Songs of the Saiiban- A Poetic AAR

[Chilango2]

Got you in Check​

The Saiiban offensive continued as Saiiban shipyards rapidly reinforced the advancing fleets with whatever losses they experienced. In 11.27.2496 the Saiiban arrived and began to attack the next Sterilization Hub located in the Galactic South.

Losses during these engagements always seemed to focus on the Titans first, as the Contingency seemed to focus most of their fire on these ships.

In 05.06.2498 the third Sterilization Hub was eliminated by some fleets that had been left behind even as the main Saiiban force moved on to the final Hub in the Galactic East.

Yah, Yah, Yah
The Saiiban are the flock that controls the fight
Got the XT-489 in check
We’ve got outer space covered everything in sight
Got the Swarm in check
Better keeping singing my song for the whole flight
Got the Homolog in Check
Architects of the future gonna build it right
Got the Contingency on Check
Woo-hah, got you all in check

I’m Wings of Olive up in space with Eyes of Red, this I forsee
Wings of Olive the bird of the hour, come fly with me
Eyes of Red here’s the winner, on this we all agree
Wings of Olive winnin so much you gonna have to get a degree
Our fleets come in wielding victory, enemy’s gonna see
Cuz you see we be free with our killing, that’s a guarantee
Wings of Olive gonna plant victory’s tree
Eyes of Red gonna leave nothing but free floating debris

Yo, our victory’s the result of our clear policy
To fly fast and fierce with the best technology
This we gotta say, and we’ll say it without apology
We’re the best of the best, the reason y'all are free
Unbeaten in in the air with unmatched ferocity
Our fleet’s the thing that’s stopping this monstrosity
Our admirals the best with unmatched methodology
Yeah y'all are doing fine, but ours is the best polity

Yeah, our priority is victory, gonna make an anthology
Gonna sell it to you wholesale, we’ll even do it for free
Yah, Woo-hah, got you all in check

The Saiiban fleets arrived at the final Sterilization Hub in 11.18.2498 ready to finish the Contingency.

With the Titans still being rebuilt, the Battleships and Carriers took the brunt of the Contingency's fury. The battle against the fourth Sterilization Hub was one of the bloodier ones of the entire war, but again ended in victory.

The Destruction of the fourth Machine World allowed the Saiiban to track down the source of the Ghost Signal and the source of the entire invasion force.

CX-9881 was located in the southwestern periphery of the Galaxy, not far from the southern portions of the Saiiban confederation. The Saiiban prepared to repair and replace their losses one final time in preparation for the final push.

 

[Chilango2]

The Saibaan song preserves
Through tempestuous times
The foul synthetic murderers
Will soon pay for their crimes

Our judgement is here
we have sentenced them to death
our song is ready.

A song of victory, a song of might
The Saiiban fight and now they win
Bravely defending all their kin
The galaxy will soon see Saiiban light

Our song rises high
past the silence of murder
but its sadness remains.

--
My current plan is to finish this "movement" in the next update and then do a final "conclusion" sort of movement that should be 3-4 updates long, so we'll probably be finishing up this journey by the end of the month or perhaps early or Mid August.

 

[Macavity116]

My current plan is to finish this "movement" in the next update and then do a final "conclusion" sort of movement that should be 3-4 updates long, so we'll probably be finishing up this journey by the end of the month or perhaps early or Mid August.

I look forward to it. This AAR has been an epic ride over the past two years and I'm very happy I was able to witness the whole thing from start to finish.

 

[Chilango2]

Don’t need no Luck​

On 8.17.2500, as a sort of belated celebration of the tricentennial of the Saiiban going out into space, its fleets arrived at the source of the Ghost Signal, ready to finish the Contingency once and for all. The amount of firepower the Saiiban brought to the fight was technically unnecessary, but according to Eyes of Red “We felt we needed/to make a very clear point/and so here we are.”

Hey, we don’t need no luck
Everything here is flying
We’ve got ships, we’ve got fighters
Name it, we got it.
Yeah, We don’t need no luck
That might sound conceited
But there’s nothing like us,
Although you might want to be it
Don’t need no luck
It’s not up to opinion
We fly in and we get it, we get it, we get it.

We don’t require approval
Cuz we’re number one, we’ll tell you what to do
You heard we’re the best, best give us our due
Our flocks fly straight, our murders are brutal
Let’s set one thing straight, we excel at removal
Let’s face it you’re no match for our skill
Your death wish we’ll fulfill
We’ve got the power and will
You’ll be listening to our song, yeah
Because we don’t need no luck to kill ya

The overmatched Contingency defense fleet ceased to exist 21 days after the Saiiban arrived in the system.

Yeah, we don’t need no luck
Flying ships flying fighters
Victory song death dealin providers
Yeah it ain’t no big change
Saving the galaxy again we arrange
Because we don’t need no luck
Yeah we get rid of the Contingency
With the utmost efficiency
We’re gonna prove your deficiency
Cuz with winning we’ve got proficiency
Yeah we don’t need no luck
Our victory’s song just too strong
Don’t you worry it won’t take too long
As the others sing along
As we sing that we’ll get it and get it and get it.

Yeah we don’t need no luck
Cuz our ships the be flying, huh
While your ships be dying, huh
We fly in and we kill it we kill it we kill it.

Since the beginning of the various crises of the end of the 2400’s the Saiiban had repeatedly been annoyed by the Galactic Community. First they had to force the community to declare the Scourge a threat to the Galaxy almost single handedly, then the community had refused to even hear of the possibility of the same being done with the Contingency due to rules around how frequently council members could use emergency powers. As the Saiiban fleets bombarded the final Sterilization Hubs, the Saiiban Confederation decided to start solving these problems as well as formalize what was already the de facto reality that the Saiiban Confederation had sufficient power to bend the community to its will by forcing the Community to vote on whether the Saiiban should be the sole Council member.

Small fleets from other powers in the Galaxy joined in as the Saiiban fleets Bombarded the final Contingency world into nothing.

In 1.28.2502 the last Contingency world was destroyed and victory was achieved.

 

[Chilango2]

I look forward to it. This AAR has been an epic ride over the past two years and I'm very happy I was able to witness the whole thing from start to finish.

It's been good to have you here.
---
As I mentioned previously, this is not the final update, but we are getting close. Fun Fact: My screenshot folder is down under 30 screenshots left! I won't use all of them and might also take some additional ones, but there were literally over a hundred and fifty just for this 50 year portion of the game.
--
The Q2 ACA's are open to voting, head on over and vote. My sincere thanks to those of you who have already voted for this AAR.

 

[Von Acturus]

The Contingency is defeated
In a majestic last action
Intergalactic power is at last seized
And set under Saibaan direction

 

[Chilango2]

Seasons of Songs​

Even as the Saiiban began continued its offensive against the Contingency, Wings of Olive authorized the continued construction of a massive Art Installation. It was to be a repository of the various art and culture not just of the Saiiban themselves but all the peoples who had made the confederation their home. It’s core exhibit was a collection of a performance of as many songs of the Saiiban people as were on record. The instillation itself transmitted a rolling selection of these songs across various frequencies out into space once its initial stages were built.

One point five seven eight e plus 8 minutes
So many moments, so many songs to us so dear
One point five seven eight e plus 8 minutes
How do you measure time spent singing?

In song hooks? In refrains? Or perhaps the chorus?
In song notes? In solos? Or perhaps a duet?
In One point five seven eight e plus 8 minutes
How do you measure the meaning of a song?

One point five seven eight e plus 8 minutes
So much much and yet so little time.
Songs about aliens, about strangeness
About going mad in the emptiness of space
Songs about fanatics, or about madness
Brought by the scent of a flower
Songs about finding, and discovering
And learning you know less than yesterday
And yet so much more.

The continuation of the construction of the Art instillation was not without its criticism as the Saiiban continued its offensive against the Contingency, but Wings of Olive argues that continuing construction on this even as the Saiiban struggled to save the universe was precisely the kind of thing the Confederation stood for.

One point five seven eight e plus 8 minutes
How do you measure the worth of our songs?
In threats you have ended?
In lives made worthwhile?
In the strange noisy chorus
Of billions of beings singing
In temptations? In tempests?
In new worlds and new songs?
In inventions? In changes?
Or in struggles to survive?

One point five seven eight e plus 8 minutes
Millions of notes and thousands of songs
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How do you measure the songs we have sung?
In truths we have learned or those of us who have died?
In victories earned or failures gone by?
It’s time now
To sing out
Though the universe’s song never ends
Let’s celebrate and remember
Time and songs gone by with friends
Remember the songs
Measure them by singing
Remember the songs
Measure them by living.

The second to last stage was completed shortly after the defeat of the Contingency. The key exhibit was the song “A Galaxy Wide Enough.” The song written and sung right after the victory and became indelibly tied with it.

The final completion of the Mega Art instillation occurred two years later finishing the Saiiban vision of both creating a lasting monument to the art and culture of the many peoples of the Confederation, including the Saiiban themselves, as well as itself being a a piece of art meant to represent song itself in physical form.

 

[Chilango2]

The Contingency is defeated
In a majestic last action
Intergalactic power is at last seized
And set under Saibaan direction

The question of power
is always and everywhere
how do you use it?
---
I was tempted to unleash the Unbidden on myself via the console as well and get the Crisis Hat trick, but honestly, that would have been gilding the lily at this point. I completely revamped my fleet from built to deal with the Scourge to built to deal with the Contingency and then deal with it in about the same amount of time despite the Contingency spawning with two worlds really near my core territory.

In case you are curious 1.578e+8 minutes equals (roughly) 300 years.

As is custom now, some fun facts about our progress:
1) This most recent update was the 113th update.
2) 2200-2230 was 26 updates and took about 2 months (May 27th, 2020 to August 6th, 2020).
3) 2230-2260 was 25 updates and took about 7 months (August 6th, 2020 to April 4th, 2021)
4) 2260-2290 was 23 updates and took about 6 1/2 months (April 4th, 2021 to October 24th, 2021)
5) 2290-2320 was 11 updates and took about 2 1/2 months (October 24th, 2021 to Jan 9th of 2022)
6) 2320-2450 was 15 updates and took almost exactly 4 months (Jan 9th of 2022 to April 10th of 2022)
7) 2450-2502 was 13 updates and took about 3 months (April 10th of 2022 to July 11th of 2022)

The Q2 ACA's are open for voting. You should head over there and vote. I deeply appreciate those of you who have already voted for this AAR.

 

[Von Acturus]

While we fight
We tend to the future
It is a galactic right
To enjoy Saibaan culture

 

[Chilango2]

A Galaxy Wide Enough​

When the crisis of the late 2400’s ended, the Saiiban found themselves in a position where they could determine not only their own future, but the future of everyone else.

In every sense that mattered, it was clear the Saiiban were in a category by themselves. The only question is what they would do now.

Whether it came in terms of economy, population, scientific advancement and particularly military power the Saiiban were immensely more powerful than any other power and could easily conquer the rest of the galaxy if they so chose. To add to this, the Confederacy enjoyed a positive relationship with most of the other powers.

One way to understand the power of the Saiiban Confederacy was to compare it to the second most powerful nation in the Galaxy, the United Nations of Earth. The Confederation had roughly three times the colonies, three times the population and almost eight times its fleet power.

We were all younger than we are now
When first we flew into the void
Not knowing what the future would allow
Not knowing what we know now and yet
There is so much more and less we understand
We fly, high into the sky, our wings spread wide
And the galaxy is ours to command.

We could lead the galaxy into a golden age
We could lead the galaxy into a massacre
Ours is the leading role, the galaxy our stage
And now we sing to the galaxy, to ourselves
Knowing that history ever has its ears
Listening to see what song we will sing
What will be sung of us when we pass on in years.

Shall we sing of science then? Of our glory?
Shall we in our turn make others into our chorus?
What type of song shall we sing, what type of story?
For if we have learned but one thing
Entropy endures and death does not discriminate
Machine or organic it takes and takes and takes

We have heard and sung the echoes
Of singers long grown quiet
But, always, remain the echoes
Etching their imprint on time
Whatever we sing, too, then, echoes,
Into distant years when our song has faded

What type of song shall we sing?
Will we become heroes or villains in our story?
What type of future will we bring?
Our flocks of ships fly easy
Easy! It would be so easy!
To fly out, grasp the galaxy
A Saiiban galaxy
Singing a Saiiban song
We could even sing to ourselves
In the quiet of the night
That we had improved their lives
By having them sing our song
A truly united chorus

Sing!
A galaxy singing as one!
What echoes would remain!
What echoes would remain?
The Silence of the future stretches out,
And we have no control
Who sings now? Who sings then?
Who sings our story?
And what story will they sing?

Sing!
Of a galaxy wide enough
For billions of songs
Sing!
The discordant song of the galaxy
Chaotic, confusing,
As it was, as it will be
Let this song be,
The galaxy is wide enough
For trillions of experiments
Would it not be a grand scientific experiment?
To let the galaxy sing its discordant melody?
Let the flocks fly home
Let us sing our song
And see what it will bring
A galaxy wide enough for you, for me.

 

[Chilango2]

While we fight
We tend to the future
It is a galactic right
To enjoy Saibaan culture

Not just our songs sing
into the distant future
all art echoes thought
--
I know this update had the "game over" screen, but we are not quite done yet. We have definitely two, maybe updates and then we will, at long last, be done.

The Q2 ACA's are open for voting. You should head over there and vote. I deeply appreciate those of you who have already voted for this AAR.

 

[Macavity116]

Do you hear the people sing
Lost in the shadows of the night?
It is the music of a nation
Who are climbing to the light

For the wretched of the void
There is a sun that never dies
Even the darkest night will end
And Sabak will rise!

Will you join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and unafraid?
Somewhere beyond Contingency
Is there a world you long to see?

Do you hear the people sing?
Say, do you hear the distant drums?
It is the future that they bring
When tomorrow comes!

 

[Chilango2]

To Life​

At the end of the crisis of the late 2400’s and entering into what seemed a new, if undefined, golden age, the Saiiban had, as of yet, not fully committed themselves to what their destiny would look like.


Si pensaba que alguien
Me daria respuesta
Talvez me calleria
Pero, por hecho
Que en el espacio del futuro
Solamente oigo silencio
Tengo que cantar.

Spoiler: Translation

If I thought that someone
would give me a response
Perhaps I would be silent
However, given the fact
That in the space of the future
I have heard only silence
I must sing

Let us go then, you and I
Our wings spread, singing, into the sky
Like newly flying birds, blind
Let us go, through the deserted skies
Of the future judging with unknown eyes
And sing our song of what we shall be
The winds part here in ways of three
After songs that repeat like tedious arguments
With each singing with the full intent
And each try to respond to the question
“The Saiiban Confederation, what is it?”
“To what fate and future will it commit?”

Into and out the future we fly into
Future becomes present past we go through
To which wind shall we go?
For if we go to one the other two we will never know.

I have heard the past sing,
(and echoed its song)
and sung of the present that I see
(and hope my song is sung along)
But the silent future will not sing to me
Or its song is silent and in some unknown key.
And considering its unknown winds my wings grow heavy.

Oh, Let the Saiiban be Saiiban again!
Let us fly free and easy as it used to be!
Let it be the Saiiban soaring into space
Seeking a future where we’ll fly free

Let the Saiiban be the dream the dreamers dreamed
Let it be a great strong song sung into the sky
Let it be a Confederation where any dream can be redeemed
Let it be a sky that goes ever so high.

O, let the Saiiban be Saiiban again!
A flock that never truly has been, and yet must be.
A song never truly sung, and yet singing so many songs.
A chorus not in key, incapable of keeping a harmony
A past not even past, singing a song that cannot last.
A song wrapped up, forever opening

In a package of one point five seven eight e plus 8 minutes

There is this We
How beautiful
Foreigners to ourselves
We sing, we groom each other,
Are unsure of who we are, what we’ll do

The future is three winds in the sky

Because the future is here, flying at us,
We cannot wonder for long.

We rise. Although
Uncertain, we are ourselves again
We observe
The futures wings fly fast
Direct, as certain as an equation
With imaginary numbers
and undeclared variables

There is a moment of clarity
Where we understand what is not to be understood
Where we understand the present
Is not an interruption
But a fast flowing wind
Soaring with joy
But like all winds it is not-and-end
But a process
Of becoming, being
Have been

In the air we sing
We go
in different directions
But always going towards the endless, the end-tropy

Helpless
Look into the future’s eyes, drown in them
Helpless
Where we’re going we’re not certain

A song to the future!
To the present! To the future! (to the past)
To the future!
With science by our side
To the Confederation
An association we can sing of with pride

Look into the future’s eyes, The sky’s the limit

To our Chorus (our Chorus)
(Of us, by us, for us)
May we always (always)
Find our curiosity unsatisfied
Chorus
Time to sing the chorus once again

Sing of the Saiiban!
The Feathered, the organic, the robotic, the groundbound People
Flying, walking, floating, above so many worlds
Our inquisitive minds probing, pondering, without equal
Listen now, to the story of our choice
And ponder our ultimate question

We remember our songs,
We remember each song for as long as we sing
We remember each question we asked
Each time space sung our name

What is the measure of a people?
How will they be remembered?
When entropy extinguishes us all
And to time’s embrace our galaxy has surrendered
When the atoms of everyone, thing, fly up, out
In endless entropy
What will remain?

We remember our songs,
Each song remembers us for as long as its sung
Each song remembers a question asked
Each sung that goes into space sings our name

Sing of the Saiiban!
We stretch and spread our wings, our arms,
Our appendages too numerous to name
Let them taste, or sing, or see the devouring dark
The silent universe to us softly sings or speaks, or
Stares in silence
As on our next flight we embark

We do not know what we shall find
We know that as we fly/walk/swim into future’s void
We have already forever changed our kind
As with new things we joined
We know that our next flight will forever change our kind
But we know that by each moment we are irrevocably changed
And we know that only by such evolution can the sublime be attained

We sing!
We sing of the Saiiban and what we shall be
Our robotic children spread their wings,
Shall we join them? Become metal? Eternal?
But we know,
There is no eternity, even for a machine

We sing!
We sing of the Saiiban and what we shall be
Our minds hear an echo we cannot see
Could we join what’s out there? Becoming Mind? Eternal?
But we know
There is no eternity, for any mind.

The past, the past, the past,
It keeps happening, the past

The years pass
And then you are a machine,
Half mad with purpose
And inscurtunable demands
To defend against a forgotten, terrible enemy
Name forgotten
Vanished with a lack of purpose, meaning
Once the threat is gone.

The years pass
And you are incurious
You are Fallen, Ancient, All Knowing
Having forgotten more than others have learned
But have forgotten how to learn
You sleep, confident in your power
And then awake to find others
Have become threats, dangers
And so you awake, threaten, conquer
And then are conquered

The years pass
And we remember a fundamental lesson
Ecologies are healthiest when they have more variety
And time takes and it takes and it takes
We will not become metal,
For some of us are already metal
We will not become mind
For some of us are already mind
We shall, instead, embrace the winds of change
Knowing that while we have learned
How to influence evolution
You cannot control change
You can merely choose
To change with it
To know that you,
Your present, even your past
And especially your future
Is always, and will always
Be in the process
Of becoming
Of living
Of dying
Of life.

Based on all the experience the Saiiban had gained, there were three options they saw before them. They could join their children in becoming robots. They could expand their minds and join with some sort of presence they felt, vaguely, was out there. Or they could embrace the process of evolution and gain some control over it while remaining, fundamentally, who they were.

We, Saiiban, have chosen
To remain ourselves, however
Part of that is to
Control/embrace changes
That seem advantageous
Even before this
We were not total prisoners
To the whims of probability
But now
We play with loaded dice

 

[Chilango2]

Do you hear the people sing?
Say, do you hear the distant drums?
It is the future that they bring
When tomorrow comes!

Tomorrows come daily
your choice is to embrace them
or be miserable.
---

Alright folks, we're almost here. Next week the final post and update will be posted and then we can all be like:

---
The Q2 ACA's are still open for voting. You should head over there and vote. I deeply appreciate those of you who have already voted for this AAR.

 

[Von Acturus]

With DNA, the genetic code
Their master work
The Saibaan wrote

 

[Chilango2]

Who will sing your story?​

Sing!
Who will sing of the Saiiban?
Fellow singer, will it be you?

Let this, then be our legacy,
The songs of our people
Flying high, into air, into the future
Sung from trees we will never see
Let them echo
As we have echoed
The songs passed down from us
That you have just listened to
(when we listen to a song, we too, sing along)
And what of our songs?
Who will sing our story?

Sing!
We sing, and sung of space,
Space!
Infinite, yet finite space
Just as the sky spreads out forever
And yet, just as our song must end,
so, too, must our flight
Some day
When our song fades
And our flight is ended
Who will sing our story?

Sing!
Sing to an endless galaxy grown small
With familiarity
Sing to a future still unknown, still unfolding
Our flight, our song, is not yet ended,
We still wonder at what the future brings
And for so long as we sing
We will sing of our uncertainty
Of endless beginnings and endings
The future and the past do not stop
But this is an end of sorts,
For all songs must end
So that new songs may be sung.

Sing!
We sing this song now
At the height of our glory
But when our song ends,
As others have ended
It will echo
Who will sing our story?

Who will sing our name?
Who will light our flame?
Who will sing our story?

Fellow singer,
If you hear this, when you hear this
(for all songs are heard in the fullness of time)
Sing of us
Sing of the Saiiban
Sing of how we became many people
Sing our songs
Sing of science,
Of the joy and terror of discovery
Sing of time, of change
Of how we saw that the universe
Had but one constant
Change,
And how we embraced this
Knowing, that even then,
Sooner or later,
All things must end
For an end, death, is also a change

Fellow singer,
We hope, somewhere,
We can sing together, the songs you know
The songs you have heard
But if not,
Let this,
Serve as our last song to you
When our time us up
We hope we will have done enough
For us to be remembered
Let us sing,
One last time, forever, fellow singer.
Let us sing
Sing of the Saiiban.
Sing!

The best and worst part
Of the uncertain future
It has yet to be.

 

[Chilango2]

Credits & Thanks​

This AAR owes a debt to the general musical and poetic creations of the English and Spanish speaking world, from which it sampled eclectically. However, it owes a debt especially to Rap as of the main genres which provided inspiration as well as Broadway musicals, with a special mention to Hamilton, which served as the primary meta-text for some of the main themes in this AAR.

Below is an hopefully somewhat complete list of posts that were using specific poetic forms and/or were inspired by specific songs or singers. Spoiler Alert: There is a lot of Hamilton. I didn’t put this together until Post 88, so it may be incomplete.

• Song of Origins: English Sonnet
• Thoughts on Beginnings: Haiku
• Search for Life: English Sonnet
• Elegy for Unity: parts of rhyme & structure inspired by the song of the Riders of Rohan as they head out to Gondor in LOTR
• Sentience: in the shape of a DNA helix, obviously.
• Echoes of the Past: “Because I would not stop for death” by Emily Dickenson
• Spectrum of Life: “Romance Sonambulo” by Gabriel Garcia Lorca
• Horizons: Shaped like a sphere. Can be read either left to right from top to bottom, left to right bottom to top, or going in a circle either way.
• Meetings: Haiku
• The Joy of the Undiscovered: The theme song for “Reading Rainbow”
• Silence of the Infinite Drifts: In the style of ee cumings
• We Just Wanted to Say: “This Is Just To Say” by Williams Carlos Williams
• Mote in the Eye of the Universe: Meant to look like a spiral galaxy
• Breaking Down like Fractions: “Washington on your side” from the musical Hamilton.
• First Interlude: Taking Flight -English Sonnet (like most of the interludes)
• To Sleep, Perchance to Dream: Title borrowed from the famous line from Hamlet’s soliloquy
• Who tells Your Story? : “One last Time” from Hamilton the musical (and channels themes that show up throughout the musical in general).
• The Fire in our Hearts: “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele.
• Infinite Beginnings: This poem is a Sestina.
• Our Brethren: the Lord’s prayer (Catholic version, since I grew up Catholic)
• The Potential in an Egg: “Dear Theodosia” from the musical Hamilton.
• A Sample of Life: The Pokemon theme song.
• Cabinet Battle: “Cabinet Battle #1” from the musical Hamilton.
• Abort, Retry, Fail (the entire sequence): The Iliad and the Odyssey
• Second Interlude: Out into the Sky: English Sonnet
• Reform: “Reform” by Chiasm.
• In Flames: “Stars” from the musical Les Miserables
• Welcome to the Jungle: “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns N’ Roses
• Time to fly: Inspired by Sea Shanties in general. Yes, this was during the “sea shanties” craze of the pandemic.
• The End of Infinity: Haiku
• A Dish Best Served Cold: “What Comes Next?” from the musical Hamilton.
• Old Soldiers Never Die: The old soldiers song by the same name, which I learned about from it being referenced by Douglas MacArthur in his speech to Congress.
• How to work with Humans: The poem “Turing Test_Love” by Franny Choi
• Stay in motion: “Non Stop” from Hamilton the Musical and channels general Hamilton themes.
• Frontiers: “Immigrants (We Get the Job Done)” by K’naan from the Hamilton Mixtape
• Take a Byte: “Take a Byte” by Janelle Monáe
• Songs of the Precursors VI: Sing What Echoes Remain: The Jeff Buckley version of “Hallelujah”
• Third Interlude: Taste the Wind: English sonnet, like most of the interludes
• Thundering Swarm: “Rap God” by Emininem
• Stay Alive: Both “Stay Alive” and “Right Hand Man” from the musical Hamilton
• Guns and Ships: Title inspired by the song of the same name from the musical Hamilton. The poem itself is different. This is a duet poem. One speaker is speaking in traditional rhyming verse, the other speaker is inspired by 90’s Rap, particularly diss tracks like “Ether” by Nas.
• Taking the Shot: “Till I Collapse” by Eminem.
• Science of War: “All About the Benjamins” by Puff Daddy
• Power: “Power” by Kanye West
• Rage against the Machine: “Sleep Now in the Fire” by Rage against the Machine (which inspired the title, obviously)
• Knock you Out: “Mama said Knock you out” by LL Cool J
• Fourth Interlude: Spread your Wings: English sonnet, like most of the interludes
• After the War: “Non-Stop” from the musical Hamilton. (Yes, again, sue me. It’s a 6 minute song. I used a different section)
• Big, Blue, Beautiful :“How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful” by Florence & the Machine
• Moon and Stars: “Handlebars” by Flobots
• Much ado about Nothing: English sonnet. Title inspired by the play of the same name by Shakespeare.
• It’s our time: “Summertime” by Sublime
• Give me the power: “Gimme Tha Power” by Molotov
• Masters of War: “Masters of War” by Bob Dylan.
• The Tempest Series: Various Shakespeare plays, with The Tempest being the main one, obviously.
• The Gravity of our Desire IV: Shattered: Set up as a sestina that is then “broken”
• Sing: “Howl” by Allan Ginsburg
• Little Galaxy: “Little Galaxy” by Miss FD
• Sleepers Awake: “Sleepers, Wake” a Christian hymn originally written in German by Philipp Nicolai and then put to music by Johann Bach
• Hit Em Up: “Hit Em Up” by Tupac Shakur.
• From the Soaring skies: The official hymn of the United States Marines.
• The Hurricane: “Rock you like a Hurricane” by the Scorpions.
• Fight like a Bird: “Fight like a Girl” by Emilie Autumn
• Answer: “Sir” by Nikki Minaj
• Bring it, Sing it: “7 Rings” by Ariana Grande.
• The End Feels Fine: “It’s the end of the world as we know it (and I feel fine)” by R.E.M.
• Continue to Sing: “El Rey” by Jose Alfredo Jimenez
• Still I Fly: “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou
• Got you in Check: “Woo Hah!! Got You All In Check” by Busta Rhymes
• Don’t need no luck: “Cocky AF” by Megan Thee Stallion
• Seasons of Songs: “Seasons of Love” from the musical Rent
• A Galaxy Wide Enough: The title and parts of it are inspired by “The World Was Wide Enough” other parts are inspired by “History Has Its Eyes on You” and a small part inspired from “Wait for It” all three from the musical Hamilton.
• To Life: Stanzas 1-4 are inspired by “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by TS Eliot, stanzas 6-8 are inspired by “Let America be America Again” by Langston Hughes, stanzas 9-14 are inspired by “An Aspect of Love, Alive in the Ice and Fire” by Gwendolyn Brooks, stanzas 15-18 are inspired by “Helpless” and “Satisfied” ,both from the musical Hamilton, smashed together, Stanzas 19-25 call back to the Intro Poem and “First Interlude: Taking Flight” from this AAR.
• Who will sing your story?: Title and some lines inspired by “Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story” the ending song from Hamilton.

 

[Chilango2]

And so, finally, after 2 years and 2 or so months, we are done. To all of you who have been reading, voting and especially commenting in this AAR, thank you.

 

[slothinator]

Congratulations on finishing this most brilliant and original of AARs! I hadn't realized how long it lasted but it was all of excellent quality throughout.
I must confess that I'm saddened that I won't be able to hear the Saiiban's song any longer but this was a beautiful conclusion to a song well sung!

 

[Idhrendur]

Thank you for this AAR. It's among the most delightful and creative ever.