Ideas for DG-III story

[AphelionHellion]

Freespace: *lmao* I love it!

Unfortunately it's just about my bedtime and I have work tomorrow If the thread is still alive tomorrow though I'd
love to try more of this  :turn:
My plan was to have the annoying passenger and Bob have an unpleasant clash.  I like your pilot character, too...
PS: A suggestion - are the passengers going to have names? Might be a good time for introductions.
Also I was going to add at least one more person on the station in a future story snippet, as it's grown larger than the
current ISS and is probably not run by the mining company or anything. Bob and Neil are a bit out of their normal
neighborhood.

[AphelionHellion]

Sorry doc  You want to take it from here?
*waiting impatiently for the miracle drug that eliminates our need for sleep*
(I mean besides crystal meth or crack)  

[McBrain]

Hey, we could get those storys together to one and then make a book about the DeltaGlider-saga! Maybe as downloadable PDF!

[freespace2dotcom]

Yeah, I was thinking that bob and neil had their own DG3 (with the mining skin) and were only resting there. of
course I'm unsure as how to proceed from here. I guess the story will have to wait until tommorow unless doc
decides to put in a few words, and I can probably continue from there.

[DocHoliday]

Hm... let's see...

-----

Cmdr. Jackson curses lavishly as he turns off his commlink. The docking port just barely survived that pilot's docking
style. He checks the DG registry number through the porthole as he makes his way to the docking compartment of
the station. Damn, just as I thought. That guy again! Now, I know Bob is a nutcase, but I guess we need men like
that in this early years of space minning. But that pilot. Man, I remember that fiasco we had the first time those two
met. After Bob's practical joke he likes to play on the groundpounders, I had quite a nice time at the Cape explaining
why the passenger seats were full of sulphur from Ceres. That was probably nothing compared to Xavier's trouble of
getting the docking mechanism cleaned of the stuff, that dumbass greased it with before we left. I don't even know
what it was, but the mere stench qualifies it as contraband.

Must remember to keep Bob busy, so that he won't make trouble again. If I know him he'll be in the docking bay
yapping about the groundpounders ability to dock a spaceship, rigurously questioning the quality of the ancestry of
all the parties involved. On the other hand, I guess I should have Stevensen go out on EVA and have him rip off the
radiator off that DG3 so that pilot will have to stay behind and regulate the temp manually on that bucket... Ah, DG3.
What a piece of crap. What's wrong with the Shuttle-A anyway, sure you don't get all the autopilots and all that
goddamn engine power, but it also has a lot less that can go wrong, heck you can even repair the thing in your
backyard. But a DG3? You need a friggin' army of engineers, computer experts and interior designers if someone as
much as vomits across the instrument panel. Argh.. I miss the old days.

He starts to hear screaming and yelling from behind the airlock leading to the docking compartment. Damn, guess I'm
too late. I'm supposed to be the Station Manager, not a goddamn nanny for pilots and miners.

Hell, that's not Bob, it's Neil. He's supposed to be well behaved! It's either that pilot again, or they may have a
passenger that's even worse. Control said that they pulled all the strings to prevent this, but space tourists are just
something that was bound to happen anyway. He reaches for the wall mounted commlink switch.

"Stevensen, lock all sensitive areas, we've got tourists aboard. Wish me luck, I'm going in!"
---

[McBrain]

poor Cmdr. Jackson!

[DocHoliday]

It'll have to wait, I don't want to intrude his style. Then again, when all of them freaks are in the same room, we'll
have to have one post for each of the involved parties statements

I agree about the book, but we must first have some content

I do believe that the miners should have Shuttle-As. Would be a better vessel of choice and the DG only for crew
transfers. However in this particular case, I guess Bob and Neil aren't back home in the Belt so hitched a ride on an
earthbound dg

Cheers,

[freespace2dotcom]

this is coming together nicely. and it's even on topic, more or less! I don't think dan was planning on us writing the
story on his forum, but... ah, what the heck.. you know? Yeah, It'll be hard trying to write interactions between the
groups without interfering with the other person's writing style, but I'm sure we can improvise...
-----------------------
The DG3's airlock opens.

Pilot: eh? looks like we came in a tad too fast.

Anything that was not tied down in the immediate area was knocked loose of its resting place and the corridor is
now filled with debris (like pencils, paper, plastic containers, etc) the cheetos start coming out from the DG3

Passenger#1: this is just SO~ cool!!!! (takes out his duffel bag) let's add some more!

All: NO!!! (They restrain him)

Passenger#3: say, who was doing that knocking?

The knocking sound continues, followed by a large "ripping" sound.

The warning claxon flares again.

Computer voice: Warning! radiator is damaged! temperature must be controlled manually.

Pilot: WHAT!?!?!

Passenger#1 then leaves the DG3 unnoticed, starts spinning himself, and trys to eat as many cheetos without the
use of his arms.

Pilot: Argh! how could this have happened!? *hits the alarm reset* (notices a person out the window in a spacesuit
doing a spacewalk whist holding the radiator) The pricks!! They do this to me every time!

Suddenly, yelling and screaming is heard from inside the station.

Pilot: you guys go check that out. I have some business to attend to.

When alone, pilot takes out a jar of black gel sealed in an airtight container. He then puts it in one of his pockets.

Pilot: Not only will I get my radiator back, but those jerks will WOE the day they messed with "Leo Farawitz"!
---------------------------
Just "Leo" for short, K? by next time, I should have come up with the names of the others, but for now, just pilot gets
one. Rest assured they'll have first names with meanings in space. whilst the surname will be a combination of
sylables mixed in my head and will be forgotten after first mentioned. (leo = low earth orbit)

[DocHoliday]

Nice I'm fresh out of ideas, so I'll head home..

Cmdr.. Jackson... or maybe Jaxon, easier to type, less country specific Tomass Lloyd Irvine Jaxon or TLI Jaxon for
short and Trans Lunar Injection to friends

Cheers,

[McBrain]

http://www.mcbrain-spacecraft.com/stuff/DG%20saga.doc

[Krytom]

Wow, McBrain! Nice work. (let me guess, you used copy and paste, no?)
How will it be updated?

[McBrain]

Yup, I used copy and paste, but if you look nearer you see that I edited all the story parts to look the same style.
'bout the update, I think I'll wait 'till there is the same amount of parts again, then I update it.

So, get your pencils (or keyboards) and write, guys. Write as much as you can!!!

[freespace2dotcom]

eh... I'll wait until somebody else does a little something. I have yet to think of a way to have the characters interact
without myself hogging the show.

[Krytom]

Maybe the task of writing the story should be given to one person (not Dan for a change). People can add in their
own characters and someone would write the story. I'm not sure how this would work out because some people
might want their character to do one thing while the writer want's the guy for a different purpose.

[freespace2dotcom]

exactly why I haven't taken over and made the characters meet yet.

[AphelionHellion]

I'd be up for the job!  
Although I'd need to wait until next thursday, as I have a final and some school work to complete.
I even had a plot twist in mind - sort of a "shady business" mystery - which also explains what the mismatched miners
are doing at Earth

[DocHoliday]

hehe, cool, can't wait!

[H_Speed]

freespace2dotcom wrote:
Okay, first: no, I wasn't aware of red vs blue, But I have a feeling that I'm going to suck up all their bandwith really
soon. Second: I thought up another story plot. (or is it just random humor? you decide.)  you can have it this time.
------
And so, the story begins..... T minus 10 minutes and counting until launch.....

Pilot: Well, we're finally going to go into space.

Passenger#1: Damn, I have to pee! lemme go! There's still time to get back!

Pilot: Hey, you have a suit, and taxpayers have paid millions for the technology that went into it. So use it as it was
supposed to be used for.

Passenger#1: You can't possibly mean...

Pilot: Do your business in your suit. then shut up. In the order you prefer.

Passenger#1: But, but!

Passenger#2: (whacks #1 over the head with a calulator, knocking him unconsious.)

Pilot: Thanks.

Passenger#2: No prob.

5 minutes, and one headache later.

Passenger#1: Oh, I can't believe that happened! I can hear it swooshing in there. You guys are terrible!

Passenger#3: How did this idot get chosen to fly with us?

Pilot: He's for public relations.

All: *sigh*

Passenger#4: Well, it could be worse, at least we know who the first person out the hatch after a CO2 scrubber
failure will be.

All but Passenger#1: *laughs*

Passenger#1: *doesn't get the joke*

Another 4 minutes, and 50 seconds later.

Pilot: hang on! 3-2-1.... Blast off!

Everyone braces for the added G's of acceleration, but...2 minutes later..

Passenger#1: Are we there yet?

Pilot: No.

Passenger#1: Are we there yet?

Pilot: No.

Passenger#1: Are we there yet?

Pilot: No!

Passenger#1: Are we there yet?

Pilot: No! Damn it!

Passenger#1: Are we there yet?

Passenger#4: *Cuts #1's seat belts with a knife, causing him to fall to the back of the ship hard, losing
conscienceness.*

Pilot: Thanks!

Passenger#4: It's what we're here for.
-----------
cool, eh? And I came up with all this as I wrote it. I could go on for hours... Note that I like humor.

I can't wait for the movie....Long live the King!

[McBrain]

Movie.....hmm......movie.......MOVIE??????

Who's good in making models and movies with Anim 8 or ?

[Krytom]

Hehe, you can't write 'Anim 8 or' properly on Dan's forum. Otherwise you end up with 'Anim8or'
The person who made 'Anim 8 or' should have thought of this when they came up with of the name.

[Nromncr]

I think I want to give this a shot.  I am not a professional writer so don't expect Library of Congress material.  Just
some amatuer fanfiction written by a fan.  I'll give it all the time that I can spare.  As soon as I have a good
continuation of the DOC that was posted, I will post it.  Feel free to continue your own stories, though.  Like Bro
Steve Jobs once said (according to myth): great artists create.  True artists steal.

Nromncr

[Nromncr]

Thanks for the inspiration, folks!  I can't stop writing about Cmdr. Paul Retro Jackson, Bob, and Neil.  I gave Cmdr.
Jackson a full name so don't shoot me.  I am so into this that earlier today I was pulled over by a cop because I was
racing home to continue writing.  While the cop was writing me a ticket, I pulled out some hardcopies of my draft and
was making corrections and additions!  I am not ready to post, but here is an excerpt from the story:

Chapter 2
The Rise, Fall, and Rise of Retro Jackson

After graduating from Patuxent Naval Cosmodrome,  Jackson could have been assigned to the new Delta Glider-
series spacecraft, but he chose the then new Shuttle-A.  What it lacked in looks it made up in utility and ease of
maintanence.  They were designed to replace the US’s old Space Shuttle in the manned heavy lift job.  As stated
earlier, you can repair them in your backyard.  It could lift 5 times what the old Shuttles can lift and it had much more
powerful and efficient engines and avionics.  The Shuttle-A was the Mack truck of the Space Age.   Designed for
passenger transfer with limited cargo, the DG-series was the BMW of space.  The DG looked more like the spaceships
of science fiction.  It had wings, was much more aerodynamic than the old Shuttles, and had much better and smaller
engines.  It could takeoff from a runway and fly directly into orbit.  It can also land on the same piece of runway after
its mission is over.  Both ships complemented each other in the new space age and did their partular functions very
well, although not always perfectly.  What really upset Jacksoin was that all the new pilots wanted to get into a DG.  
To them, the Shuttle-A was a holdover from a long-gone time and he was clinging to the past.  The lack of wings,
huge rotating engines, and limited computer control meant that you had to actually fly the Shuttle-A to and from
space instead of loading and running ascent/decent programs.  Besides, cargo has been easily and safely sent into
orbit by the BDBs (Big Dumb Boosters) for decades.  Once in orbit, you can just attach the c-mods (cargo modules) to
the one of the many ubiquitous workpods and spacetugs and take them anywhere they need to be.  Or just strap on
some ion engines and an autopilot and tell it where it is supposed to go.  Who would want to be a truck driver
instead of a DG pilot?  Jackson wasn’t a big fan of the DG’s advanced avionics and gee-wiz factor.  To him, it had too
many gadgets that can break at anytime.  He loved the Shuttle-A.  It was a military man’s dream ship.  He only saw
engines, spaceframe, and a heavy duty de-orbit  pod in case of ejection.  He would always hand-fly his Shuttle-A
everytime he took one up.  His favorite ship had a big KISS emblazoned on the side (military parlance for Keep It
Simple Shithead) using a font from some old rock group back in the 1970’s.  One time, a DG failed to reach orbit due
to a massive computer failure coupled with a clogged fuel system.  The entire spacecraft is digital fly-by-wire so the
control surfaces wouldn’t respond.  There was no manual backup or a de-orbit pod.  The computers crashed twice
during reboot procedures.  The crew had to eject at suborbital altitudes.  Luckily, the improved GE Moose IV personal
planetfall rescue system worked, but the DG was lost.  Also, the crew didn’t enjoy the trip from suborbital space back
to the ground with only some advanced plastics, composites, and a series of parachutes keeping them from becoming
toast.  A Shuttle-A also had a computer failure on ascent (same computer as the DG), but instead of the spacecraft
and its multi-billion dollar ore cargo being lost the pilot switched to manual hydraulic control, activated the
independantly powered backup inertial navigation and GPS units, loaded a PDA with some basic orbital calculators
from the 20th century, and was able to get the ship back under control.  The pilot performed a parabolic trajectory
and using just manually controlled thrust vectoring was able to make a landing.  The landing gear took a beating but
the ship was repaired and put back into service soon afterwards (with a completely new computer system).  Shuttle-
A’s are tanks.  The state-of-the-art and fragile DG also had it’s computer replaced in later production models but was
never given a manual control system due to weight and space restrictions.  Visions of the old NASA Shuttles blowing
up on on ascent kept Jackson awake sometimes.  He swore to never fly in a DG unless ordered to by a superior
officer.


Critiques, please?

Nromncr

[Nromncr]

Forgive the spelling and grammar mistakes.  I didn't run spell checker.

[DocHoliday]

Perfect, perfect!! It just adds up with the Ascent Project wonderfully!!!

The story there goes, that an astronaut out on EVA suffered a malfunction and in the momentary loss of air, he lost
his consciousness. The crew of the Medical Space Station (MSS) is unable to revive him and have no extra spacesuit
(for some reasons or another) to get out and haul him back into the airlock. The astronaut may die, his oxygen supply
runs out in a hour!

So what do we do??? We get our best pilot who just came back from the station, because he couldn't handle the
feud wars between the miners and the toursits visiting the ISS, to fly a new complex maneuver, never tried before
but if properly executed should get an extraction and medical backup team to the MSS in about 40 minutes.

That's the background story to this. Your story makes a perfect intro! May I use it???

Glad we got another quiet forum reader involved and enthusiastic (hopefully you don't end up in jail or worse for
being distracted!)

Cheeers,

[freespace2dotcom]

Funny, I always thought the kiss method was "keep it simple, stupid" oh well.