of imagination, of speculation. So the worldbuilding skills that I acquired working on the Inheritance Cycle applied equally as well to the sci-fi side of things. Because of how I chose to write science fiction, for me, the two big differences were, the vocabulary, since my sci-fi is set in the future and I allowed myself to use a modern vocabulary, which I really enjoyed because I hadn't been able to do that in the fantasy. And then some of the scientific technological restrictions, which I didn't have to pay attention to, but I wanted to. And so that really did put some hard limits on how fast the characters could travel in their spaceships, what the spaceships were capable of. And I really enjoyed digging into that minutia in my own research, although I really tried not to dump it on the readers. But by doing that research, it gave me some interesting story ideas I wouldn't have had otherwise. [3]
I think what I liked the most was getting to use a modern vocabulary and break the linguistic habits I'd established over 10 years working on the Inheritance Cycle. [28]
Working in these two very different worlds, what's it like going back and forth, especially seeing as now you're publishing two books in one year? Well, it was tricky for Fractal Noise and Murtagh because I had started the editing on Fractal Noise late-ish last year, and then editing for Fractal Noise got dumped on my lap and it had to be done cause Fractal Noise was publishing first. So I had to stop working on Murtagh, go back to Fractal Noise. And it's a pretty intense and kind of grim story in a few places. So to keep putting my head back into that space was a little jarring. But that said, as a whole, I love going back and forth between two different universes, two different worlds, because it provides variety. I find it incredibly refreshing. And I love the World of Eragon. I'm going to write much more in this world, but I also love the Fractalverse. And so having two completely different things tonally does a lot for me. I find that doing new things gives me tools and experience that I don't get a chance to acquire otherwise. So I do think my writing in Murtagh is much stronger than it was prior to say, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. [3]
The Fractalverse doesn't sell anywhere near that the Inheritance Cycle or the World of Eragon does, but I love writing those stories and I think more and more readers are finding them and enjoying them as well. So I plan on writing in the Fractalverse and the World of Eragon for the rest of my life. [34]

Genre Expectations

Addressing how people come to terms with difficulties and failings is at the heart of all of the great fantasy, right? Well, it does seem to be a fundamental thing of great literature to deal with that element. The human condition. We're a very self-centered species. What's the most interesting thing in cinema? It's the human face. What's the most interesting thing in literature? It's other people. It's the interactions between them. I saw someone who wasn't happy with Fractal Noise, my sci-fi novel, because it was more about the people than the sci-fi stuff. And I was like, well that's a fair complaint if you just want the sci-fi elements. But I wrote it specifically because I was interested in those characters. And depending on what you're expecting, that can sort of leave you feeling a bit off balance. [1]
If they could not be classified as sci-fi or fantasy, what would you classify your books as? I think the Inheritance Cycle would fall firmly in the tradition of epic heroic adventures. Maybe even you could classify it as a saga because it is really kind of a family saga in a couple of ways. But it's heroic fiction in a very traditional romantic sense. To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is more of a epic adventure versus like a traditional heroic story, although I think the main character is still very heroic. And then Fractal Noise would be more like a thriller, Lovecraftian, polar expedition. So if you've ever read like some of those books of those doomed polar expeditions, Fractal Noise kind of plays in that space also. A lot of times people get so stuck into genres that it can be hard to write. Not just writing, also also reading. And this is something you have to keep in mind as as an author. You're making certain promises to the reader with a genre. And if you don't fulfill those promises, people might say, well, it was a really good book, but it's not what I was looking for in XYZ genre. I've definitely seen a little bit of that with Fractal Noise, because it's different from my previous books. And although it's science fiction, the actual story it's about has nothing to do with science fiction. So if you're okay with that as a reader, I think hopefully you'll enjoy what I'm doing. But if not, if you're looking at it strictly as a sci-fi story, then you might end up gritting your teeth a bit and saying, "What's Christopher doing here? I'm not sure if this is what I signed up for." I think sometimes books like that can make you a stronger reader. At least in my personal experience, when I've read things that weren't exactly what I expected it to be based on how it was marketed or what the cover looked like or anything, those have been the things that have really opened up reading for me and opened up these other worlds and introduced me to genres I never would have looked at. [3]

Publishing Gap

I've found that every book is something new and it's a new challenge each time out. Do you find that to be true for yourself? Yeah, especially after I finished the Inheritance Cycle. Since that was just one big contained story, it lulled me into a false sense of security that I knew what I was doing. And then as soon as I moved past that to writing a new type of story, I quickly realized that, oh, I have a lot more to learn and every book is going to have a new set of challenges. And that's that's definitely been the case. And it's also led me to start thinking of sometimes writing shorter books. But even the short books take a huge amount of time and energy and just investment. And it's not a bad thing. It's just the nature of the beast. [1]
It's really easy, at least for me, to get overconfident and think, “I don't need to put that work in. I know what I'm doing.” And that's how I ended up spending seven, eight years on To Sleep in the Sea of Stars, my sci-fi book, because I didn't put that work in on a couple of points, and I ended up having to do it after the fact. Trying to revise and fix a book after it's already written is much more difficult than sort of getting it close to the bull's eye the first time around. [6]
Why was there such a long gap between publishing books? Was it a matter of the books taking too long to write, life stuff, or just a much deserved break? Needed a break after over a decade grind. Wasn't happy with the first version of Fractal Noise. Wrote a version of To Sleep that didn't work (revising/rewriting a 300k word book pretty much takes a year each round, and I had multiple rounds). Life stuff. I hope to keep putting out projects consistently from here on out, though. I've done four books in the past five years (not counting Unity), plus scripts, which ain't too bad. [R]
To Sleep in a Sea of Stars was incredibly difficult because it took about six years to write and edit and publish. Just that length of time was arduous. [27]
I wrote the first draft of Fractal Noise in 2013, but I wasn't really happy with it. So I shelved it and also I didn't want it to be the introduction to the Fractalverse. So after To Sleep was done, I spent, I want to say like two and a half months revising it and then it was pretty much good to go. It's a much, much shorter book. [34]

Book length

Just the size of To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. It's a massive book. The only reason it's not a thousand pages is because Tor made the font smaller. It's a thousand pages in paperback, so I'll take it. [32]
To Sleep is my longest longest book. It's like 302,000 words, that's not a Brandon Sanderson length book, but that is a big book. And Fractal Noise is my shortest full length novel at about 80,000 words if you count the back material. And Murtagh is sort of in between. It's about 198,000 words long. That's how we keep track of book length in publishing, because you can change the font size, you can change the spacing, but you can't change the word count without actually writing or deleting the words. So for comparison, I think The Hobbit is about 75,000 words long. Some of Brandon's books are over 400,000 words long. [34]
It's a relief to work at that size [of Fractal Noise], because I remember working on To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. I would edit 350 pages of text and then realize I'm not even halfway through the book. I'm like, "I just did an entire book, and I'm not even halfway through this book". [1]
If your book isn't long enough, how do you make it long enough? My dear, you are asking the guy who wrote a trilogy in four parts. I don't think I'm the person to answer this, but I'll say this, if your story is not long enough, it's okay if it's short. Ursula Le Guin wrote short. We used to have a lot of short books in sci-fi and fantasy. I don't know what happened to them. The Narnia books are short books. They're like 45,000 words long. But you can always think about what would be meaningful for the story. If it's not meaningful for the story, don't write it. That would be my biggest advice. Don't just put in filler. [36]
Do you enjoy big (+800 pages) books or do they feel like a chore? Depends if I'm writing or reading 'em. . . . Do you prefer to write them or to read them? Reading is definitely easier, but I enjoy both. [R]

Reading Order

What order should I read Fractalverse? Fractal Noise first because it's a prequel? Or read in release order? I’d recommend release order. [T]

Research

Can you tell me a bit about that research process? Did you start with it, or did that come about as you were already writing the book? I already had the story idea for To Sleep and also Fractal Noise, but I didn't allow myself to write either one until I had done a lot of the world building. Because the thing with sci-fi and fantasy is you have to understand the things that are different from our world before you can really do it justice. And in fantasy, that's usually magic, as well as the society, of course. But magic determines what is or isn't possible, and in sci-fi, it's the technology that determines what is or isn't possible. And since that affects everything, like do you have faster than light travel? Okay. How fast is it? How does it work? Does it have any other knock-on uses, whether that's communication or weaponry, what have you? Do you have AI? (I don't actually in my sci-fi universe, for various reasons.) What kind of weaponry do you have? How do your spaceships shed their excess heat? Can they shed their excess heat? If not, they start cooking after a couple shots of high-powered lasers and missiles and all that. So I did almost a year and a half of research, just trying to get myself up to speed on all the things I needed to understand to write these books in the setting which I call the Fractalverse. [3]
It was a huge, huge project. And I wouldn't have made that investment of time if I wasn't planning on writing in the Fractalverse for the rest of my life. [34]
Science fiction can be as realistic or not depending on what you want to do. In my case, I wanted to create a setting that I could write a lot of stories in over the years and that would also include the real world. That meant that I had to take physics as we know it into account. I didn't want to just throw it all out the window. Part of my reasoning for that is I really enjoyed thinking about the future that I hope humans are going to have out among the stars, and part of what I find interesting with that is the practicality of it. How could it actually be done? What are the technologies, what are the things that would enable us to do that? Which I find quite interesting. I did a lot of research on that. [28]
In general, writing science fiction, I find the constraints of it are a little bit harder just because, if you're being realistic, spaceships and technology don't have as much wiggle room as living things. If you need to go from point A to point B a little faster in the World of Eragon you can say, well they spurred the horses on a little faster, or they ran on foot because they're heroes and they can push themselves to extraordinary lengths. But with interstellar distances you beat on the the ship engine with a wrench and now it's going a little bit faster. It doesn't matter over the course of going from one star to the next, you'd have to have a magnitude improvement for it to make any difference. The travel times really impose some certain limitations on the story but that was fun. [28]
I have been doing the maps pretty early in the process, or at least a rough sketch of the maps. Even if I don't know what the final map is going to be, I'm going to have a good idea of the locations of everything. With my sci-fi books, I knew where all the star systems were and what was on them before I started actually writing the first book. And that was really helpful. [12]
There's a great channel on YouTube by a guy called Isaac Arthur. And he explores a lot of speculative science, stuff like that. One of my favorite things is orbital rings, which are theoretically possible, and I would love to have them in reality. Lots of crazy ideas like that. [21]
There's a fantastic website called atomicrockets.com, which is run by Winchell Chung. He created the website specifically to provide a resource for science fiction authors. And I know for a fact that the writers of The Expanse have drawn from it, as have the original writers of the Mass Effect series, and of course myself. Quite a few other authors as well. It's a fantastic resource. So I read that entire website. [34]

FTL

Probably the biggest stumbling block was trying to find a system of faster than light travel that didn't contradict physics as we know it, doesn't allow for time travel, (which Einstein says, you travel faster than light, you got a time machine), and hadn't been used by some other sci-fi franchise previously. And that was a really, really tall order. And I had to bang my head against a wall for months and months and months before I started to find some ideas that I could use that other people hadn't used. [3]
I gave myself certain challenges. I wanted faster than light travel because I wanted to be able to visit multiple systems in a reasonable amount of time, but I didn't want to use some FTL system that some other franchise had used, whether it was book, film, television or video games. And I really wanted to find a way to have an FTL system that didn't allow for time travel. Most FTL systems like the warp system from Star Trek or the hyperdrive from Star Wars or many others would allow for time travel. And they just ignore that. I didn't want to ignore that. So along with all the things I was reading about like potential developments of AI and biological tech and space combat and all that, I was also looking at the FTL. And that FTL thing really was a problem. I ultimately found a couple of presentations by a guy, Gregory Meholic, who works on developing like nuclear propulsion for NASA. And he and a couple other guys have this theory called the Tri-Space Theory. It's not quite a theory of everything, but it's heading in that direction. And Greg was kind enough to spend hours and hours with me on the phone talking me through the implications. And I like to think I actually asked a few questions that got him to think of some new aspects of it as well. And that formed the basis for my FTL technology, which also shaped everything from how my ships engage in combat to communications and sensors and all of that has implications for the spread of civilization and colonization. [34]
In my science fiction universe, the Fractalverse, there is faster than light travel, here's the explanation, and that's the divergence. And now what are the implications of that? [25]

Creating the Jellies

Do you have to be an anthropologist or a sociologist in order to write an alien species? At what point is it developed enough to write? Well to be fair, I haven't created that many alien species, so my approach may go in a different direction in the future. But I'm not a pantser. I need a plot. I need a road map in order to write and achieve the effect that I want to achieve. And with aliens, if I'm creating an alien species that's basically a cameo appearance in the story I don't really care. If it's a plant or it's an animal or something, it can be something I could come up with almost off the top of my head. But when it's a larger species, and especially a sapient species, I really put a lot of thought into that. So for the main alien species in my Fractalverse setting, I start with biology, and then I proceed from the biology to the society, and then to the individual character that I may actually be writing about. And then I feel like I have a general solid idea of how to approach writing that individual, and then also the larger groups of that species. A problem I've run into when writing about an alien is like how deep do you go and how alien are you making your aliens? And how much do you go into their culture? And at some point if you need them to communicate with a human, then you have to figure out how easy is that communication going to be? How can they communicate? And so forth and so on. All of which are great storytelling opportunities, but it is something that takes time and energy to think about and I try to put at least a fair bit of time and energy into it. [29]
You can look at how a species has evolved, whether it's humans or your hypothetical aliens that you're creating, and say well yes they evolved in this certain environment, but then assuming they're a technological species, look at how that gets translated into a "modern environment". If you look at humans, to the best we know, we evolved essentially in a savanna environment in small tribes out in Africa. There's some evidence that we've gotten a little more cooperative over the millennia, but in general biologically modern humans have been around for around 300,000 years. So all of those genetic behaviors and stuff are still there with us, and we're adapted for an environment that we don't really live in anymore, and yet we're still deploying a lot of those behaviors and adapting it to our technology, to our social media, to our magic technological mirrors that let us talk with people across the world. And that's really interesting, you could say "yeah well you've got your aliens that evolved in the ocean and they've got tentacles and they do this and that", but now they have spaceships and now they have their version of facebook. How do they actually interact? How does that work? Which I think is really fantastic. [29]

References

The cruiser Darmstadt shares its name with a real-life german city. While on the wiki page for it, I also noticed that in its sister-cities is listed Trondheim, Norway, which is extremely similar to the fictional town of Tronjheim. Heh. Someone noticed. :D Hey, I live in Darmstadt. Unexpected to read that :D Did you randomly look for city names? I ate a delicious meal in Darmstadt while touring for Inheritance (or Eldest). The literal meaning of "darmstadt" amused me, and of course, the link to Trondheim was the icing on the cake. [T]
Kira enters into a symbiosis with a mysterious black space dust. Did the trilogy His Dark Materials by Pullman inspire you to this motif? Ha! No I wasn’t thinking of His Dark Materials when I described the dust, but I'm flattered that you would make the comparison. I'm a long-time fan of Pullman's work in that trilogy. It's one of the few books that really affected me emotionally. I haven’t read his sequel trilogy yet, but I’m looking forward to it. [22]
I saw a quote recently [from Alan Watts?]. It was something to the effect of like "we are under no obligation to be the same person moment to moment". By which they mean we can remake ourselves moment to moment, and that's true. At the same time our basic tendencies and interests and physical reactions are often set very early in life. I remember when I was three years old, I was running around with other kids picking up sticks to make them into swords and imagining adventures. And here I am at 40 still doing the same thing. So a lot of our basic nature is very much nature. It's our genetics, it's the environment we were in in the womb, it's the food we were fed growing up, the emotions we're exposed to growing up, the treatment we had, all of that has an effect. But at the same time, we have an enormous amount of control from the inside. And that I find incredibly empowering and interesting. And that's actually why with Fractal Noise, I ended the book with a quote from Camus about Sisyphus "I conclude that all is well says Oedipus and that remark is sacred." And that's perhaps some magical thinking, but again, all we have control over is we can choose whether or not we feel miserable about what's happening or not. You can endure anything if you think it's worth enduring. If you have a big enough why, you can endure anything. The great challenge of modern life, especially if it's secular life, if you're not religious, is figuring out what your why is and hopefully it's a productive one that allows you to live a happy fulfilled life and doing all the things you need to do in life to be a good person and hopefully make those around you happy as well. But that why will let you get through life. Because face it, life's hard for everyone in various ways. And it gets especially hard at the end of life. So you need a good why. [19]

Alien Worldbuilding in Science Fiction

Alien Motivations

What's your alien of choice? I think it depends on what you're looking for from an alien. You can look at strictly biology and say, "well, what's the most interesting biologically different alien that's been created?" But I think you can also look then, what about on the societal side of things. And then you can really get into some weird things. And there, I think the options are so enormous because they almost even include humans in different settings. And that, I think the options are incredibly vast. But I love reading about alien species where not just the biology is different, but the society, maybe as a result of the biology, but also because their belief systems and culture is just so vastly different, while taking into account the basic needs that all organisms have, which is food, reproduction, avoidance of pain and survival and all that. [29]
If an alien is meant to be different from humans, why assign them human traits? I remember when I was growing up there was a fair bit of talk from scientists and authors about alien life being essentially incomprehensible. You just would not be able to necessarily communicate with an alien intelligence and I'm not ruling that out. Obviously if you're talking about some intelligence from another dimension something that's completely different from what we understand, that could be a possibility. But I look at all the life we have here on Earth. We are in essence surrounded by aliens. There's an amazing amount of diversity in creatures on this planet who reproduce and live in very different ways but they're all governed by the same basic needs. Food, reproduction, safety. And we can communicate and interact and understand those with a lot of these animals and understand their basic motivations. What we can't understand is their sensory stimulus and how they interpret that necessarily. Because we don't experience that ourselves. But the basic stuff is the same for all living creatures and it has to be if they're to survive and flourish. Again I'll go back to the social stuff because I think that's where you really get tripped up. Like even if you go to a different country or a different time with humans and all the basic biological urges are the same but if you don't bow down to the full moon three times every month you're a heretic and you're going to be thrown off into the volcano to appease the gods. And if you don't understand that social context you get thrown off into the lava to appease the gods. And that's really where things can get strange and weird, aside from the fact that they're all giant spiders. [29]
I'm a pessimist I think to a degree, in the sense that I can't see a species ever being 100% peaceful, simply because there's always going to be an evolutionary advantage for some individual or group that's willing to take advantage of another one. And although cooperation increases, it seems to me be a necessity for technological evolution. Even if you're even if you're postulating an alien that is a planet-wide super brain fungus sort of thing, right? Well it's probably subjugating all the other species on the planet or controlling them in some way or exploiting them in some way. There's just too much advantage for individuals or groups to take advantage of others in some ways in some way or another. So I can't see 100% peaceful alien species. Or even if they choose to be generally peaceful, any technologically advanced species that has risen to the top of the food chain is going to be by definition the scariest animal on the planet. And it is kind of weird to look at humans, hairless, we don't have claws, we don't have big teeth, we're not the fastest, we're not the strongest, but we really are the scariest creatures on the planet. A group of humans is the scariest thing on this planet. Which is rather odd to think. [29]

Writing Aliens

Are there any kind of pitfalls that you've encountered when you've been writing aliens that you may not have expected to encounter? Specific to aliens I would say read stuff about different human cultures because there's been a vast vast array of beliefs and behaviors throughout history, and you can really drill down into very different ways of thinking, and I think that's a useful exercise when it's coming to write about aliens. And then of course reading a lot about biology and different animals. I think if you don't have an awareness of the different forms of life just on this planet, it's very easy to sort of default to a human and mammalian centric view of biology and think "well of course you have a female and you have a male and they get together and they reproduce and that's basically how life works". And well no, there's some really weird variations out there and there's lots of ways to approach this, and it's really worth getting there. And I will happily admit that I have not succeeded at this entirely, but I really am intrigued by this idea of truly capturing an alien way of thinking while still basing it still on the basic needs of a biological creature, reproduction, pain avoidance, resource gathering, and all of that. And I think reading anthropological sources, reading historical stuff, is one way to go about doing that. And then of course just sitting and daydreaming. And look at things from a different point of view on occasion. Like you could you could look at the the first Alien film as the story of a poor little orphan alien who gets kidnapped by a bunch of other alien creatures who then try to kill it for trying to get a single warm meal. It's a newborn that's trying to get a meal and all these aliens are trying to kill it after kidnapping it. [29]
Is subversion something that is important to keep the alien subgenre alive? You know who I think wrote some of the most interesting aliens here and there was actually Douglas Adams, and he wasn't he wasn't concerned with realism in the slightest. [29]
How far should a story develop an alien species from within that story? Is it necessary to see development of an alien species through a story, or is it okay to write an alien species that has already developed and that stays the same? I think it really depends on the type of story you're writing and the time scale. If you're writing a story that takes place over the course of a couple of days versus a couple of millennia, you're going to have a really different experience, and a different opportunity to show development. That to me would really be the basic thing. And of course if you are writing a novel you're probably writing about dramatic events. So the dramatic events themselves may be a good opportunity to show development for both humans or some other species, in which case that might actually be what you're grappling with. But again to me it would really depend on the scale. And how do you define development? Is it technological advancement? Is it social advancement? There are so many ways that that could play out. And if it's social advancement, I would argue it's going to take more time than technological changes. And of course technological changes drive social changes, and vice versa. I know that's a rather vague answer but it really does seem really specific to the story and the scope of the story. [29]
Is there a difference between writing an alien character and writing an alien race? Character always trumps, character trumps almost everything. If you write a story with a character that people relate to or find interesting, you can almost do anything at that point. But that said, go back to the Alien films. The alien isn't really an individual character. The species is the threat. And again, I'm thinking about classic Star Trek here, so nothing past, let's say, Voyager. We have Worf from the Klingons, but the Klingons themselves are sort of an iconic race for Star Trek. Same thing with the Vulcans, although I think everyone will think of Mr. Spock. Obviously you relate to the specific individual, so if you can come up with an interesting character, then that's going to hook readers and audiences in a way that just, talking about the race in generic terms, won't. I read Project Hail Mary last year, and that had a great alien character in there, but one of the difficulties is that individuals differ massively. We only need to look at humans for an example. So a lot of times I think writers want the individual alien to exemplify the generic traits of that species rather than that alien being an outlier in some reason. Sometimes they are, but rarely it feels like. Whereas in a lot of cases the alien that would be going out and meeting humans and interacting with them and maybe doing this and that might be a weirdo by their standards. So you have a species that has more tendency towards logic or anger, but maybe you got the introvert nerd Klingon who all he wants to do is sit home and read and listen to Klingon opera. He's a sensitive person and so then now he's hanging out with humans. That's fun to do, but then you risk confusing your audience about what the basic traits of your species are if you're diverging from them on the one example you're really getting to know. Something I throw out on that topic, and I know this would be horrendously offensive if we were talking about an actual sentient species, so I apologize to any aliens or humans I'm offending at the moment, but if you think of different breeds of dogs, you can broadly assign some certain traits to different breeds of dogs. Like this dog has a herding instinct. This dog has this instinct, and this is a snappy dog. This is a nice cuddly dog. And that can be broadly true for the breed while still being different for the individual dogs within that breed. That said, I've yet to meet an angry golden retriever. And if I ever do, my first thought is going to be who did horrible things to this poor dog. [29]

Hi! This is going to be a long one/rant and story because I really don’t know who to talk to about this in real life because I’m not in therapy and I’m so embarrassed to be feeling this way knowing I made all the choices to be here and people are already flying in from out of state to come to our wedding. Also I’m diagnosed adhd incase any of yall are wondering what’s wrong with me once I tell you all the decisions I made to get here. I am getting married in three months and have a son who is 15 months old. My now fiance 28m and I 27f met whenever we were thirteen years old in middle school and started a tumultuous up and down / on and off again relationship. We were together all the way up until junior year in high school and we broke up. I come from a broken home and he does not. Looking back I realize how much of me staying with him and trying to keep his attention stemmed from my abandonment issues that I must have had from my own parents. After we broke up he joined a gang in my local hometown and I was still in love with him so I decided to still be involved with him even though I was not in a relationship with him. I ended up losing my virginity to him while we were not together just because I wanted to be with him and we said we were friends with benefits but really I was just in love with him and thought by doing that maybe he would want to be with me again but he didn’t and continued to sleep with other girls and do drugs. I also started doing drugs like Xanax and smoking to fit in with him and be cool. I ended up getting a horrible tattoo because one of the other girls he was also seeing had a bunch of tattoos. I dropped out of my high school college courses and ended up going to jail for marijuana in high school and got kicked out of cheer and softball. I ended up on probation and having to be drug tested for a year. Within that year after being heart broken and realizing nothing I did would make him change into who he was before he got involved in our local gang or make him want to be with me… I ended up enrolling in college and getting accepted to a university where I would move about two hours away from our home town to live on campus and study to be a nurse. While on probation, so I couldn’t really party or anything in college which was good (even though I was never really addicted to anything and it wouldn’t be that hard for me) I wanted to save money for a car so I ended up getting a job at the hooters next to my college and was in college full time and working at hooters. My sister happened to go to that same college before I did and live in that town with her ex bf and they would give me rides to and from work back to campus. Low and behold after about two semesters of me being in college and finally feeling like I was moving on from him, he came back messaging me and telling me he missed me and wanted to be with me again. I was stupid and so excited that I agreed and asked him to come see me at college where he would stay for the weekend and we would have an amazing time. I felt so good about myself doing what I was doing and being able to show my growth. Despite all that he was still able to convince me to leave school and come back to be with him and live with him and go to the college near our hometown and work at the hooters near our hometown. I had already felt like I didn’t want to be a nurse at the time because my sister who was a nurse told me you could never leave the state as a nurse if you get your license there (which she didn’t know at the time that you could) and I knew I didn’t want to stay where I was from and wanted to eventually travel. So I decided to leave and move back with him in his bedroom at his parents house where I would work at the hooters close to our home town and never enroll in the college. He would eventually break up with me while I was at work one day even though I was living with him and since I didn’t have a car he continued to take me back in forth from work and I continued to live with him and continued to be in love with him while he committed to the fact that he didn’t want to be in a relationship but wanted to marry me one day and just wasn’t ready for anything right now and still wanted to have sex with me which I did. From working at hooters I had auditioned for the calendar and ended up being really liked by the photographer and started doing some modeling from that which was super exciting for me because I always was interested in that and the pictures we took would blow up and I started getting well known in my area for modeling even though they were just pictures and I wasn’t making any money off of it. Eventually a guy came into hooters telling me about working as an exotic dancer and how much they could make and I still needed a car really badly and was desperate to get out of my ex’s (now fiance) house. So I told him I would be waitressing and that I heard the waitresses make good money there and asked him to give me a ride there one day and so he started giving me a ride everyday. The money was so good to me and the most money I had ever seen. I ended up staying in a hotel closer to the club I worked at and sometimes he would come stay with me and I would just uber to work. Eventually I had gotten a car which I was so happy about. A couple of weeks after I got a car I ended up getting sucked into human trafficking with a friend where I would live in a house with multiple girls for 6 months and go to work at the club every day of the week except Saturday and Sundays. I wasn’t doing anything extra just dancing but the money was going to some random guy. It’s crazy I know. I was stupid and young and my family were not concerned for me at all or involved in my life. unfortunately my friend is just now leaving that situation. I got out without anything no car or nothing and had nowhere to go so back to my exes I went where I decided I was going to buy a cash car again and I worked everyday like I was used to saved money and got a car. Moved to my sisters and stayed with her for a little where i decided I didn’t want to dance anymore and I got a job as a bottle service girl and then waitressing at another waitress. I continued modeling because it made me happy and I never told anyone the truth about the deep things that were happening in my life except for my now fiance. So nobody had no idea about me dancing or the human trafficking or anything. Everyone just knew I modeled. I ended up getting an apartment with some friends and One day I got the urge to go to California randomly and at my waitressing job I was handed $800 and I took it as a sign and booked a flight the next day. Where I went by myself my first time ever on a flight with no plans at all. The day I got there I got asked to be in a commercial two days later. My roommate and her friends flew out there to get me and she ended up being able to be in the commercial with me which ended up on tbs but I had to go back home to my apartment and responsibilities and couldn’t leave my roommate stranded. Even though months later we would end up getting in an argument and I’d move out and move back with my ex (now fiance) where I would continue to work and model (for free) and went back to the club to dance and then my sister ended up going to California for a travel nursing assignment and her and her bf broke up and she asked me to move with her. I had nothing else here, my ex was still saying he didn’t want to be in a relationship, he was consistently sleeping with other girls while we lived together and expected relationship things from me. I was paying for everything for him. I paid for him while he was in school for audio engineer, his gas, lunch, school clothes, shopping, I helped him open his own studio and bought his equipment and Mac for it, even though his parents were very involved in his life. I got all his family bday gifts and Christmas gifts every year. He was honestly just using me but I was so in love and blind. He encouraged me to go to California too so I had nothing else there for me, if he had told me to stay and he wanted to be with me I would’ve. I flew out on my 21st birthday and met my sister and Vegas where we would have such a great time and my ex spent that day hanging out with a girl that tried to fight me and didn’t even tell me happy birthday, I was crying in the bathroom in Vegas until my sister shook me and told me to get it together we’re in Vegas. I was so heart broken to be leaving him but he didn’t care. I got to LA and I instantly started modeling on day one I booked a photo shoot where I met a guy that reminded me of my ex (I know) but we instantly clicked and he was 7 years older than me. We ended up talking for a little bit and pursuing something even though I wasn’t ready emotionally but he didn’t really care and I was kind of star struck a little because he was a music producer for a very famous musician and he was very persistent but that’s another story. I ended up booking a music video as a main girl for my ex’s (now fiance) favorite artist. When it came out it was crazy because I felt like the universe and God was just blessing me for leaving that situation and I knew he would see it because he was so obsessed with that artist and it shook up the whole small town I was from. After that I booked a lot of cool jobs like Sephora and worked with a lot of companies, and did some music videos for other super famous artists, and walked in fashion shows and modeled for clothing brands etc. I was working all the time as an extra to pay my bills and I was meeting cool people. I was always getting invited to celebrities parties and just having such a fun time. I decided to start getting into acting instead and started going to acting school where a lot of well known celebrities also went to and I started having meetings with very popular directors and I was being mentored by famous directors and another person that created an tv entertainment channel that I won’t say here also mentored me a lot and got me a lot of meetings with these people and would go to dinners and stuff etc with a list celebrities. I truly was living the life. And coming from where I can it was almost a dream. I had gotten in a relationship my first year there with that other guy I mentioned who ended up being super possessive of me but he treated me like a queen in the sense of paying for everything, giving me a safe space to tell my feelings, open up, the sex was amazing, he would take me on trips, took me out of the country for the first time. We ended up not working out due to lifestyle differences and just being at two different places and wanting different things. He wanted to move out of the country and have a farm and I wasn’t ready to do that as I wanted to focus on my career. (But I would die to move out of the country on a farm now ironically and he is doing just that now like he said he would haha) anyway, I ended up having my own studio apartment by myself that I loved so much and was so proud of. My sister had moved to Montana and it took a lot for me to get my apartment like staying in a house with other girls for a little to sleeping in my car and at a spa for a couple days. When I would fly home or drive home to see my family I would always see my ex, everytime. We kept a friendship and sometimes I would still help him out if needed, he was interning at a church through his school for audio engineering and recording people at his studio in our hometown. By this time I was going to New York and Miami also sometimes and doing work there. I wasn’t as stressed about bills anymore. I was seeing guys every now and then but not at all interested in a relationship, my heart was still healing from the past and both my exes but mainly my first (now fiance). I was super focused on my career and optimistic, I was used to the grind and in no way ever thinking of quitting. It just wasn’t an option because I knew I would make it wherever that would be because to me that is all I had for me and all I ever knew I wanted and the only thing that saved me. Skip to around October 2019 I had found out about a girl my ex was seeing and it crushed me. He was doing with her just like he was with me though. Just “friends with benefits” I was living in my apartment in LA still and my uncle that helped raise me was getting really sick back home and put on hospice so I decided to take a trip back to see him. I would go to restaurants in my state and near my home town and people would ask to take pictures with me, and at the little ceasars drive through someone asked if I was me and stuff it was crazy because I hadn’t been home in awhile and I felt like what I was doing was finally paying off and people were recognizing me. It was surreal. I ended up going to see my ex. I had such a fear of losing him to this other girl for some reason. I was so scared he would get her pregnant or get in a serious relationship since I was gone so far away and I would never be with him, I would end up sleeping with him again and the girl found out and drove by his house mad and cussing me out and throwing stuff at me. We ended up getting in a fight which is so embarrassing and beneath me. I ended up crying to him that I wanted to be with him and don’t know why he never wanted to be with me which at this time he honestly was not even in my playing field anymore. He told me if I wanted to be with him I had to move back to my hometown.. my heart dropped to my stomach and I knew it wasn’t what I was supposed to do but I said okay… all because this is what I had wanted all those years. I decided to stay where the next two years all I would think about everyday was I was making the wrong decision and needed to go back to my life. My hometown had nothing for me.. COVID hit a couple months after me being there and we were terrified. We ended up getting everything out of my apartment and moving into a house around the corner from his parents. I had to tell him how I liked to communicate now without yelling and stuff which I learned from the boyfriend I had in LA and that I wasn’t going to put up with that disrespect but he never listened. Eventually everything went back to normal. I ended up going back to the club again dancing because I didn’t want to go backward and model here. He never wanted me to go back to LA even for a little bit even though that’s where my career and heart was so I had no idea what to do with my life. I started waitressing as well and getting back on my adhd meds. People started pressuring us to get pregnant and we tried for a year and 6 months. The month I found out I was pregnant before I knew, I quit my job and decided I was going to move back and get my life back. Two days later I found out I was pregnant…. Finally after trying for over a year. Our relationship was toxic just like the past he always yelled, I could never talk to him about my feelings without him saying I was trying to fight, he spit in my face once, threatened me, put his hands on me, he would tell me he was going to take my baby away from me as soon as I had it. I started asking him about getting married while I was pregnant and the proposal wasn’t even that. He got mad at me for asking one day and walked in the room and handed me the ring. It didn’t fit because I was pregnant & it was $27 (not that that matters but the proposal sucked).. he drained both my bank accounts and they closed it, charged my credit card up and put me in debt, he has not let me do anything I want to do like school or anything. He is so bad with money. He has an action figure addiction and at one point was spending 3k on action figures every month and turned one of the rooms in our house into a collection room so I had to take everything out of my closet and put my sons crib in there for the first year of his life. we have good times and I feel comfortable with him. He knows everything about me but he doesn’t respect me and sometimes I feel like he is intimidated by me. The sex isn’t good at all we always just ask “do you want to have sex” he never gives oral or foreplay, I never get pleasure. He’s an amazing dad though and loves his son. We have the most sweet and beautiful little boy now who I love so much and he loves him also. He’s very attentive to his son. But I still feel unheard. I can’t talk about my feelings. If I do it doesn’t matter, it doesn’t change anything. He is so defensive and we never communicate for a solution it’s always just pointing fingers. I have started yelling again because I’m so used to it now and I hate it because I grew up like that and I finally grew out of it until I got back with him and recently started again and now he throws it in my face and knows I begged him not to do it forever but he never stopped and now I am too. I’ve asked him to take me to the movies and he hasn’t still. I just ask for more romance and stuff but it just feels like I have a roommate. I have nothing now. I had my car and we traded it in for a new car that he wanted. I always dreamed of the next car I’d get once I paid it off but he got it & it’s in his name now so I paid it off for nothing. I’m driving around his dream car. I’ve been planning our wedding since I birthed our son and everything is going good. Money is tight. He works at the church now full time and makes about 45k a year or so, my son has been waiting to start daycare for awhile so I have been home with him. I’ve tried starting jobs multiple times but he is against it unless it’s super fast money like going to the club which I am so repulsed by and absolutely hate it now. I tried going back to college but my old college won’t release my transcripts for fasfa because I owe them money. I started cosmetology school a few months ago which he was all for but two months in freaked out and him and his mom guilt tripped me that we can’t handle this right now and he was having a hard time doing the night time routine for the baby while I was at school so I had to leave and now owe that’s school for my kit unless I enroll again in 128 days. I also miss modeling so much and sometimes think I can start again but it’s been five years. My body is so different too after a baby. Everything I want is a no go. Especially moving out of our hometown. He says he wants to but I don’t think he does. We are constantly at his moms and dads and they tell us all the time we aren’t moving anywhere which is really hard for me as this place is super toxic for my soul. Anytime I get money he spends it. Anytime I save money he spends it. Even if it does go towards our bills. His action figure habit is almost nonexistent now and he has grown a lot in the past few months from that since I demanded my son have his own bedroom after his first bday and all his figures are in boxes now and told him he could turn the shed into his man cave. He says we can’t save because we have nothing to save after bills but I believe in saving anything even $5 a paycheck. It’s doable. I grew up poor so this is nothing to me but after living the lifestyle I lived in LA and going out with guys that respected me and cherished me it’s hard. I know nobody is perfect but we are about to get married and I’m scared… I have nothing though anymore. I’ve threatened to leave a couple times and he says he will take me to court and take my baby. I’m scared he might. I don’t want my son to be angry like him or not respect women how he does. In public he’s a saint. He also has a very supportive family that it’s almost toxic. They all blame me for his anger issues and say I make him that way. But he’s been punching walls since I met him in 8th grade. I know it’s not because of me. But I have nobody else and nowhere else to go. No money. No car. I’m at the bottom again where I was before. Only difference is now I have a son. And we are getting married in three months and I can’t call it off. I am older now and looking back on my life I realize he maybe truly never loved me and I was just so desperate for love. I got myself here nobody else. I accepted everything, even when my gut told me not to. ( he is not just horrible, he’s a great person just with some bad qualities like everyone but I’m tired of feeling stuck with someone that never truly wanted me and doesn’t care to grow in some ways or show me )
Please help.. what do I do?

SCREENRANT:
"The most recent edition of Puck's "What I'm Hearing" newsletter contains a deep dive into the state of play at Paramount Pictures amid the ongoing process of selling its parent company. The report contains some fascinating information about the future of Star Trek movies, and reveals the contract negotiations for Simon Kinberg to come aboard and produce the new origin movie. Read the full quote from What I'm Hearing below:

And I’m told Simon Kinberg, the prolific producer of X-Men and other Fox-Marvel movies, is negotiating to join Star Trek as its new steward in film. If his deal closes, Kinberg will technically produce just the prequel being directed by Toby Haynes (Andor) and written by Seth Grahame-Smith.
But since Star Trek 4 has script and schedule issues with that famous (and expensive) cast, the prequel will likely shoot in early 2025 and could very well end up as a reboot. Plus, Paramount sees Kinberg as a franchise shepherd à la Alex Kurtzman for Trek TV projects, even though J.J. Abrams remains as a producer. Whether that new film is a Paramount or Sony release remains a question to be answered by Shari Redstone, of course, but the studio’s other suitor, Skydance, does retain its option to co-finance and produce the Kinberg Trek movie."

Currently, Simon Kinberg is in negotiations only to produce the Star Trek origin movie, written by Seth Grahame-Smith, and directed by Toby Haynes. This makes a lot of sense as Kinberg already has a working relationship with Grahame-Smith from producing the movie adaptation of his novel Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter back in 2012. The most interesting element of Puck's report is the implication that, should the origin movie perform well, Paramount may drop Star Trek 4. If the Star Trek origin movie becomes a defacto reboot for the movie franchise, then it will need some creative stewarding from a producer with a creative vision."
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER:
"Kinberg rose to prominence thanks to his writing and producing work on Fox’s X-Men franchise, over whose course he took creative control and even made his directorial debut with Dark Phoenix. He has has also worked movies ranging from Murder on the Orient Express to The Martian, as well as select Star Wars projects. And he worked with Grahame-Smith before, as co-screenwriter and executive producer on his adaptation of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter."
Links:
https://screenrant.com/star-trek-prequel-movie-simon-kinberg-star-trek-4-timeline/
https://puck.news/newsletters/what-im-hearing/
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/star-trek-movie-franchise-reboot-paramount-1235904930/

Howdy All!
Unfortunately m8r98a4f2 is MIA, and his phenomenally excellent StarUI series of mods are stuck in limbo.
Hope (s)he's OK, and comes back to us soon!!
I've done a *little* poking around, and I'm absolutely amazed by how clever the StarUI mod is.
It doesn't "cheat" at all, as far as the system is concerned, because it replaces the animation files (.swf) that drive the menus -- no console commands or anything -- clever as hell!
I was able to use JPEXS Free Flash Decompiler to look through the mod (still haven't figured out everything I did to get to that point -- I was throwing a font error originally)
I don't know how to fix the HUD (yet) but I have some idea on the Shipbuilder:
There seem to be three areas of the ActionScripts:
ShipPartData - Seems to be a library mapping FormID's to their relevant Hull/Mass/PoweDamage etc...
ShipPartInfoFetcher and ShipVariantInfoFetcher LOOK like they might feed this ShipPartData construct, but I haven't poked through to see everything that's happening.
MAYBE this is enough for some of you out there who do this stuff regularly to go "oh heck yeah, I can fix this in 10 minutes!!"
But I don't have any experience editing SWF's and my JPEXS is crashing (can it even upload changes back??)
Any insight from y'all on 1) -- is m8r ok?? and 2) how do we carry this on if they've decided to move on? Anyone with the SWF background that would consider describing how they'd go about applying the fix?
Basics that I could think of:
How do we get the FormID's for all the new habs? -- This seems to be the only part that's really breaking.
I would suggest that ShipPartInfoFetcher at least is working (mostly) -- as the mod works with DerreTech and Darkstar Astrodynamics, and it does well with variants from Darkstar -- so the ability to dynamically get the info without the formid's all prepopulated into ShipPartData has to be at least partially working, unless I completely understand how those two built their parts.
There's PROBABLY a flag in the empty habs that needs to be accounted for (BGS could've done something like create a new variant on the parent formid that can only differentiate itself with this new flag??) which would suggest that the ShipVariantInfoFetcher is where we need the most attention.
How would you go about debugging this? What can you do to get verbose/debug logs out of the SWF?
How would you update the SWF with the modified ActionScripts?
Thanks y'all!!!

On a rainy Saturday afternoon not so long ago when internet connection was fluctuating in most homes, the 80-year-old Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, widow of the late Senator Heherson Alvarez, carrying a mini iPad, hurriedly alighted from a three-wheeled pedicab Toktok and stormed her way into a popular coffee shop in a mall in Manila.

A senior citizen in panic mode, she told the stunned baristas she’s looking for a Wi-Fi connection because she was about to interview retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio via Zoom.
The coffee shop, a known world brand, has Wi-Fi exclusive to its employees, so the old lady was told to try other establishments. She went from one coffee shop to another only to be told the same, until a kind stranger led her to a well-known beauty salon with a free internet connection.
The lady salon attendant was very accommodating to the octogenarian, even typing the password on her IPad. Of course, she needed to avail herself of their salon services. Initially, she opted for a haircut, but since she needed to talk and hear clearly who she was talking to, she settled for a foot spa with pedicure.
“They lowered the volume of the piped-in music, and since there were less customers because it’s been raining all day, I was able to do my interview,” Guidote-Alvarez said.
For the next half-an-hour, the hair dressers and manicurists working with their scissors, nail clippers and cuticle removers on their customers’ hair and fingernails, listened to Carpio and Guidote-Alvarez discussed how Filipino fishermen and the Philippine Navy ships helplessly negotiate their ways in Scarborough Shoal amid the territorial disputes in the West Philippine Sea.
“They were all very nice to me. I was able to finish my interview, with newly pedicured nails,” she told The Diarist.
For those who’ve worked with Guidote-Alvarez, her steadfast, almost stubborn, nature to accomplish a task, is nothing out of the ordinary. She would improvise, find alternatives, call up friends and former students, wake them up from sleep, just to get things done.
But now, in her 80s, legally blind and nearly deaf, she has mellowed down.
Cecile Alvarez with her mentors, National Artist for Literature Alejandro Roces, Jr and Fr. James Reuter. SJ
In her twilight years, Guidote-Alvarez has been solely hosting the 57-year-old Radyo Balintataw on DZRH, one of the oldest radio stations in the Philippines, where she tackles a wide range of topics, from climate change, women’s health, theater, culture, dance, to current issues, apart from playing old recordings of classic radio plays she produced and directed, dating back to the late ‘80s.
She shared with TheDiarist.ph how she started and continues to host one of the longest running advocacy programs on AM Radio.
Theater on TV
After founding the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) on April 7, 1967, or exactly 57 years ago, Guidote-Alvarez thought of the need to expose PETA’s members to television, so she started conceptualizing Balintataw, which in Filipino means the pupil of the eye, but in a larger context has something to do with having wild imagination, or what you might see if you have a third eye.

“I designed Balintataw as a bridge between cinema and the stage, where the youth being trained in theater skills can have a ready-made laboratory experience linked with the film and entertainment industry that would likewise have a natural on-the-job training and orientation regarding the theatrical discipline of working with a literary script, whether dramatic or comic—not the regular improvised script done on taping or copycat scripts from foreign themes,” Guidote-Alvarez wrote in her yet-to-be published Memoir of a Freedom Fighter’s Wife.
“A primary goal when I conceived PETA was to initiate and sustain artistic expression that draws meaning and power from the lives of the people, and sharing the literary gems with a greater number of audiences through a Broadcast Theater-Film Program with Balintataw on Channel 5,” she added.
“No matter how little the pay, at least it provided our local writers with a little honorarium. I sought permission for award-winning pieces of the Palanca Playwriting contest to be fleshed out to reach the masses. The much-awarded playwright Bert Florentino served as our literary manager, assisted by Mauro Avena. Eventually, Isagani Cruz took over when Bert left for the US,” she wrote.
“Writers need exposure and encouragement through a regular TV performance that will give them a sense of achievement and inspire them to keep on writing with some kind of honorarium. I was glad Lupita Aquino (now Kashiwahara) agreed to be TV director and Robert Arevalo as TV host.
She got members of the PETA Kalinangan Ensemble to serve as stage directors. “This is to undertake preliminary preparation with a rehearsal with the actors for character development and memorization and preliminary staging,” she wrote.
Five months after PETA was founded, Balintataw TV premiered on Channel 5 on Aug. 19, 1967, coinciding with the Buwan ng Wika birthdate of President Manuel Luis Quezon.
The first play, whose title escapes her now, featured Armida Siguion-Reyna and Maria Eva “Chingbee” Kalaw. She employed photo journalist and award-winning photographedocumentarist/cinematographer, Romy Vitug, to work with her in filming outdoor scenes for Balintataw.

In the pre-Martial Law Balintataw, among those initiated into television were Lino Brocka, Elwood Perez, Nick Lizaso, Maryo delos Reyes, Mario O’Hara, Joey Gosiengfiao, Behn Cervantes, and Frank Rivera.
Among the stage actors who crossed over to television were Lily Gamboa, Angie Ferro, Lorlie Villanueva, Jonee Gamboa, Joy Soler, Sherry Lara, Gardy Labad, Noel Trinidad.
Like with PETA, Guidote-Alvarez directed and managed Balintataw for five years. Because of Martial Law, she and husband Heherson went on exile in the US to escape a military shoot-to-kill order on Heherson, who was tagged as a subversive.
Post-Martial Law
Internationally acclaimed auteur Lav Diaz mentioned in several interviews how he learned writing radio and TV scripts in Balintataw.
This happened in the late 1980s, when the Alvarez couple returned from exile.
Despite its absence on the air in the Martial Law years, Balintataw was honored by Star Awards as among the 20 unforgettable outstanding broadcast programs in the Philippines.
“This encouraged me to consider reviving Balintataw on TV. Another blessing was a FAMAS award for having an important role in the development of cinema recognizing Balintataw as a bridge for synergizing cinema with the stage, providing a pathway of entry of our PETA artists into film and for movie stars to consider enriching their experience by acting on the legitimate stage,” Guidote-Alvarez wrote.
Though she didn’t return to PETA anymore because it had been surviving well and had its own set of officers led by Brocka, she just tapped some of its members for the return of Balintataw.
For 14 years, the Alvarez couple lived in the US as political exiles, shown here during a Ninoy Aquino Movement meeting. Cecile revived Radyo Balintataw upon their return in the late 1980s.
Channel 4 stint
“I arranged to revive TV Balintataw on Channel 4 in 1989. We began with a drama about a rebel returnee, title escapes me now, but I clearly remember it was written by Lualhati Bautista and directed by Maryo de los Reyes. We also had a good story series on the hazing of Lenny Villa, an Aquila Legis Frat neophyte,” she wrote.
At the time, Heherson had been elected senator after having served as Agrarian Reform Minister and eventually Cabinet Secretary during the first year of the Cory Aquino Administration.
“We were able to unravel the deadly hazing process from a fellow neophyte who broke the code of silence as we revealed graphically, acted the cruel process used. I had Jose Mari Avellana direct it. This presentation won all the awards. Lav Diaz was training with us and he started writing teleplays. We also had Nora Aunor in an adaptation of Bert Florentino’s The World Is An Apple, adapted by Frank Rivera, and I had Nick Lizaso direct.”

Emmy Awards
Balintataw TV was selected as one of five soaps for social change recognized by Emmy Awards. The Philippines was one of five countries cited, with Mexico, India, Brazil and Kenya.
“The nomination was made possible by the wonderful support from David Poindexter. It was a supreme honor for our country to be recognized in the Emmy Awards, to be cited among the five Third World countries using soap opera for social change.”
Poindexter was a Methodist minister and TV producer who founded the Population Communications International.
Surviving on radio
“In spite of the cry about how television can be deadening the minds of the people with copied themes with an eternal favorite love triangle story, there was really no funding for Balintataw,” she wrote.
“Sponsors would go naturally to the commercial stations where big stars were paid highly for the starring role. Balintataw may have substance but we could not afford payment of bankable stars,” she added.
“Financial stress forced me to drop TV and remain on radio because I didn’t want to kill Balintataw per se just because we didn’t have funds.”
Creative classroom
“We have focused on Balintataw as a creative classroom on the air. I was able to talk to Fred J. Elizalde of DZRH and the president of the network, Mr. Jun Nicdao,” she wrote.
In the ‘80s, the HIV/AIDS became a global epidemic and in the Philippines, the general populace was still clueless on how to deal with it.
“In order to get funding, the first series I did was about the explosive news regarding AIDS in Asia. I got the DOH Secretary at the time, Dr. Juan Flavier, to act as himself, providing the data. It was easier to start off with an AIDS radio serial.
They did a minimum of 13 episodes to raise awareness about the disease.
“From then on, some of our television scripts we transformed into a radio version. DZRH provided us with our initial production staff, so we used some from the network and some of its resident artists and drama talents. Our time slots were changing but always coming after the long-running horror drama, Gabi ng Lagim.
“We worked on the themes of overseas workers, the drug problem, corruption, aside from portraying contemporary and literary classics serving as social commentaries,” she wrote.
Women playwrights
“We dramatized the works of noted women writers and playwrights like Estrella Alfon, Genoveva Edroza Matute and Marilou Jacob, who is distinguished in being a founding president of Women’s Playwright International.
“Apart from our PETA staple of writers, we involved young, upcoming and budding university and community theater groups.
“We also had a lot of foreign plays, where we could feature theater festivals beyond borders. We could do Shakespeare, we could do Euripides but also the current playwrights in the Arab region we translated in our language.
“We brought in Chinese contemporary plays, Malaysian, Indonesian and from other women writers from ASEAN member countries.”
Virtual history book
“The significance of Balintataw is portrayed as a virtual history book on audio as it unveiled events in the country. Radio is fresh, instant and up-to date,” she added.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, Balintataw became Guidote-Alvarez’s outlet and therapy. Having lost her husband on the second month of the pandemic, a widow cocooned at home, she began hosting it six days a week, learning how to use an iPad and interviewing via Zoom.
The word “Balintataw” has been associated with her name.
Visual artist and editorial cartoonist Benjie Lontoc in casual meeting told us how in his younger days, when AM Radio was a national past-time, he was surprised to hear a Filipino adaptation of No Exit by Jean Paul-Sarte. This was when radio was airing soap, fantasy adventures targeting housewives and children.
Another was the airing of Larawan as a radio play in the 1990s, with Guidote-Alvarez as the voice of Candida Marasigan.
Leopoldo Salcedo (left) as Manolo in a confrontation scene with Dante Rivero as Tony Javier in PETA’s 1968 ‘Larawan’ directed by Cecile Guidote-Alvarez. (Photo from PETA archives)
In the 1960s, she directed Larawan, the first Filipino adaptation of Joaquin’s A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino for PETA’s second season. It ran from December 1968 to January 1969 at the Raha Sulayman Theater at Fort Santiago in Intramural. In the cast were Rita Gomez (Candida), Lolita Rodriguez (Paula), Leopoldo Salcedo (Don Manolo) and Dante Rivero (Tony Javier).
Guidote-Alvarez has a funny recollection of the radio play. It was Nick Joaquin himself who told her years ago how his pedicurist suddenly started a conversation about Larawan.

Joaquin was relaxing on the barber’s chair having a post-haircut pedicure and foot spa when the lady pedicurist asked him how the story would end. Joaquin was stunned because he didn’t want to be known in the barber shop as Nick Joaquin the famous National Artist for Literature, but just a regular customer.
“He told me he almost fell out from the chair. He was a very private person and the pedicurist recognized him as the playwright,” Guidote-Alvarez, laughing, told TheDiarist.ph.
When she was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000, she was given only three years to live. It’s been more than two decades since then. She has also conquered COVID-19 twice.
Over and beyond her work in theater and various advocacies, Guidote-Alvarez is among the few surviving practitioners of AM Radio broadcasting.
The beauty salon incident wasn’t a first for the octogenarian radio host. She occasionally went back there to interview guests and record her shows whenever Wi-Fi connections in her home fluctuated.
Despite all setbacks, man-made or otherwise, the steadfast Cecile Guidote-Alvarez’s voice continues to be heard in this mass media platform in an era that knows mainly Spotify. As Joaquin wrote, “to remember and to sing, that is her vocation.”
(Except Saturday, Radyo Balintataw airs daily on DZRH 666 Khz AM radio after ‘Gabi ng Lagim’, and live streamed on radio.org.ph. Some episodes have been uploaded on YouTube.)

This is my first Hobby Drama post in 8 months!. I am back with some more modern hobby drama! Usually, I write historical stuff, but wanted to change it up a bit :) Oh and prepare for lots and lots of carpentry puns!

Wood you look at that: Reality TV in the UK

When you think of reality tv, the words “trashy”, “exploitative”, “rigged”, usually come to mind. However, in the UK, another word comes to mind…
“Cozy”.
What do I mean by this?
Shows like the Great British Bake Off (GBBO), Antiques Roadshow, Sort Your Life Out With Stacey Solomon, Great Pottery Throwdown, etc. Shows that have a calm, relaxed, atmosphere, with a genial host, where the contestants are (for the most part) kind and cordial towards one another. However, as wholesome as these shows appear on the surface, they have their fair share of controversies. Especially the GBBO, which has a whole section on Wikipedia about its numerous controversies. Everything from issues with product placement, to contestant favouritism, to unfair elimination, production woes, leak of a winner, and even accusations of “racism” aimed at its “Nationally themed weeks” (a post for another time).
All of these issues pale in comparison to the controversy I am going to cover today. Also, unlike the show I am going to discuss, the GBBO has survived every controversy that plagued it. After 13 seasons, it is still running strong.

Chop Chop Chop: What is the Chop?

Announced in June 2020, The Chop: Britain’s Top Woodworker, was a show unsurprisingly about carpentry. It was originally planned to air on the Sky History channel. Sky is a British broadcaster.
Here is the full description:

Hosted by comedian Lee Mack, TV Presenter Rick Edwards and Master Carpenter William Hardie, The Chop: Britain’s Top Woodworker sees 10 of the country’s finest carpenters gather in Epping Forest to whittle, carve and chop their way to the final, to see who will be crowned Britain’s Top Woodworker and the chance to stage their own personal exhibition at the prestigious William Morris Gallery in London.
Master Carpenter William Hardie oversees the construction of a grand and spectacular cabin in the woods, adding a new room every week, each on a different historical theme, including Nelson’s cabin on HMS Victory, a Victorian pub, a Gothic bedroom, a Georgian hunting lodge, and a 1960s’ Mad Men-inspired lounge.

It followed a standard reality show format. Every week, someone wood be eliminated until a clear winner emerged. Viewers had a lot to look forewood to. Hopefully the show would be able to carve out its own niche. Okay, enough would puns. I know you’re all on-board.
Like most British reality tv shows, The Chop had a comfortable atmosphere, with friendly presenters that would engage in ribbing with one another and the contestants. Here are some early trailers for the show: one and two. The show was filmed pre-covid lockdown.

Mack, 52, said: “It’s quite ironic that everything was filmed pre-lockdown and pre-Covid and yet most of the contestants spend most of the time with a mask on, because it’s woodwork.
“So people will watch it and go: ‘Well they’re obeying the rules but Rick and Will aren’t’, but actually it was filmed a long time ago – this time last year.”

So, the winner was set in wood, long before the first episode aired. If you want to know more about the contestants, I found their official show biographies.
The focus of this writeup will be a guy named Darren:

Name: Darren
Age: 40
From: Bristol
Occupation: CarpenteJoiner
Background: Darren has been working in woodwork since he left school, he loves the variety that each day brings. Darren has two children and loves building them wooden items. His favourites were special beds and wardrobes he made for his children which included LED lights.

Meet Darren: Aka “The Woodsman”, Aka “the-Bloke-With-All-The-Tattoos”.

Early on, out of all the contestants, Darren was hyped up as a potential audience favourite:

It remains to be seen which of the contestants, seven men and three women, will become the viewers’ favourite, although Darren, a furniture maker from Bristol, is an early frontrunner.
Nicknamed ‘The Woodman’, his entire face is covered in tattoos and he’s not averse to making controversial statements.
‘He’s quite a character,’ says Lee. ‘We met him again at a photo shoot recently and he’d had more tattoos etched on top of his other tattoos, which I thought showed an incredible level of commitment to the cause.’

His tattoos became a key part of his marketing for the show. This was reflected in his character trailers, as well as in interviews about the show.

Darren is probably one of the show’s most striking characters, due to the fact he is very heavily tattooed – even on his head and face.
He started having his head and face tattooed around 10 years ago.
“I had other tattoos already,” he said.
“But about 10 years ago I saw someone with facial tattoos and started to work with my tattooist on my look.
“I have my daughter on the back of my head and my son on my cheek.
“When some people first meet me they are a bit shocked, admittedly.
“But they soon warm to me after a few minutes.
“Some people ask for selfies with me. I’ve never had a negative reaction to my tattoos. They are just me.”
Darren says his appearance on the show, since the trailers have gone out, has prompted people to recognise him.
“I’ve already been stopped by people who have seen the adverts.
“No one went on the show to become famous.
“But hopefully it will come across on the show that I’m a bit of a character.

There was another difference between Darren and the other contestants: he had prior experience with reality tv.
In 2007, Darren (without any tattoos) starred in “Dumped”, a show in which 11 contestants lived in a garbage dump for three weeks, in a shelter they constructed from discarded rubbish.
Darren quit after three days. He said he did it because he didn’t believe in the aims of the show

Not all the participants were convinced. Darren Lumsden, 27, owns four cars, only recycles because his rubbish would not be taken away otherwise, and throws away his pants and socks at the end of every day. He left the dump on day three. "With me it's a bit like the smoking ban – I'll only be green if I'm forced to be." Lumsden also says rumours that some local authorities only recycle half of what goes into their green bins reduce the incentive.

He also told fellow contestants: “I don't believe that what we are going to do is going to achieve anything. If I don't believe in it I won't be doing any good for myself or other people.”.
Well, he certainly achieved something with his next reality tv appearance…

On the chopping block. The controversy

The first episode of The Chop aired on October 15, 2020. Shortly afterwards, some viewers noticed certain...things about Darren’s tattoos. Certain numbers and symbols…were linked to white supremacy.

“Darren appears to have these two on his face 88 = HH = Heil Hitler 23/16 = WP = White Supremacy There's also: 18 = AH = Adolf Hitler 1488: a reference to the so-called 14 words, coined by white supremacist terrorist David Lane.”

Darren also had a sig rune on his nose…the SS symbol used by the Nazis.
Sky History was criticised by historians and antisemitism groups.

After the trailer for the programme was aired, historian Dr Elizabeth Boyle from Maynooth University in Ireland said she had seen "at least five recognised Nazi/white power tattoos".
The Campaign Against Antisemitism group also criticised Sky History, saying it had made "a terrible mistake" by including a contestant "adorned with what appear to be neo-Nazi tattoos without providing serious evidence to show that the tattoos mean something other than how they appear".
"These tattoos will be plainly visible to viewers on the show, including younger viewers, which is unacceptable," it said.
"If Sky History is indeed 'intolerant of racism' as it claims, then it must urgently provide a credible clarification or remove the contestant from the programme."

They were quick to respond, and initially defended Darren:

"Darren’s tattoos denote significant events in his life and have no political or ideological meaning whatsoever.
"Amongst the various numerical tattoos on his body, 1988 is the year of his father’s death.
“The production team carried out extensive background checks on all the woodworkers taking part in the show, that confirmed Darren has no affiliations or links to racist groups, views or comments.
“Sky History is intolerant of racism and all forms of hatred and any use of symbols or numbers is entirely incidental and not meant to cause harm or offence.”
“While we further investigate the nature, and meaning, of Darren’s tattoos, we have removed the video featuring him from our social media pages, and will not be broadcasting any episodes of The Chop: Britain’s Top Woodworker until we have concluded that investigation,” the statement said.

The media contacted Darren’s old boss, who had some interesting things to say about his former employee:

Logically also contacted Jon Hyams, a former employer of Darren’s who runs a company in Bristol building staircases. Jon said that Darren, who worked for him in 2008, was a “good kiddy,” with no ties to the far right that he could remember, though he thought he had “gone off the rails a bit” since then. He also said that Darren was always very keen to become famous and had participated in an earlier reality TV show on Channel 4. Darren was partial to a tall tale or a bit of exaggeration, according to Jon, who said that the comment about his dad’s death should be “taken with a large pinch of salt”.

Jon was right. Darren was a liar.

The aftermath. If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does anyone actually care?

It took the Daily Mail (a notorious rag) less than a day to track down Darren’s father and interview him:

The father of Sky History's The Chop contestant Darren Lumsden today declared 'I'm alive' after the channel claimed he was dead to defend his son’s Nazi-style tattoos.
But today his 66-year-old parent revealed he was very much alive - and living in a smart three-storey house in Bristol, not far from his carpenter son.
Trevor told MailOnline: 'I'm here aren't I?' I'm alive and kicking so I'm not dead yet.'
Darren's father has short term memory loss after a serious motorbike crash more than 30 years ago.
He lives in a shared house and has support workers popping in to help every day.
The father added: 'I haven't seen Darren for some years, I didn't know he had tattoos over his face or that he was going to be on TV.
'But if they are saying I'm dead I'd like them to know I'm not.'
Trevor, originally from Stockton-on-Tees had two sons, Darren with his former wife Gail and Wayne from another relationship.
His support worker, who didn't want to be named, said: 'I've never seen either of them and I've been looking after him for 10 years.
'Trevor has short term memory loss after a brain injury in a motorbike accident but he remembers his two sons.
'He's a lovely man and very much alive.'
Sky History today thanked MailOnline for highlighting The Chop contestant Darren Lumsden's apparent lie about the origin of his controversial tattoos.

Woah. It seems Darren is kind of an asshole.
Following this 💣, Sky History quickly cancelled the show and shelved the rest of the episodes. The Chop had been…well, chopped.
Thankfully, for carpentry fans everywhere, it didn’t take long for another woodworking show to fill the void left by The Chop’s abrupt cancellation. Handmade: Britain's Best Woodworker started airing in 2021. Its third season aired in 2023.
And that’s all I have to say about The Chop.
(I might write about The Great British Bake Off next!)
If you want to read more stuff I have written, here is a link to all of my writeups!

Page 65.
Panel:
Nine years later.
(Visual: Naivi walking towards his familiar snowy hometown.)
Naivi, 22 years old: Yes. I’m ready to go!
-Thoughts: Hope, I’ll find some company before the train sets off tho…
-Hmm?
Panel:
Naivi: Fire’s loose??! Is that woman stuck on the roof!?
…Wait
-What?
That “thing” is moving fast towards me!?
Panel:
Madame on the roof: Stop moving Mama! Wind is only making the flames stronger! Calm down!
Mama moving saloon: I’m burning alive here kid!!!
Panel:
Madame: YOU! MY MOTHER IS ON FIRE! CAN YOU HELP US PLEASE!?
NAIVI: Huuh?? That thing is your mother??
Panel:
MADAME: AGGHH! ARE YOU SLOW OR SUM?! DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND TURN THE OTHER WAY AROUND!
NAVI: What’s happening in the town?
Page 66.
Panel:
Madame: !
(Saloon’s eyes lit up from the windows, screams and spits out a stream of fire. The fire comes out of the third floor balcony door, that looks like a mouth)
MAMA MOVING SALOON: EL DIABLO IS HEREEE!!!
Chapter 3: When it's Time to Go - Get on the Right Train
Page 67.
Panel:
EARLIER IN THE TOWN, Location: TRAIN STATION.
Paperboy:
-BREAKING NEWS! THE LONG-AWAITED ARMOUR TRAIN 2.0 HAS FINALLY BEEN REVEALED TO THE PUBLIC!
Panel:
(VISUAL: A MASSIVE TRAIN SURROUNDED BY RANGERS AND THE PUBLIC. The air is full of confetti, celebration and shouts of hurray rumble throughout the station.)

• TODAY MARKS A HISTORICAL DAY! THE BRAND NEW TRAIN WILL TRAVEL FOR THE FIRST TIME ITS TRACKS TO THE WILD WORLD!

• FIRST STOP BEING THE NEW CORK COLONY!!
  
• TOO LATE TO JOIN THIS MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR, BECAUSE ALL OF THE TICKETS HAVE BEEN SOLD OUT!
  
• NOT THAT ANY OF YOU REGULAR POOR CITIZENS WOULD HAVE AFFORDED TO GET THEM, EVEN IF THERE WAS A SEAT STILL LEFT!
  
• Huh? Stay with the script? Sorry. Sorry.
  

Page 68.
Panel:
Paperboy:
-FRONTIER'S CREME DA LA CREME HAVE THEIR SEATS RESERVED FOR A THRILLING TRIP OF A LIFETIME. THE LIST OF CELEBRITIES BARKIN ON THE JOURNEY IS ALMOST AS LONG AS THE MASSIVE TRAIN ITSELF. OH, HERE COMES THE TWO OF THE FRONTIERS MOST INFLUENTIAL MEN.
-THE 5* STAR STATE'S “DIVINE CONSULTANTS” ARE HERE TO FOLLOW UP ON TRAIN’S SUCCESS STORY!
( visual: train’s opening ceremony is being live televised on strange looking S.N.A.K.E-camera )
(VISUAL: We get to see THE big names. A pair of old men dressed in black suits - DIVINE consultants ( Whispers) from the 5-star state, with their bodyguards boarding the train. One of the bodyguards is tall and wears a Zorro-like costume/mask with his mouth sewn shut. The other one is a beautiful young lady with a fashionable outfit and her pupils are shaped like stars)
Panel:
5* State Whispers:
Whisper 1: -Mayor shouldn't have made this into a spectacle.
Whisper 2: -Yes, it only invites unpleasant surprises…
Panel:
PAPERBOY: - CONSULTANTS ARE UNDER THE PROTECTION OF THE FAMOUS Members from the 5* State Ranger Squad!
Madame Star Eyes: No need to worry, whispers. We got you covered. Am I right, Porro?
Pedro Porro: ...
Madame Star Eyes: Tihihii! I loVE THIS MORE SILENT AND STOIC SIDE OF YOU Hihihihi…
Page 69.
(VISUAL: ( TWO-11 ft, 9 ft and 7 ft TALL FIGURES COVERED IN LONG EXPENSIVE LOOKING CLOTH. COVERED IN GEMS HIDING THEIR FACES IN TOTEM POLE MASKS AND BODY COMPLETELY))
PAPERBOY: ( Who might these be… Lets see if I can sneak in a little interview with them)TRULY A BEAUTIFUL COSTUME! MAY I ASK YOU SIR HOW MUCH DID IT COST?
SFX: SMACK!
THE SMALLEST FIGURE WITH FEMININE VOICE ( the wendigo princess ): I AM A FEMALE YOU FEEBLE DIRTY SWINE!!
PAPERBOY: …IT SEEMS LIKE SOME OF THE CELEBRITIES WANT TO STAY ANONYMOUS DURING THEIR TRAVEL. Perhaps for a distinctive physical reason…
THE SMALLEST FIGURE WITH FEMININE VOICE ( the wendigo princess ): I HATE HOW THEY STARE AT US… CARVE THEIR EYES OUT FOR ME!!!
TALL FIGURE WITH A LONG STAFF ( fallen prince of the wendigos ): IM SORRY MY LOVE… IN THE TRAIN WE SHALL FIND YOU SOME SOLACE. ROYAL GUARDS MAKE SURE NONE OF THESE MAMMALS GET TOO CLOSE OR FRIENDLY WITH THE FUTURE QUEEN.
Random kid in the crowd: They look funny, like walking talking totem poles!
Random kid’s mother: What have I told you about commenting on other peoples looks!
Page 70.
PAPERBOY: AND HERE COMES THE MAIN MAN OF THE EVENT! AN ICON WHO MADE THIS ALL POSSIBLE. THE MAN IN CHARGE OF OUR PROUD REZILIENT 0* STAR STATE. THE MAYOR HIMSELF! SIR, RED DEVID INVINICIUS!!!
(Visual: Lastly, The mayor with his HUGE right-hand man and an endless number of rangers marching behind them. )
SFX: ROOAR CLAP CLAP CLAP
Mayor: Oh, how do they love me here!?
(Visual: waving to the crowd. After he says this, a bird poops on his shoulder.)
Charlie Chamberlane: Boss, you got bird shit on your shoulder… Umm… Want me to go teach a lesson…

• to that bird…?

Mayor: Heh heh…Heeh. No need for that. In the 5-star state, they say it's a sign of good luck to come.
(Mayor whispers to Charlie): - Shoot that shitty bird down.
Charlie: Okay boss. SFX:BLAM!! Mayor: -When the cameras are looking away. Bird: Kraah!
…
Charlie: Should have said that earlier…
Mayor: Hmph… Well, no one actually cares about birds, am I right?
Crowd: BOO!
(Visual: animals right activists protesting)
Mayor: God damn animal rights activists, always there to stain my reputation!! I should have taken care of you lot long time ago!!! Charlie: I gotcha boss…
Page 71.
PAPERBOY: The whole world is intrigued by how this event unfolds!
Random person in the crowd: That ungrateful bastard... I was there in the trenches, building the train tracks for the new cork colony, risking my life while at it... Where is my WELL deserved seat on that train!? That woman in the saloon gave me a simple but a perfect idea… I will end this bastard's unjust rule right now...
Mayor: What are the chances of bird defecating on me during my spotlight?!
Charlie Chamber: I dunno? Ask one of the whispers they good with predictions.
Mayor: ON LIVE TELEVISION AS WELL! I hate when improbabilities come to life…
Random person:
Visual: Taking aim with his revolver.
SFX: Klik
Reck Lesley: Oh man, here we go… Exhales
Page 72.
Random person: -End to the power-mongering mayor!!! (Shoots at mayor)
SFX: BANG! —— SWISH!
(Visual: Reck Lesley swings his sword from a distance. The bullet vanishes from existence.)
Random person: What??
Mayor: - Quality work! Captain Lesley! -
Reck Lesley: Sir.
Charlie Chamberlane: Cut the s.n.a.k.e-vision-casters, go film something else!
Page 73.
Random person: Where did the bullet… - It just vanished from the air?!
Mayor: It was you… Wasn’t it?
-They say fear kills you faster than a speeding bullet.
(Visual: Mayor points at the person who shot at him)
Mayor: So don’t get too scared now. Because my friend over here likes to savor a moment…
(Visual: Random man gets cold shivers throughout his body. ) -What is this creepy sensation? It feels as if an enormous kodiak bear full of blood lust was standing right behind me?!!!
Mayor: Hmm… That bird shit still troubles my mind. Perhaps I remembered it wrong. Maybe it was a sign of someone else's bad luck.
( Visual: Mayors fingers shaped in a choking position)
Random person: !!! Khh…!Khh…!! ( I CAN’T BREATHE!)
MAYOR: EITHER WAY…
( Visual: evil glance of the mayor )
Page 74.
Panel:
Others bad luck is mine to take advantage of! That’s how one climbs up to higher pedestals in this disportioncate world. The differences in power between the top players have become so marginally small, that a little bit of bad luck is all it takes to lose it all!
AHHHH!!
( Person shoots into air, high above everybody into the clouds, we can barely see him anymore)
-Begone filth. RED RAIN!
( visual: mayor clinches his hand into a fist )
( visual: rain of blood starts falling down slowly from the red cloud)
Page 75.
Panel:
SFX:“GASP”
(Visual: CROWD SHOCKED AND TERRIFIED OF WHAT JUST HAPPENED)
Mayor: Captain Lesley! Find out where EL Diablo is.

• He was assigned to keep firearms away from the train's opening ceremony.

Charlie Chamberlane: I had it covered… Mr. Reckless.
Reck Lesley: Sure thing, bossman… Didn’t want to make you sweat for nothing.
Charlie Chamberlane: Hmph! What is this false act of bravado I’m sensing here? I bet you’re terrified to go face that thing! Have you thought about an excuse already for evading El Diablo…
Reck Lesley: …
Charlie Chamberlane: KUHUHUHUUH! I CAN SEE YOU SHIVERING IN YOUR BOOTS JUST HEARING HIS NAME ALONE! I GOT ONE WORD FOR YOU!

• Your pathetic!

Page 76.
Reck Lesley: I care not what your twisted mouth spews out of it… I have been patiently waiting for a chance like this to come… Unlike you, I left the place where the apocalypse nearly began with my dignity! You left with a rat's tail between your legs!
Charlie Chamberlane: Who do you think you’re talking to!? Need a reminder of your place from your superior!?
Mayor: Now now gentlemen. Easy now… Save your quarrels for later.
Visual: intensive stare-down between Charlie and Reck
Mayor: Complete your task with haste captain. The train is bound to set off!
PAPERBOY: Uhh… We’re still live? Are we allowed to air this to the public? I guess conflict creates attention and views are the most important thing these days… Huh? The mics on too? Krhm!Krhm!
THANKS TO DR. EXTRAPENZAS GROUND BREAKING GENIUS THE TRAIN HAS BEEN REVOLUTIONISED WITH NEW TECHNOLOGY! WITH ITS IMPENETRABLE STEEL ARMOR AND FRONTIERS LATEST FIREPOWER. THE TRAVELERS CAN REST ASSURED KNOWING ANY OBSTACLE IN THE TRAINS PATH…
-WILL BE DISPOSED!!!
Visual: Mayor with a wide grin on his face.

I'm currently using the Attila theme, and want to remove the "powered by Ghost" footer. I've tried to find anything that could help via Google, but can't seem to find a solid solution. Here's the folder structure for the theme:

│ .gitignore │ author.hbs │ default.hbs │ Gruntfile.js │ index.hbs │ LICENSE │ package-lock.json │ package.json │ page.hbs │ post.hbs │ README.md │ tag.hbs │ ├───.github │ FUNDING.yml │ ├───assets │ ├───css │ │ style.css │ │ │ ├───font │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.eot │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.svg │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.ttf │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.woff │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.woff2 │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.eot │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.svg │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.ttf │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.woff │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.woff2 │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.eot │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.svg │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.ttf │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.woff │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.woff2 │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.eot │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.svg │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.ttf │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.woff │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.woff2 │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.eot │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.svg │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.ttf │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.woff │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.woff2 │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.eot │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.svg │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.ttf │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.woff │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.woff2 │ │ │ └───js │ script.js │ ├───locales │ ar.json │ ca.json │ cs.json │ de.json │ dk.json │ el.json │ en.json │ eo.json │ es.json │ fa.json │ fi.json │ fr.json │ ga.json │ ge.json │ hu.json │ id.json │ it.json │ ja.json │ lt.json │ nl.json │ no.json │ pl.json │ pt.json │ ro.json │ ru.json │ sv.json │ th.json │ tr.json │ uk.json │ vi.json │ zh.json │ zh_tw.json │ ├───partials │ │ loop.hbs │ │ navigation-meta.hbs │ │ navigation.hbs │ │ pagination.hbs │ │ subscribe_form.hbs │ │ │ └───icons │ icon-arrow-left.hbs │ icon-arrow-right.hbs │ icon-facebook.hbs │ icon-globe.hbs │ icon-linkedin.hbs │ icon-mail.hbs │ icon-menu.hbs │ icon-rss.hbs │ icon-search.hbs │ icon-share.hbs │ icon-star.hbs │ icon-twitter.hbs │ └───src │ screenshot-desktop.jpg │ screenshot-mobile.jpg │ screenshot.png │ ├───js │ │ script.js │ │ │ └───libs │ highlight.pack.js │ jquery.fitvids.js │ jquery.min.js │ └───sass style.scss _colors.scss _fonts.scss _highlight.scss _normalize.scss 

I'd preferably want to remove both of the highlighted footers shown here: https://imgur.com/Kljvfoa.

│ .gitignore │ author.hbs │ default.hbs │ Gruntfile.js │ index.hbs │ LICENSE │ package-lock.json │ package.json │ page.hbs │ post.hbs │ README.md │ tag.hbs │ ├───.github │ FUNDING.yml │ ├───assets │ ├───css │ │ style.css │ │ │ ├───font │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.eot │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.svg │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.ttf │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.woff │ │ cardo-v9-latin-700.woff2 │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.eot │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.svg │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.ttf │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.woff │ │ cardo-v9-latin-italic.woff2 │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.eot │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.svg │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.ttf │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.woff │ │ cardo-v9-latin-regular.woff2 │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.eot │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.svg │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.ttf │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.woff │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-500.woff2 │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.eot │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.svg │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.ttf │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.woff │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-700.woff2 │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.eot │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.svg │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.ttf │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.woff │ │ fira-sans-v8-latin-regular.woff2 │ │ │ └───js │ script.js │ ├───locales │ ar.json │ ca.json │ cs.json │ de.json │ dk.json │ el.json │ en.json │ eo.json │ es.json │ fa.json │ fi.json │ fr.json │ ga.json │ ge.json │ hu.json │ id.json │ it.json │ ja.json │ lt.json │ nl.json │ no.json │ pl.json │ pt.json │ ro.json │ ru.json │ sv.json │ th.json │ tr.json │ uk.json │ vi.json │ zh.json │ zh_tw.json │ ├───partials │ │ loop.hbs │ │ navigation-meta.hbs │ │ navigation.hbs │ │ pagination.hbs │ │ subscribe_form.hbs │ │ │ └───icons │ icon-arrow-left.hbs │ icon-arrow-right.hbs │ icon-facebook.hbs │ icon-globe.hbs │ icon-linkedin.hbs │ icon-mail.hbs │ icon-menu.hbs │ icon-rss.hbs │ icon-search.hbs │ icon-share.hbs │ icon-star.hbs │ icon-twitter.hbs │ └───src │ screenshot-desktop.jpg │ screenshot-mobile.jpg │ screenshot.png │ ├───js │ │ script.js │ │ │ └───libs │ highlight.pack.js │ jquery.fitvids.js │ jquery.min.js │ └───sass style.scss _colors.scss _fonts.scss _highlight.scss _normalize.scss