Re: "Divergent Paths" Discussion
Posted: Fri Jun 11, 2010 3:19 pm
Transwarp wrote:My only niggle with this chapter (and it's a small one) was the way the bond seemed to be influencing him. As if it were a living thing, forcing him to come to the aide of his mate; a reckless influence that he had to fight against to keep from charging forward in a blind, Vulcan rage. I have never gone for depictions of bonds in fan fiction that seem to transplant Vulcan biological imperatives onto humans, that seem to create irresistible urges within the human partner that are contrary to human nature. (My own version of the bond may be quite powerful--the full-featured 'telepathic telephone' that you've stated you wish to avoid--but it doesn't replace Trip's human nature with a Vulcan one.)
Then again, it's possible the bond's affects were magnified by his weakened physical condition and mental exhaustion. I am certainly looking forward to see how the two handle this new feature of their relationship.
There are a number of extenuating circumstances that come into play that only I as the author am fully cognizant of that explain this sort of thing, first and foremost being the Pa'nar she is still suffering from (almost nine human months since her last treatment with Phlox, whatever it was) but also, as you point out, Trip's weakened physical and mental condition. I'm not really sure that the bond urging him forward is really against his nature - even without its presence, do you think that Trip wouldn't drive himself into the ground in a desperate attempt to rescue T'Pol? For that matter, I think it's entirely in his character to do something like that regardless of the identity of his partner. But that's just me and we all have differing perceptions of the characters and the show itself.
hth2k wrote:Thogh I would not be shocked if the old man faked the heart attack. (Being an old man myself.) "Old age and treachery beats youth and enthusiasm every time" as they say.
What I was trying to imply in a subtle way with the open fear T'Pol first heard in his voice and with how the dude looked at Trip's high-tech weaponry was that this guy was a survivor from the raid that Ferran spoke about and has seen extraekosian (heh) creatures unleash their horrific weaponry on his people before. He knows perfectly well what aliens are capable of and it terrifies him. So he wasn't faking. He saw another alien show up, this one who looked just like a fellow ekosian, and the stress was just too much for him.
Ask a soldier that has done house to house in Iraq about making assumptions about who is and is not a threat. Grebades in baby beds, Wounded down non-uniformed men rolling grenades or pulling hidden pistols or rifles. Kids walking up with grenades or explosives strapped to them. It is hard and getting harder in the real world. Heard on the radio this afternoon the Taliban publicly hung a 7 year old boy as a spy. Makes you want to cry or just kill them all.
Yeah, I know. I've got a couple of buddies who are still active duty, one of whom was, until recently, a Ranger who was doing the house-to-house stuff in Afghanistan. Some of the stories he told were pretty harrowing.
As for the Goering emulator, if the rifle but happened to be tilted to drive the nise up into the brain during the butt stroke...during the rescue, is that murder? Kill him after he is down, different issue entirely.
Actually, I think driving the nose up into the brain is something of an urban legend. From FightingArts.com I found this rather pertinent line:
First, the nose is primarily composed of malleable cartilage which does not posses the tensile strength necessary to penetrate the thick actual bone of which the skull is comprised. Second, even if the nose were entirely made of bone (and remember it isn’t!) it would not be long enough to reach the brain.
The sheer mechanics of accomplishing this are daunting. First, there is the crista galli, a thick, smooth, triangular piece of bone that projects from the bone that forms the roof of the nasal cavity (cribriform plate). Though there are small openings in the cribiform plate which allow nerves to pass through, they are not large enough to allow a mass of splintered bone to enter the brain case, nor are they direct conduits to the brain.
So him doing that really isn't likely. Ignoring that, the point is valid and requires an answer - no, I don't think it is murder if he went in and accidentally killed someone during his rescue attempt (modern politically correct courts would no doubt disagree with me there, but I'm very much opposed to PC in all its forms because I see it as a "soft tyranny"), but if he shot them in the head after they were down? Yeah. That's murder. It's a slippery slope and a very thin line, but that's my opinion.
I do think even in his addled state and more likely well before now, he has figured out what he is willing to do if his or her life is at risk. I don't think the answer is the same for him as her.
I have no doubt that he would kill or die to save her life. If it had come down to it here, then, yes, I think Trip would have killed to retrieve her. Just as she would do the same for him.
Does not matter really. Likely the interrogation was recorded in some form. (Wire recorders have been around since the 1840s.)
Ah, but given how lightly defended the airfield was, I had intended for this to be little more than a quick stop before they transported her to a more secure facility. But your point is a valid one...
Does the email thingy work?
If this develops like some discussions I recall from long ago the forum probably isn't a good place. My old one
still works.
Yeah. Whatever's easiest. I don't think anything we've discussed here on the boards is out of bounds, but that's up to you.
my only experience with the strength of the butt of a 20th century bolt action rifle is that I was theatrically able to remove a hollow core door 
Considering the Ekosians' "twitchier" nervous systems and the fact that the weapon the Cop used to shoot T'Pol early in the story was small caliber, one might extrapolate that their service rifles aren't as large as mid-20th century Earth ones. I'm thinking more cadet rifle size. He's still hurt but less likely to be dead. Could be wrong - just guessing - only Rigil knows for sure. 
I just wanted to do a Male/Female relationship that was purely platonic.