tushanshu_logs | raise your weapon; closed

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post: gene khan

raise your weapon; closed

Characters: Gene Khan, Captain Amelia
Date: Early May, prior to the siege
Location: A park in the Water District
Situation: Heigh ho, heigh ho, a-fencing we will go attempt and then get immediately sidetracked talking about SPACE!
Warnings/Rating: ~~gymkata~~ ~~SWORD KATA~~ DORKS TALKING ABOUT AEROSPACE TECHNOLOGY

Gene had decided that he needed to practice more with the sword Eshai had given him for Christmas. He was no stranger to armed combat; one of the advantages of growing up in such an unorthodox manner was that he had been trained in wushu for twelve years, and some of that training included swordplay.

The sword he'd been given was an elegant blade similar to a jian, not some butcher's sabre but a civilized weapon, and so he had to adjust his style to match. While he preferred the dao for its power, he knew how to use this sort of weapon as well, and he grudgingly had to concede that it was better for him. The raw power of a more brutish weapon appealed to him, but what need did he have of mere weaponry for power when nine of the greatest weapons in the world frequently rode on his hands?

Besides, he thought, he could murder well enough with the armor, as the incident with Bakura had proven. It had lacked finesse. He could use a bit more of that.

Which is how he finds himself practicing the drills he'd learned while he was younger, warming up. All of the kedan are opting to keep well clear of the crazy Foreigner with the bladed weapon, which he thinks is funny; it's not like he's flailing around uncontrollably, here.

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After the disastrous explosions, Amelia had been returning to the hospital nearly daily to receive treatment. Her adamant refusal to be completely patched up had been a primary cause, as there were others also in need, and her injuries were not too pressing. Well, not after her initial arrival immediately following the explosions.

But the advent of Malicant's takeover was a serious development, and the strongest reminder yet that they, the Foreigners, were indeed at war. Pity the technology of Keeliai wasn't developed enough to provide suitable firearms, but Academy teachings hadn't left her stranded for close combat. When she was able to move about properly for extended amounts of time, the captain had gone forthwith to obtain some means of defense.

The saber she had finally managed to obtain, while not quite the sort of blade she was used to, would serve its purpose well enough. While she hadn't had much need for the art, Amelia had been taught saber play, and with her injuries almost completely healed now (aside from a slight persistent ache in her elbow), she has decided it is time to exercise her knowledge of swordplay.

She's not the only one to have the idea, Amelia sees, as she enters the park. Gene Khan is here too, performing drills. It's not entirely surprising, really, as she had seen him wielding a sword before. For a moment, she stands back, eyes following his drills. They aren't familiar to her, and she doubts her own knowledge would fit the style.

The moment of watching passed, and Amelia moves an arm's reach away from what seems to be the greatest distance Gene can manage with his weapon. "Seeing as you've already managed to clear out any kedan from quite a large radius, you won't mind a companion to practice alongside, would you now, Mr. Khan?"

Gene had been peripherally aware of Amelia's approach, but his mind had already registered her as not a threat, so he'd felt free to finish up the form he had been doing. It was more conservative than he was used to, since he was now drilling with live steel, and as a result he'd toned down some of the flashier spins and moves that depended on having a flexible, non-combat-ready blade.

"Captain," he says with a grin as he finishes up the form, closing with a salute-like move and then putting his hands behind his back, bringing the sword around in his hand to nearly rest the flat of his blade against his shoulder. Then he drops out of the pose, at-ease. "Wouldn't mind it a bit. Gets a little boring, practicing by yourself. Sure you're up to it?" She had been injured in the blasts, he knew that much. He'd hurt himself too, but he'd already largely recovered from the attacks.

"Nothing that wasn't beyond the healers' abilities," she comments offhandedly, as though she had merely taken a few lumps rather than the life-threatening injuries she had sustained. "Besides, my swordplay is quite rusty, and what better way to stretch both mind and body than through practices?"

Amelia takes up her own stance, pleased to see that, though out of practice, her body still remembers the basics. "Well then, shall we?" Without waiting for a response from Gene, she begins her own set of motions. A basic drill to ease herself back into the movements she had been taught, as well as to work out the lingering aches from her injuries.

"Glad to hear it," he says, and means it. He'd already lost Bianca during the attacks. He didn't want to lose Amelia, too, even given that death here was only temporary.

He doesn't jump right in, just watches her do her own drill for a little while. Her weapon is more Western, if he was correct, a heavier saber than the sword in his hand. The drill itself is reminiscent in some basic ways of his own training with the dao, befitting the heavier blade.

She finishes a flourish and pauses in her routine, turning back to Gene. "And what of yourself? I take it the blasts didn't do you too much harm." Fortunate for him, really. She hadn't noticed if he was among the injured at the makeshift hospital following the chaos, but then again she had also not been fully alert at the time.

"No, I got lucky," he says, testing the balance of his own blade. "Just a cracked rib and some bruising. A few cuts. Nothing major." He'd seen her, briefly, at the hospital, but he wasn't sure she'd seen him. He was far away and wearing his armor, so perhaps not.

"It's incredibly fortunate there were so few deaths, really. Less fortunate that our dark friend seized control in the chaos." But that is why they are here, isn't it? To stop Malicant. "That armor of yours could prove very useful in the coming days. Certainly more useful than simple swords."

Again a moment of wishfulness, that the technology of Keeliai was more advanced, then Amelia brushes the thoughts away. No use dwelling on what cannot be changed. "I don't think I've ever seen a blade in the style that you have, nor do I recognize your form. Another difference between our home universes, perhaps?"

"A classic ploy," Gene says, frowning. "We ought to have seen it coming." At the mention of his armor, he does his best not to look uneasy. "I imagine it will. But I prefer not to rely on just one weapon." Anymore, he amends, silently. Back in his world, nobody could dream of fighting the rings at full power if he really applied himself. But here, he's hedging his bets.

When talk turns to his sword, though, he looks interested. "It's one of the interesting things about this place; a lot of the style is similar to the environment in which I was raised." Sometimes, enough to make him homesick. "This sword was a gift from Eshai. It's very similar to the type of sword called a jian that I learned how to use."

"Indeed," Amelia agrees, "especially given the nature of the initial attack. A planned attack to bring out as many volunteers to assist the numerous wounded, given how few actually were slain. A lure for which Evandau fell." She shakes her head. It was far easier to direct a ship from the helm rather than the deck. "He ought to have known better."

At his admission that Keeliai resembles his own home, she perks up in interest. "Really now? It seems there are quite a number of similarities between worlds. I take it the giant turtle is not one of those similarities, though." That was something she can't imagine repeating itself; it's simply too absurd, and she wouldn't have believed it had she not been brought here.

"Might I have a look at it?" She gestures at the sword Gene is holding.

"He's a flatfoot." There's a little disdain in Gene's voice; he thinks he has the measure of the Alderwood Emperor, and that measure is that he's a cop who got promoted higher than his level of competence. "The only way he can see a problem is by getting into its guts. He plays checkers, not chess." There were uses for people like that. Emperor was not one of them.

"It's somewhat similar. The aesthetic, largely, not the population. And only to a degree." Okay, so he'd grown up on a frickin' Soul Calibur stage. That didn't mean it was common. "But no. The turtles back home don't get that large."

When she gestures to his sword, he hands it over. "Sure."

She balances the blade in her hand, testing its feel. It's similar and yet different to what she's used to, and it doesn't feel quite right in her hand. It's too wide for her liking, and on the heavier side. The straight edge itself would prove the most challenging, however. Amelia has learned the slight curvature of the single-edged saber.

The captain hands the jian back, then settles back into stance. She still hasn't fully gotten back into the swing of the blade, so to speak, and begins another round of drills.

Gene accepts his sword back. "Meet with your approval?" He watches as she launches into another set of drills. The saber she's using actually looks lighter, now that he has a closer look at it. Maybe even slightly whippier than the jian in his hands. He twirls his own blade slowly, experimentally, working his wrist. Best not to strain anything.

"Not well-matched to my own tastes, but it should suit you fine. Familiarity with the weapon you use is important." Amelia lowers her sword and gives her healing elbow a short stretch. Now that she is starting to really recall her training with a blade, she wants to make sure her body is up for what she plans on suggesting next. A slight twinge from the newly-healed joint answers her, but it's not enough to stop anything.

"How much control would you say you have over that sword?"

Gene's a little surprised at the question. "A fair degree. More than fair, actually. The muscle memory's coming back." He'd always used the dao more than the jian, but he's confident enough in his abilities with the sword.

Amelia smiles slightly. "Where I am from a young man of your age would not be trained in any complex swordsmanship for another few years, and even that is reserved primarily for officer candidates in the navy. When did you start your training?"

"Five," Gene says. "I started when I was five." He'd started on the basics of wushu before his mother had been killed; the next eleven years of his training were spent with him imagining how he'd use each and every one of those moves on Zhang. "I can imagine it wouldn't be a common skill. It's not in my world." Then he pauses. "Where are you from, anyway?"

"That's quite young." Amelia can't help but be impressed, and it shows just slightly in her voice. "Nor is it in mine. Most of our combat tends to rely heavily on firearms these days."

She thought she had mentioned her home universe upon arriving here months ago, but Gene had not asked extensively about it during their first conversation. "I hail from the Terran Empire, myself."

"Well, you know what they say about starting them young," Gene says with a little grim humor.

Something seems a little off about those two statements juxtaposed like that. Amelia talking about firearms like they're a relatively recent development...and a Terran Empire. And she doesn't look remotely like she belongs on Earth. "Terran as in...Earth?" he asks, sounding surprised. "So what, does the empire cover the whole planet?"

The surprise in Gene's voice gives her a little amusement; he's not the first to ask about the Earth connection. "No, not at all. I do not believe Earth is among the planets included within the Terran Empire's expanse, if it exists in my universe."

Planets. Planets? Planets. Firearms are recent. But space. What.

"A spacefaring civilization with swordfighting and a navy," he says, half to himself. Yup. Dune was right, Gene. "So you come from another planet? What's it like?"

"The swordfighting is, for the most part, ceremonial now. Useful in a pinch, but not so widespread. And not having a navy for an empire as large as the Terran Empire is downright foolishness." The look she gives Gene now shows some disappointment; he's shown himself to sensible about matters of ruling earlier, so this is unprecedented.

"That would depend entirely on which planet you are coming from. However, the empire tends to be fairly homogenous. It's not really all that different from Keeliai, actually. A different overall aesthetic, yes, but otherwise close enough. The kedan and their wide range of shapes add to the similarities."

"Ah. It's much the same where I come from." Swords were fancy and cool, but not so much useful. The look of disappointment stings a little, and he finds himself struggling to redeem himself on that front. "But a navy, with boats, and ships, on water? I don't know. Sounds redundant. I mean, I guess it could be useful."

They're talking about the same thing, right? "So, the aesthetic of Keeliai's like what I know, and the population's like what you know. Huh." It is interesting. Maybe their universes aren't all so different...? Nah. Keeliai's still pretty weird.

"Ships and boats, yes, but not on water. Our navy sails the Aetherium, protecting and patrolling the empire's territory. And it would only be redundant if the empire possessed two navies," she replies, a bit sternly. "As it stands, we only need the one, and it serves its purpose admirably."

There is definitely some sort of disconnect occurring here. "Visually, yes. But in the case of the kedan it's merely one people that appear in great variety. The Terran Empire has a citizenry of many species under its flag."

What the fuck is the Aetherium. "So...it's a navy. In..." He puts a hand to his chin in thought. "The Aetherium. What exactly is that? Space?"

Ooh, he's curious. "What kinds of species?"

"Yes." Amelia states it flatly. Space as a term is freely interchanged with the Aetherium.

His curiosity is evident to her. "Many kinds. Zirrelians, Arcturians, Benbonians, the Macriki... humans too. The queen herself is human. There are more than fifty different races that live as Terran citizens."

Humans. Terran. But no Earth to speak of.

Something's really bugging him about that.

"So it's called the navy. Why isn't it called something like..." What did those guys call it? "...Starfleet?"

"Officially it's known as the Terran Royal Navy, so there is no need for it to be called Starfleet."

Surprisingly, the name rings a bell to her. Amelia muses on it a moment before recalling where she had heard it before. Ah, yes. Back when she first arrived, one Jim Kirk had introduced himself as being an officer from such an organization. "I do not come from the same world as that Captain Kirk fellow, if you are wondering."

"I didn't think you did," Gene says dryly. He couldn't remember any of the Starfleet people talking about swordsmanship. "So. The Terran Royal Navy. Do you usually go hunting for planets made of treasure, or was that just a one-time thing?" It's half a joke. But he remembers hearing about that place from Amelia, way back when.

So he does remember their first conversation. "It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," she corrects. "I was on leave from official duty at the time, but normally it is our duty to tend to the security of the empire."

"Oh, okay. Interplanetary empire, huh? Must be a pain to travel around. Unless you have some sort of faster-than-light drive?" Yes, Gene did occasionally listen when Tony waxed poetic about sci-fi and other shit Gene didn't care about. And he knows that space is definitely too fucking big to cruise through at the universal speed limit. ~~Even if he can manipulate that speed limit himself, if he really tries. c be damned!~~

"Voyages can take days or even months, depending on the destination, but travel is fairly easy." She shakes her head at his last question. "No, nothing of the sort. It'd be rather improbable for our ships to move faster than their power source. Solar sails are efficient, but they do not bring enough power to even dream of approaching such speeds."

"Solar sails? Can't say I've ever heard of those." He has a basic idea of how they'd work, though. Gene's not convinced of their efficiency if they can't even break c. "Then again, we're barely past our own moon ourselves where I come from. All our spacecraft are powered by rocket engines."

"Ah, baby steps are important. And I wasn't being clear enough; the solar sails gather the light of the stars, which is transferred to the ship's engines, propelling the whole affair. Rocket engines, as it were." Amelia is actually enjoying this conversation quite a bit more than she's letting on. It's been a while since she's been able to speak at length of he homeworld.

Edited 2014-06-08 01:36 (UTC)

It's funny to think of the moon landing and the Mars rovers as 'baby steps', though he supposes they must be, to a proper spacefaring civilization. "Oh." There's a pause. For now, all talk of swords has been forgotten - Gene's really curious about this. "I guess the sails would have to be pretty big, to collect enough solar energy? Unless you have more efficient solar panels than we've managed to make."

"That would depend on your frame of reference. A larger vessel will have more sails to make up for its increased energy requirements, while smaller boats need fewer. For example, the great Arcturian merchantships can have upwards of nine sails on each of its four masts, whereas my own ship merely has three sails at most on the main mast." Amelia pauses a moment, thinking of a better way to explain. She settles on a diagram of sorts, using her sword to sketch out a rough outline of the Legacy in the dirt. By no means is she an artist, but it resembles the profile of her ship closely enough.

Sails. Masts. Sails and masts. And a hull. And it's a boat. Amelia hadn't been kidding when she'd said it was a navy, because that is a god damn boat.

"...it looks just like an old sailing ship," Gene manages after a moment. "Doesn't that cause problems getting out of the atmosphere? Do the masts retract?"

None of this makes any sense whatsoever.

What Gene has to say about her drawing of the ship catches her completely off-guard. "I'm sorry?" she replies, quite off-put by the description of 'old sailing ship'. "The Legacy is a modern frigate of the navy. I assure you, she is not at all archaic. What manner of ships has your world used for your limited space ventures?"

Clearly a bit ruffled about the phrase - old sailing ship! - Amelia proceeds to answer Gene's other questions. "No, the masts do not retract at all, and it is difficult for ships to exit planetary atmospheres. Normally they remain outside it, docking at the nearest spaceport instead."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend," he says, frowning. "It just...looks like the ships that were common on my world a couple hundred years ago."

He sketches out a reasonable approximation of the space shuttle in the dirt near Amelia's rendering of the ~~fucking boat~~ ship. "This is a space shuttle. It's designed similarly to an airplane, so it can leave the planet on booster rockets and come back to land multiple times. Mostly the old spacecrafts were one-offs." He tries to remember what the Apollo 11 space capsule looked like, and sketches it as well. "This was the part of the rocket from the moon landing that came back to Earth with the astronauts inside. It landed in the ocean, I think."

Amelia matches his frown. "If that is the case, then the offense is unintended. It is very interesting, though. Yet they weren't spacefaring vessels, I take it?" Likely sea-going, then.

She glances over his sketches, taking in the unfamiliar designs. "I'm afraid I don't know what an airplane is, but I assume it is something that is capable of flight of some sort. A one-off spacecraft seems quite wasteful, though."

Her focus is on the shuttle drawing. "Where does it get the energy needed for its thrusters?"

Gene shakes his head. "No, we only achieved spaceflight within the past sixty or so years. Like you said, baby steps."

So you have spacecraft and an interstellar empire, but no airplanes? Amelia. What fool designed your world backwards? He does his best to hide his bafflement and says, "Yes, it's a..." He sketches an airplane out next to the space shuttle, a simple top-down view. "It's what most people use to travel great distances now." He's plenty familiar with airplanes, having blown one up in flight and all. Amelia doesn't need to know that. "Ships - sailing ships, on the water - are now mostly used for military purposes, pleasure cruises, or commercial freight. Flying is a lot faster than sailing."

He looks at the shuttle. "There are two large rocket boosters that get it up off the ground in the first place, and then come off the shuttle after liftoff - those are reused, I think. The fuel for the orbiter goes into the engines. I'm not really sure how it works. Ask Stark." Then his throat inexplicably tightens when he remembers Stark's not here, none of them are here. Not like that bothers him.

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raise your weapon; closed

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turns out we messed up and the saber is lighter. whoops

shh just believe

Re: shh just believe

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there are more things in heaven and earth, gene, than are dreamt of in your philosophy

in which neither of them have worlds that remotely match

psyduck.jpg

psyduck.jpg

psyduck intensifies

it's only going to get worse from here on out

are we sure they're speaking the same language

there is some serious disconnect here

the aetherium. the final frontier. these are the voyages of the RLS Legacy.

except not really we've mapped a lot of it

THESE ARE THE VOYAGES.......

it's 2 am i do not need to be reminded of that series because i will go watch it again

jesus christ I didn't mean THOSE

oh. well then.

indeed.

Re: indeed.

annddd we're hitting on it now.

prepare yourself gene.

[psyduck intensifies]

Re: [psyduck intensifies]

lmao amelia, slow your roll

what is airplane though

plane and plane, what is plane?