Songs of the Saiiban- A Poetic AAR

[slothinator]

The old dead forms now torn apart
Will bring about a better flock
One hopes the Saiiban will make art
With those who come to join their stock

 

[Chilango2]

Frontiers​

I have one world, two worlds, three worlds since I need them
I’ve got an entire flock singing about new worlds when I see them
You know, we all came to this egg to experience new freedom
But as we expand we find new borders threatening when we come
Look how far you’ve come

Come join this new immigrant wave, hope it won’t be your grave
It’s either join this new freedom or be a slave, better be brave, better behave
You know it’s funny, you kind of have to be a dummy, to leave it all behind
You’re flying in blind, hoping your new home will be kind, never know what you’ll find
As the name immigrant implies, you have to expand or be cut down to size, you better rise
And fly out into the dark, you have to realize, we might have allies, but unless were the right size
We’re gonna crash

Better expand, a new world, a new ship, can’t trip, can’t allow a slip
Keep your grip, the hyper lane isn't slowing down, it gonna go zip
And there you’ll be, new home, new face, new place, even if it can’t replace
Sabak it’s still home, you’re not alone, even out in the unknown, just embrace
The fact that the winds here go at a different pace, after all it’s space.
Gotta lay new eggs, flap your wings, hear what sings see what change it brings
Look how far we’ve come

Out here, on the frontier, new things every year, potential enemies so near
Live with the fear, I might disappear, but after all, I’m a volunteer,
I’m a pioneer, building a future so dear, that future, it’s here
Sure, it not what I imagined, but it’s what’s happened,
Look how far I’ve come

 

[Chilango2]

The old dead forms now torn apart
Will bring about a better flock
One hopes the Saiiban will make art
With those who come to join their stock

Life is always dying
and always being reborn
to cease changing is true death.

 

[slothinator]

To boldly go to far off lands
To make them home and grasp their sands
To make new hearths where Saiibans teem
Is truly an avian's ancient dream

 

[Chilango2]

Take a Byte​

See the tree? See its fruit?
Knowledge beckons: take a byte
Take a byte and change
Become something new and strange

Unlock the power of stars
Change the weather,
Expand what’s ours
Into something different altogether
Shape steel like new born clay
Soft as the primordial mud
Flexible as quantums at play
And yet hard when it comes time to draw blood
Turn the state, into a living thing
Or throw metals slugs at decent fractions of c
Go through a hole in space, hear it sing
Change what’s in our very genes till we redefine who is “we”

All that I'm becoming
I really can't control
I cause all this drama
I'm not the kind of bird
you take home to mama
I know lots of dangerous words
But haven’t even reached my goal
Living feathers, flying free
And as as I strive, as I thrive
I ask now, while we’re still together
Who decides if a miracle survives?


The fruit of knowledge, falling free
Take a byte, take delight, feel your might
See what you see, what will be
A new you, a new me
We can't change what's happened now
We can't explain it anyhow
It must mean something somehow
Take a byte,
Help yourself,
Don’t think twice
Don’t think twice
Take a byte
Eat it and be free

 

[Chilango2]

To boldly go to far off lands
To make them home and grasp their sands
To make new hearths where Saiibans teem
Is truly an avian's ancient dream

The danger of dreams
is what to do once realized
life requires purpose

 

[slothinator]

Byte by bitter byte
The fruit of knowledge we consume
The tree of knowledge is our own
We are become gods

 

[Chilango2]

Songs of the Precursors IV: In Pieces​

A whisper
blows in
space
Screaming
silenced sounds
It breaks
Is broken

What was
Once One Whole

Now
Broken

Fragments

Spinning
through
Space

Mocked by the past
Too good
At building
Not good enough
At killing

So many
Dead rocks
Whispering

Speed is
Life

We were
Too slow

It is death
dying
Dead

Forgotten
But now
Remembered

The song
Screams
Still

Spinning
Into the

Void

And so
We follow
Where it leads

Into
That which
is

Past

 

[Chilango2]

Byte by bitter byte
The fruit of knowledge we consume
The tree of knowledge is our own
We are become gods

Not gods, quite yet, no
but we can see the horizon
between magic and science
it beckons.

--
The next few updates will be wrapping up the Baol storyline/ the Songs of the Precursors series of poems.

I'm realizing that between this and the Cultists storyline wrapping up during this series of updates the big "early game" storylines both wrapped up during this 30 year period.

 

[Chilango2]

Songs of the Precursors V: Silence ​

​

​

A ( ......... ) blows in space
And echoes with a ( ......... )
As we find ( ......... ) new
Something ( ......... )
Something strange
We find ( ......... )
We do not understand.

To Sing!
To ( ......... ) the stars
( ......... ) out, echoing across time
To ( ......... ) , consider their mysteries
To begin to understand the ( ......... )
And then, having ( ......... )
To ( ......... ) back
We do not ( ......... ) .

Can a song, being ( ......... )
Experience so much
death-horror- ( ......... )
To grow ( ......... )
To ( ......... ) not with song,
But with ( ......... ) ?
We ( ......... ) not understand.

Can a singer, ( ......... ) ,
( ......... ) silence?
And ( ......... ) be a singer?
The ( ......... ) of this ( ......... )
Louder than a thousand ( ......... )
Reverberates in our ears.
But ( ......... ) do not understand.

The echo fades into ( ......... )
Or was it ( ......... ) to begin with?
In any case, it is ( ......... ) now.
Forever?
No.

For we have heard ( ......... )
We do not understand.
But we can echo the song

Sing!
A singer can choose silence
A flock can choose to fly
Back into the egg
And lose itself
Lose ( ......... )
It is tempting
To think that time
Is progress, advance
But in time, entropy ( ......... ) everything.
And a crime can silence a song
until all is
( ......... )

All that is left is
( ......... )
We will carry it with us,
Into the future
Into
( ......... ) .

 

[Chilango2]

Not sure if wrapping this up will take one or two more updates.

We'll see.

The Baol storyline is honestly one of my favorite precursor storylines, and it it's particularly interesting from the standpoint of the Saiiban, since its literally a choice that goes against some of the deepest assumptions and ethics of their culture, so I was fortunate that I got this storyline for this AAR.

 

[slothinator]

Our good green forerunners chose a new way
To be many and not one, alone in their heads
By terror or tussle, they had a final say
To wake up themselves and none other in their beds

Should Saiiban seek what bred the change?
Or should they let lie a signal so strange?




As an aside, I've never encountered the Baol in my games so this is a good way to uncover the story!

 

[Chilango2]

Songs of the Precursors VI: Sing What Echoes Remain​

A whisper blows in space
from another time, another place
An echo of its song calls out to us
Remnants of a scream once forgotten
From a past crime misbegotten
Sliced, Silenced, Silence.

Sing the song of the silenced
Sing the song of silence.
Echos of it still remain.

A dead egg heavy with murders past
The silenced song was nether first nor last
It’s echo rings out among us
Here we find the final echoing notes
Vibrating still from long dead throats
Silenced, Sliced, Silence.

Listen to the song of silence
Still echoing from those who were silenced
Their echoes still remain.

We find an echoing ghost unexpected
Amidst the ruins of murders neglected
It’s shaking song sings out to us
It echoing gasp begs for peace
It’s only thought is release
Silence, Sliced, Silence.

Listen to the song of the silenced
Echoing amidst our astonished silence
It’s echoes still remain.

A patient ghost cries out its lament
Of seasons past, of time well spent
It’s echoes say “Listen to us”
A peace torn apart, burned into ashes
A cut and scars so deep leaving but gashes
Sliced, Silenced. Silence.

Listen to the song of that which remains
Echoing even after it was silenced
The silence of its echoes still remains.

The last falling leaves silently shake
Ask if any of its kind are still awake
It’s last statement echoes in us
To retreat back into a unthinking dark silence
To give up all thought as an act of peaceful defiance
Silence. Silence. Silence.

Listen to the silenced song of what remains
Echoing even after its silence
The echoes still remain.

Sing!
Carry the echoes into the future
May the silence echo in space, in time
As its own song, its own legacy
Sing what echoes remain.

 

[Chilango2]

Our good green forerunners chose a new way
To be many and not one, alone in their heads
By terror or tussle, they had a final say
To wake up themselves and none other in their beds

Should Saiiban seek what bred the change?
Or should they let lie a signal so strange?




As an aside, I've never encountered the Baol in my games so this is a good way to uncover the story!

Truly the voyage
was strange beyond imaging
leaves fall into silence.

--
This wraps up the Precursor mini storyline. You all get an early update because I'm going on vacation this weekend.

I'll be continuing the "Gravity of Our Desire" next and then we will be close to wrapping up this series of posts and have the next interlude.

I've also reorganized the first post slightly for easier navigation.

I know many of you read and don't comment (otherwise I wouldn't get so many votes in the ACA's ). I want to remind you that replying with a poem is optional.

 

[slothinator]

A race of one
A relic of pain
Will Saiiban save their son
Or let their memory wane

 

[Chilango2]

The Gravity of our Desire II: Pulled Ever Deeper​

The gravity
Of our desire for knowledge
Continues to pull us in
To the dark center
Of a mystery

The weight of us
Of our choices
Of the possibilities
Of the past future
Swirling around
Like so much dust
To which we return

We embrace
The final kiss
Of deadly knowledge
Knowing the mass of it
Will crush us
Into a fine set
Of scientific data

There is peace
In knowing
This is not
how it had to be
Rather, instead,
This is the choice
we must have
already made
About the future
Back in the past
When we flew
Straight towards the gravity well
Sinking deeper
Burning through time
Like so much atmosphere
Until we become
Like air
Flying into nothingness

If we had wanted
A different outcome
We could have chosen
Not to fly
But that is contrary
To our nature

A fine riddle
Can a choice
Still be a choice
If the gravity pulling you
Towards
It
Bends time,
bends light
Until all you see
Is the darkness
Of yourself
Already there

We are here,
then,
Already
Having already chosen
To fly into
The unknown
Calling our name
With it’s
Iovely poetry
Calling out to us, like
A lover,
Embracing us with
Death knowledge
Ending us
And yet
We learn
There are no true ends

The loop
Returns
what was lost
The gravity
Of our desire for knowledge
Unquenched
We know it continues
To pull us
Deeper.

 

[Chilango2]

A race of one
A relic of pain
Will Saiiban save their son
Or let their memory wane

We must not forget
the song of loss echoes still
quiet echoes join our song

--

The Q3 ACA's have started, head on over there and vote.

Next update will be a "census" type update.

 

[slothinator]

Flying into space the Saiiban spread their wings
And find that flying leads to secrets back at home
Deadly destiny draws us like moths to flame
Icarus embraces the depths

 

[Chilango2]

Third Interlude: Taste the Wind​

Having taken flight, out into the sky
Our perspective changes, as it must
We see the stars with a different eye
And to the changing wind we must adjust
To fly is to become one with the wind’s flow
Taste its mood, embrace its every change
Where it will take you you can never know
You can but trust your wings, rearrange,
Adjust your plans, adjust yourself, your sight,
Gravity has no mercy for mistakes, after all.
But if you become the wind, do it well, do it right
The wind itself will be at your beck and call.
It will be your ever changing ally come what may
It will follow you, fly with you, and show you the way.

Government Information, Modifiers and Rough Breakdown of the population of the Saiiban Confederation in 2090

Detailed Demographics of the Saiiban Confederation in 2090

Political Situation of the Saiiban Confederation in 2090

Galactic Situation of the Saiiban Confederation in 2090

 

[Chilango2]

Flying into space the Saiiban spread their wings
And find that flying leads to secrets back at home
Deadly destiny draws us like moths to flame
Icarus embraces the depths

The lesson of Icarus,
is not that
you should not fly
too close to the sun,
but rather,
to use better materials.

--

We've concluded our "Third Movement" and are up to 2290. I have already played up to 2320 in this game some months ago, so I won't even get to keep playing.
On the other hand, the next 30 years are action packed, let me tell you, I'm really looking forward to writing these updates.

Some fun facts:
1) The previous update was post #74
2) 2200-2230 was 26 updates and took about 2 months to go through (From May 27th at first post to August 6th at the end).
3) 2230-2260 was 25 updates and took about 7 months to go through (from August 6th to April 4th)
4) 2260-2290 was 23 updates and took about 6 1/2 months to go through (from April 4th to the present)

So, after the initial rush of updates, we've been at about 30 years every 6 months.
At this rate, I might be done with this AAR, oh, let's see, about 120 more game years or at least another year and a half of real time. <stares off into the distance>

The one thing that might save my sanity is that as the game goes along it requires fewer updated to get through what happens, although that may or may not hold true in the future, we will see.

Lastly: don't forget to head over to the Q3 ACA's and vote.