Jun 15
I do love the banter between Tran and the Cavalcade here.
↓ Transcript
The Reclaimer kneeling next to the holographic projector.
CAVALCADE
This... is one of your human constructs?
RECLAIMER
It is. Tran and I go way back.
CAVALCADE
And just what is it that Tran can do that we cannot do better?
RECLAIMER
Don't be petty, b--
TRAN
Do better?!
Close in on the display pedestal.
TRAN
Sir, who are these bozos with the high-falutin' egos you've got riding around in your skull?
RECLAIMER
Relax, Tran. They're friends.
TRAN
Well, I don't think I like them much.
Zoomed in on the Reclaimer.
RECLAIMER
Tran, meet the Cavalcade -- well, part of them, anyway. Boys, meet Tran. She's one of a kind.
TRAN
Sir, quit it. You're making me blush.
CAVALCADE
And just what is it that makes it so special?
TRAN
She.
CAVALCADE
Pardon?
Looking over the Reclaimer's shoulder.
TRAN
You called me an 'it'. I'm a 'she'. Get it right.
CAVALCADE
With respect, artificial constructs do not have a gender. It is a physiological impossibility.
TRAN
Oh, brother.
TRAN
Look, I don't care how it works in your part of the galaxy, but I was modeled after a female. I may not have a physical body, but my psychological makeup is all woman.
CAVALCADE
Apologies, Tran. We meant no disrespect.
Camera pulled back from the Reclaimer a bit.
TRAN
None taken, I assure you. I just like keeping folks on their toes. Right, sir?
RECLAIMER
{sigh}
RECLAIMER
Are you kids done squabbling now?
TRAN
Yes.
CAVALCADE
Indeed.
Close up on the holographic display.
RECLAIMER
Good, because we're a little pressed for time here.
RECLAIMER
Tran, remember that special program I built for you a long time back and told you lock away?
TRAN
Yes, sir. You said you never wanted to have to use it.
RECLAIMER
Well, it's time to unlock it.
TRAN
Oh, dear...
The Reclaimer kneeling next to the holographic projector.
CAVALCADE
This... is one of your human constructs?
RECLAIMER
It is. Tran and I go way back.
CAVALCADE
And just what is it that Tran can do that we cannot do better?
RECLAIMER
Don't be petty, b--
TRAN
Do better?!
Close in on the display pedestal.
TRAN
Sir, who are these bozos with the high-falutin' egos you've got riding around in your skull?
RECLAIMER
Relax, Tran. They're friends.
TRAN
Well, I don't think I like them much.
Zoomed in on the Reclaimer.
RECLAIMER
Tran, meet the Cavalcade -- well, part of them, anyway. Boys, meet Tran. She's one of a kind.
TRAN
Sir, quit it. You're making me blush.
CAVALCADE
And just what is it that makes it so special?
TRAN
She.
CAVALCADE
Pardon?
Looking over the Reclaimer's shoulder.
TRAN
You called me an 'it'. I'm a 'she'. Get it right.
CAVALCADE
With respect, artificial constructs do not have a gender. It is a physiological impossibility.
TRAN
Oh, brother.
TRAN
Look, I don't care how it works in your part of the galaxy, but I was modeled after a female. I may not have a physical body, but my psychological makeup is all woman.
CAVALCADE
Apologies, Tran. We meant no disrespect.
Camera pulled back from the Reclaimer a bit.
TRAN
None taken, I assure you. I just like keeping folks on their toes. Right, sir?
RECLAIMER
{sigh}
RECLAIMER
Are you kids done squabbling now?
TRAN
Yes.
CAVALCADE
Indeed.
Close up on the holographic display.
RECLAIMER
Good, because we're a little pressed for time here.
RECLAIMER
Tran, remember that special program I built for you a long time back and told you lock away?
TRAN
Yes, sir. You said you never wanted to have to use it.
RECLAIMER
Well, it's time to unlock it.
TRAN
Oh, dear...
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OMG, that was pretty awesome banter…but I have to wonder…what is this hidden program?
Only time will tell…
My guess is Tetris. Let's see Ferial take over the universe when he's stuck in front of his computer monitor waiting patiently for the PERFECT piece to come down.
Also, great comic!
Haha! Talk about a rough gig on Ferial's part.
"Dammit! All I need in order to take over the world is one straight piece!"
If I didn't already know what you were talking about, I would have said that sounded wrong.
Lol you just HAD to say it.
That's quite a bit of a reach, even for a double entendre.
No.. It has to be an L-Block
Even worse for the owner.
And what an attitude!
Tran's a bit of a spitfire.
Are you just realizing this. Just a question, do you plan your charactors attitudes towards other beforehand or does it just play out.
No, I'm stating a fact. I knew Tran would be a handful right from the outset.
To answer your question (minus the question mark), sometimes I plan them out and sometimes I just let certain character personalities develop on their own. Though, a lot of times, even when I do plan them out, they still have a way of developing on their into something I didn't quite expect.
Since you're a Stephen King fan you'll probably appreciate it when I say that he writes like that as well. He has stated on more than one occasion that when something shocking happens in one of his books he is just as shocked as the reader.
Start scary music!!! This is interesting! Nice work Jim, glad you finally got another one out
Likewise, I assure you.
Back to square one. Scary square.
Good RvB quote. lol.
Thank god for a new installment, I was wearing a hole through the floor with all my rocking back and forth… Also, I didn't read Tran as a female until it was mentioned… I would make a comment about women having attitudes, but I think I'll keep this one to myself lest someone get offended.
Well, Tran doesn't fit any particular stereotype. She's just a rather dynamic personality type.
I like Tran already!
Everyone misses Rulebook. Meet Tran.
Rulebook could fly…what's this gal got?
Secret program, hello?
At least she doesn't have a split personality problem.
Oh very dear.
Great post Jim! Its really nice to see a comic this week I was getting all antsy and stuff!
Tran seems like my kinda girl.
What? Headstrong and mouthy? :p
I likem rough and loud… hahaha
Reminds me a lot of those two AI's from Contact Harvest, the strict female manager and the male farm hand AI's combined into one. One spectacular combination. Doesn't seem quite like the personality you'd give to your top-class super-soldier, though. I've gotten too used to the witty cynical ones the haloverse is full of. Good change!
I thought of them, as well, when I was thinking about how to write Tran. She's not intentionally modeled after those two, but I suspect there's still a little of them in her.
Its funny that the humans are the ones to create something that the Cavalcade can't grasp. We always seem to be so far behind technologically in the Haloverse.
We can still do some things better than the forrunners. Kinda like the Heechee who never learned to build a complex computer and required living organisms to power them.
The calvacade obviously have had no experience with a women. A shame for something their age.
Wrong. They don't have any experience with constructs seeded from a living mind.
A.K.A. A woman. Aren't we all technicalyy constructs seeded from a living mind. I mean, we do in our own ways fuction much like a computer, except with an infinite numeric base rather than two.
Actually, we are still base two. After all, at the most basic level our neurons are either firing or not firing, which is either "on" or "off" which translates to 1 or 0.
But our is also a chemical computer that responds the the ammounts of these and those floating around multiplying the two by aleph zero.
Everyone misses the Machine.
You knew I was going to post this before you hit submit didn't you.
Flashback time! Yay!
My money on a Reclaimer duplicate to confuse the other AI shooting at him.
Yeh though I dunno why he wouldn't want to use that. It would've been pretty useful before so he wouldn't have locked it away.
Im guessing something thats very powerful, unpredictable and maybe illegal.
I'm thinking it's a training program that makes a copy of Reclaimer that can be used to confuse IP.
Man I've been checkin for any new updates 4 times a day, and the day my internet goes down, the comic arrives! Anyway, I never pegged Reclaimer for the programmer type. I guess that training covers it all.
He's a bit of a computer whiz.
Take the AI approach. Send the request for this web page and then the picture in MS DOS then use the streaming info to build the picture in your mind.
Skillz.
Reminds me a bit of my SPARTAN-II, Cathy-327, but more understanding and with a vocabulary that isn't centered on certain four-letter words.
I'm sorry. I don't what four letter words you are talking about. Care to elaborate?
love the comics…tried to send u a friend request one LIVE but it said the gamertag didn't exist…
That's because he's dead.
She's no Rulebook, but she's definitely cool in her own right that makes her just as cool. Reading this comic makes me want to start writing my own Halo fanfic but I don't know if I'd have the time or keep up with creative ideas XD
She's no Rulebook, but she's definitely cool in her own right that makes her just as cool as Rulebook. Reading this comic makes me want to start writing my own Halo fanfic but I don't know if I'd have the time or keep up with creative ideas XD
But not as cool as the Machine/Mercyhoard/Melancholy/What-Have-You
mouse over image txt, yaaay
i love the series
Ha, interesting interaction. Good stuff.
Speaking of the hidden program … How distressed will you all be when it turns out to be Microsoft Solitaire!!!
Yes! The ultimate weapon to undermine Ferial's efforts! You've seen right through my carefully thought-out plot.
Ferials' Jim. The ap goes after the s.
You know me all too well.
Wow Snow, you're hanging on pretty tightly to this line of reasoning. Part of me respects that. Another part of me wants to make a comment about the S shaped pieces to see what you'll come up with, but I've decided against it. You're welcome.
SK is a huge influence on my writing. I've always loved the way he describes his writing process because it's very much like my own.
King was good until he started pushing out books at the rate of a gram cracker machine.
What kind of machine?!
You're right, I should shut up. And let me point out that I didn't bring up the S, peice on that train of thought. You did.
Ohh!
Sorry, I couldn't resist.
the Melancholy.