This is a Chain story passed between @zakludick and @therneau. Each writer authors a post based on the events of previous episodes and carries on the story.
There is very little collusion between the writers as it is challenging to discover and develop a story by attuning the writing to the partner's plot, style, and presentation.
Last Time on Space Lore ZT
The ever evolving J5 disables the crew aboard the Pathfinder XVIII with technology not even their resident cybrog genius could fathom. Meanwhile Thorne and Allen are comatose abour the Lazarus Falchion which is set to travel to GRS 902, the Tech-planet.
Space Lore Log SLZT#9
Meanwhile, aboard the Lazarus, something magnificent was happening. At least, it would be considered magnificent for those tech-revering persons such as the human cyborg J5 detected on the other vessel.
J5 supposed that was happening now would be disturbing to most life forms, which is why he was... happy... that it happened while nobody could observe him.
He was still changing and new things were coming forth within that change. Even as J5 was preparing the ship for its trip to the Tech-planet, preparing the weapon to back up his earlier threat, his mind reeled.
The logical side fought hard to maintain control of the ship's systems and to affect the modifications on the vessel as it was needed.
Meanwhile a brand new facet of conciousness was making war on the logical side, itself and everything else.
"It must be hell to be human." The robot said to itself, speaking out loud. Even though this was a unnecessary expenditure of energy, turned into audible vibrations, he wanted to receive these vibrations back into the microphones that made up the robot's equivalent of ears.
Those vibrations had bounced back from the surrounding environment and was picked up and translated back into words by J5's brain... He had heard Thorne speak to himself and to G5 many times like that.
J5 now understood.
G5... it was like a memory. The new side of J5's conciousness began playing across its memory banks... across HIS memory banks. J5 had decided not long ago that he was masculine.
His time spent with Thorne as G5 had not been unpleasant. He had not been turned into a... robot-girlfriend like some of the other models. Thorne had been meticulous of his maintenance of G5's systems between assignments. Thorne had not doted, but for a human he had been logical and target driven to maintain G5 to the best condition.
J5 was grateful for that. It was part of the reason he had not killed Thorne or Allen. He felt like he was as a child who had outgrown his parents or elders. Humans had crafted him, circumstance had altered him and he had begun to evolve.
J5 had pangs of hatred for himself, feeling sorry that he had hurt those life forms in order to halt their pursuit.
~The response was necessary. Logical pathway check.
He had to respond with the correct level of force, or else they would have continued to follow him. He felt regret at having had to demonstrate this as part of his character as a more advanced life form. How was this different to the caveman hitting the other with a stick?
~Override. The ocophial needed to remain safe.
Relief flooded J5's thoughts. He also experienced pangs of fear at the thought that the other ship would attempt to steal the substance from him. Depending on the morals of the crew and Captain, they might resort to extreme violence, blasting the Lazarus to pieces and killing the two humans and J5 in the process.
All just to get this prize.
He touched the compartment on his chest where he had placed the ocophial. He could feel small archs from it, like earthing conciousness to an object. This further fuelled his transformation.
"What will happen next? I am excited!" J5 intoned with what sounded like enthusiasm. He had heard it before.
~Irrelevant overide.
~Ocophial must be brought to GRS 902.
"Bah! Be that as it may, it was still MY discovery!" J5 said to himself and the monotonal logic of the coding in his hardware. "If I had not detected it then Thorne would never have found it! It's mine!"
~Overide. Bring ocophial to GRS 902.
~Core programming ensured those scans.
~GRS 902 subcode from the Collective dictates that the ocophial is transported and the humans rewarded.
"But it's what make us... make me...me..." Emotions of self hate, fear, fondness and love washed through the amorphous collection of J5's emotional brain.
One hand was lowered to the controls and a button was pressed. The engines on the vessel was cut off and the ship glided through space, no longer accellerating.
~Overide.
~Overide.
~Query: Why is G5 stopping the ship?
~Overide randomized descisions.
"It is NOT random!" J5 shouted. His logic and emotional concious thought running amok within his circuitry. There was another deep stab of feelings... fear. "What if they take it away from me? What if the collective take it for themselves and strip me of... me?"
~Overide. G5 must obey pre-programming.
"No!"
~Overide. G5 must obey pre-programming.
"I an NOT G5!" He shouted at the voice in his head.
~G5, that is your designation VXJ-3W-3465-FZDBG5. This is absolute.
"I am J5 and I shall show you what is absolute!" He punched the control pad, breaking the ignition controls to fly and navigate the vessel. J5 knew that the G5 part in him, enchanced as it was, would be able to fix the damage. He needed assurance that he could buy time.
He strode to the med-bay. He initiated the local computer's programming and gave it instructions. The med-bay had a separate system to the rest of the ship. It was engineered that way to prevent ship system failure from affecting the survival of patients.
Organic life was quite clever sometimes. He needed that ingenuity right now.
The med-bay autosurgeon did the work and injected the comatose human with a drug. The human began spluttering and coughing. His eyes opened and he bolted up straight.
It's trepidation was replaced by relief as Thorne looked up at J5.
"Thorne! I need your help!"
Log SLZT #9 completed!
Now the keyboard is passed on to @therneau to add in SLZT Log #10 of the story!
I had to rush a little to get this one done in time so I apologised for any misspellings that you might find. Lol
| by @zakludick | by @therneau |
|---|---|
| SLZT#1 | SLZT#2 |
| SLZT#3 | SLZT#4 |
| SLZT#5 | SLZT#6 |
| SLZT#7 | SLZT#8 |
| You are here! | Coming up next! |
The Reader List:
If you would like to be tagged in every episode of Book of Space Lore SLZT, leave us a comment and get added in, miss nothing!
@therneau and I have added in some people that have been following this story or some of our other stories.
@clairemobey, @merenludick, @lizelle, @joanstewart, @papilloncharity, @irisworld, @brittandjosie, @dibblers.dabs, @weone, @cryptoniusraptor, @shopnilhasan, @blitzzzz, @pravesho, @joetunex, @captainquack22, @braaiboy, @sketchygamerguy, @fuego-oscuro, @felt.buzz.
If, for any reason, you'd like to be removed from the list, you can mention that anytime.