Indeed.
Meanwhile, I've had a fit of inspiration myself.
What if Garrick's final act in the Macross Universe is to thoroughly butterfly the hell out of the events of Macross Frontier? I mean WAYYYY beyond what he's done already!
Okay, so here's how it would go. Garrick hasn't been yoinked yet, and then they meet up with the Vajra on the Megaroad-1.
Garrick calls out a Pondstrider-Alert and clues everyone in on what's going to go down. Sara and Mao are there for it. He tells them all that he knows about the Vajra, as well as the problems with the V-Type infection.
What do we do? Send you out to make peace?
That's exactly what should be done.
Garrick then reminds everyone that his immune system is downright super-human - it has been tuned like a fine engine to operate with utterly flawless precision. Once Garrick has the V-Type Infection in his system, he will not succumb. Instead, his immune response will create an antibody protein that will be 100% effective. He can be the template upon which they can create an effective V-Type Infection Treatment.
More importantly, they can work out how to get the V-type bacterium where they belong: inside the gut. Which means they will have a means of communicating with the Vajra, and hopefully develop a relationship that allows peaceful coexistence - perhaps even one that is mutually beneficial. You would not only have a means to finally navigate around fold distortions that cause lag in communications and transits, but also native space dwellers that are only too happy to explore and find new worlds that can become potential breeding sites.
This would completely butterfly Grace O'Connor's plot to use the Vajra in a bid for galactic autocracy with everyone in it being her virtual slave.
And we all know how Garrick feels about people like that. "If I ever get the chance and she happens to even twitch the wrong way, then I'm blowing her to hell with Sunspark."
What happens, though.... Garrick manages to accomplish his mission objective, though perhaps a bit too effectively. He proceeds by making himself out as a helpful being, locating things the Vajra use for food, and while under close observation by Vajra drones he manages to get the idea of written communication across, and then begins to make demonstrations of basic mathematical principles with pictographs, and then proceeding to use mathematics as a basic primer.
Before he can get into more abstract ideas such as actual written language, though, he was severely infected with the V-Type organism and then taken in by the Vajra while he was helpless. They actually nursed him back to health, teaching him how to communicate with them in the process.
The Vajra collective mind is simply astounded - they are reeling from the idea of 'Others' and 'Ones That Are Alone' - but are utterly stricken by the incredibly profound idea that despite each human being a consciousness unto itself, they are still very social beings that absolutely must have the company of others in order to thrive. It nearly provokes existential crisis among the Vajra hive consciousness - am I really alone despite being many? - one which Garrick carefully talks it out of. Yes, you are alone, but you do not have to be - we are many! With many perspectives and many thoughts. Yes, it is chaotic, but that is what is good about us. We are always changing. Always thinking. Always adapting as best as we can. And always looking for friends to keep us company.
And then the Vajra learn about him and Minmei. The idea behind such a partnership is simply awe inspiring for the hive mind. That two separate minds could be together like that - independent of each other, and yet still needing the other. Though they're somewhat perplexed about the other four fiancees, but they simply chalk it up as a peculiarity among the 'Ones That Are Alone'.
What really gets them, though, is that Garrick is far from them. It takes him a moment to communicate the idea of just how far away they are, and the Vajra are somewhat shocked - even for them, that is a phenomenal distance. They actually wonder if there was a way to help.
And then irony strikes. Garrick gets the warning signal - he's about to jump! The Vajra sense his urgency and understand completely. But there is one problem: they brought Garrick to the Vajra's homeworld. He is days away, even by their standards. Katherine is panicking. She is desperately sending urgent messages back - DO NOT PULL DO NOT PULL WE NEED MORE TIME!!! But it's already starting - she can feel the tension beginning to build and it's distorting the message.
The Vajra do what they can. They summon up one of their very fastest, and using Garrick as a medium, Katherine passes power into the Vajra that's helping them as well as helping it to perform the complex calculations, learning as she goes how the Vajra do this so effectively.
Lastly they send an urgent message back to Megaroad-1:
"It's happening. I don't have time to say goodbye - I am so sorry! Please have Minmei ready! She may need to wait outside in a space suit - that is how bad this is! Included is all the data I've gathered, including what you need to recreate the V-Type Antibody, courtesy of Katherine.
"Please be ready for me!"
It is close. But it's not close enough. As Garrick was flung from the Vajra, desperately reaching for Minmei as she pushed her thruster pack beyond its safety limits, the Vajra could hear the anguished screams of Garrick and Katherine just before they are suddenly and abruptly gone.
And just like that, the Vajra suddenly knew loss and pain as humans do.
Sara and Mao are utterly stricken because they can feel the sorrow and remorse from the Vajra. Besides Minmei, they are the first to know what happened.
The news hits the rest of the Megaroad-1 like a hammer to the head. Minmei is not alone in her grieving.
But the Vajra themselves are not crippled by this emotion. Instead, they are galvanized by it.
We may have caused this. Even though it was never intended. BUT WE WILL HELP FIX THIS. He is far away now. But we saw how it happened. We can do this, too. We only need a way to guide us to him.
The Vajra wait patiently. The humans have the data they need. They simply need to apply it. Meanwhile, they make it clear they want to communicate.
Sara, Mao, and Minmei all voluntarily allow themselves to be infected by the V-Type organism while using Garrick's antibodies to keep it from being lethal. Like Garrick, they are sick for a short time, but since they had his antibodies right away, it's nowhere as bad. He's done the hard work for them and paved the road ahead.
Soon, the three are conversing with the Vajra and sharing songs with each other. The Truth of Garrick is shared with the general populace of Megaroad-1. Talk spreads. There are people that want to go after him. A lot of people. Even if Garrick is a slider, he's earned his place as one of their own. A digital sign-up sheet is posted for people volunteering to go with them. Nearly everyone signs on.
There are a few outstanding ones that don't sign on.
Sara and Shin. Mao and Egar. Roy and Claudia.
For Sara and Mao, it's easy. They know already that they have important roles to play. Mao is already studying the Vajra. Suddenly being able to communicate with them is going to make her into the foremost expert in the galaxy - more so than even the Protoculture could have believed. Sara has vowed to help locate and dispose of other Birdmen. She will not have history repeat itself.
Edgar won't go because he feels he has no dog in this fight. Claudia does not want to be separated from her family and Roy abides, even as much as it's going to hurt saying goodbye to the others.
But there's a slim hope.
The Vajra can certainly do what they claim, and best of all they can show the humans how. As Garrick told them - humans are adaptable and learn readily when given the right motivation. The only question is how to find him - otherwise they could wind up anywhere in the Multiverse - even an antimatter universe is possible. The risk of going without guidance is too great.
But once traveled, the road will be known. The Vajra are certain of it. A return trip, though needing a great deal of energy, can be done. There is a chance that friends and loved ones can be reunited again. And this becomes a potent driving force behind the Vajra's hive mind.
Minmei remembers the seed Garrick gave her for safe keeping. It has to have some kind of connection. They check. It does. They're not sure where it leads, but it's the only thing they have.
Preparations are made. The fold drive is modified and optimized. The Vajra, in a surprising show of solidarity, send a small clutch of Larva to the Megaroad-1. They are special. One is intended to become a new queen. The others... They will be capable of being their own persons, of deciding their own fates, but still tapping into the network.
Seperate beings, but never alone.
And who better to teach them than the ones who've been doing it since they could remember?
When asked why, the answer was simple. We don't want you to go alone. We want a part of us to be with you. We want them to be there when Minmei and Garrick are reunited. We hope that we will learn how this story ends, and that it has a good ending.
The last outbound space liner leaves the Megaroad-1, bearing the few who would not make the journey.
Everything is ready. The Megaroad-1 makes it's fateful jump.
There is a long and dreadful silence, one where no time passes for what seems like an eternity.
And then, there is Earth. And there is much shitting of platinum bricks.
So there you have it. How Garrick's story in the Macross Universe ends, and how an entirely new journey with new friends and allies begins. While I'm glad that I finally figured out the ending for this volume, I would dearly like to know what you guys think.
Meanwhile, I've had a fit of inspiration myself.
What if Garrick's final act in the Macross Universe is to thoroughly butterfly the hell out of the events of Macross Frontier? I mean WAYYYY beyond what he's done already!
Okay, so here's how it would go. Garrick hasn't been yoinked yet, and then they meet up with the Vajra on the Megaroad-1.
Garrick calls out a Pondstrider-Alert and clues everyone in on what's going to go down. Sara and Mao are there for it. He tells them all that he knows about the Vajra, as well as the problems with the V-Type infection.
What do we do? Send you out to make peace?
That's exactly what should be done.
Garrick then reminds everyone that his immune system is downright super-human - it has been tuned like a fine engine to operate with utterly flawless precision. Once Garrick has the V-Type Infection in his system, he will not succumb. Instead, his immune response will create an antibody protein that will be 100% effective. He can be the template upon which they can create an effective V-Type Infection Treatment.
More importantly, they can work out how to get the V-type bacterium where they belong: inside the gut. Which means they will have a means of communicating with the Vajra, and hopefully develop a relationship that allows peaceful coexistence - perhaps even one that is mutually beneficial. You would not only have a means to finally navigate around fold distortions that cause lag in communications and transits, but also native space dwellers that are only too happy to explore and find new worlds that can become potential breeding sites.
This would completely butterfly Grace O'Connor's plot to use the Vajra in a bid for galactic autocracy with everyone in it being her virtual slave.
And we all know how Garrick feels about people like that. "If I ever get the chance and she happens to even twitch the wrong way, then I'm blowing her to hell with Sunspark."
What happens, though.... Garrick manages to accomplish his mission objective, though perhaps a bit too effectively. He proceeds by making himself out as a helpful being, locating things the Vajra use for food, and while under close observation by Vajra drones he manages to get the idea of written communication across, and then begins to make demonstrations of basic mathematical principles with pictographs, and then proceeding to use mathematics as a basic primer.
Before he can get into more abstract ideas such as actual written language, though, he was severely infected with the V-Type organism and then taken in by the Vajra while he was helpless. They actually nursed him back to health, teaching him how to communicate with them in the process.
The Vajra collective mind is simply astounded - they are reeling from the idea of 'Others' and 'Ones That Are Alone' - but are utterly stricken by the incredibly profound idea that despite each human being a consciousness unto itself, they are still very social beings that absolutely must have the company of others in order to thrive. It nearly provokes existential crisis among the Vajra hive consciousness - am I really alone despite being many? - one which Garrick carefully talks it out of. Yes, you are alone, but you do not have to be - we are many! With many perspectives and many thoughts. Yes, it is chaotic, but that is what is good about us. We are always changing. Always thinking. Always adapting as best as we can. And always looking for friends to keep us company.
And then the Vajra learn about him and Minmei. The idea behind such a partnership is simply awe inspiring for the hive mind. That two separate minds could be together like that - independent of each other, and yet still needing the other. Though they're somewhat perplexed about the other four fiancees, but they simply chalk it up as a peculiarity among the 'Ones That Are Alone'.
What really gets them, though, is that Garrick is far from them. It takes him a moment to communicate the idea of just how far away they are, and the Vajra are somewhat shocked - even for them, that is a phenomenal distance. They actually wonder if there was a way to help.
And then irony strikes. Garrick gets the warning signal - he's about to jump! The Vajra sense his urgency and understand completely. But there is one problem: they brought Garrick to the Vajra's homeworld. He is days away, even by their standards. Katherine is panicking. She is desperately sending urgent messages back - DO NOT PULL DO NOT PULL WE NEED MORE TIME!!! But it's already starting - she can feel the tension beginning to build and it's distorting the message.
The Vajra do what they can. They summon up one of their very fastest, and using Garrick as a medium, Katherine passes power into the Vajra that's helping them as well as helping it to perform the complex calculations, learning as she goes how the Vajra do this so effectively.
Lastly they send an urgent message back to Megaroad-1:
"It's happening. I don't have time to say goodbye - I am so sorry! Please have Minmei ready! She may need to wait outside in a space suit - that is how bad this is! Included is all the data I've gathered, including what you need to recreate the V-Type Antibody, courtesy of Katherine.
"Please be ready for me!"
It is close. But it's not close enough. As Garrick was flung from the Vajra, desperately reaching for Minmei as she pushed her thruster pack beyond its safety limits, the Vajra could hear the anguished screams of Garrick and Katherine just before they are suddenly and abruptly gone.
And just like that, the Vajra suddenly knew loss and pain as humans do.
Sara and Mao are utterly stricken because they can feel the sorrow and remorse from the Vajra. Besides Minmei, they are the first to know what happened.
The news hits the rest of the Megaroad-1 like a hammer to the head. Minmei is not alone in her grieving.
But the Vajra themselves are not crippled by this emotion. Instead, they are galvanized by it.
We may have caused this. Even though it was never intended. BUT WE WILL HELP FIX THIS. He is far away now. But we saw how it happened. We can do this, too. We only need a way to guide us to him.
The Vajra wait patiently. The humans have the data they need. They simply need to apply it. Meanwhile, they make it clear they want to communicate.
Sara, Mao, and Minmei all voluntarily allow themselves to be infected by the V-Type organism while using Garrick's antibodies to keep it from being lethal. Like Garrick, they are sick for a short time, but since they had his antibodies right away, it's nowhere as bad. He's done the hard work for them and paved the road ahead.
Soon, the three are conversing with the Vajra and sharing songs with each other. The Truth of Garrick is shared with the general populace of Megaroad-1. Talk spreads. There are people that want to go after him. A lot of people. Even if Garrick is a slider, he's earned his place as one of their own. A digital sign-up sheet is posted for people volunteering to go with them. Nearly everyone signs on.
There are a few outstanding ones that don't sign on.
Sara and Shin. Mao and Egar. Roy and Claudia.
For Sara and Mao, it's easy. They know already that they have important roles to play. Mao is already studying the Vajra. Suddenly being able to communicate with them is going to make her into the foremost expert in the galaxy - more so than even the Protoculture could have believed. Sara has vowed to help locate and dispose of other Birdmen. She will not have history repeat itself.
Edgar won't go because he feels he has no dog in this fight. Claudia does not want to be separated from her family and Roy abides, even as much as it's going to hurt saying goodbye to the others.
But there's a slim hope.
The Vajra can certainly do what they claim, and best of all they can show the humans how. As Garrick told them - humans are adaptable and learn readily when given the right motivation. The only question is how to find him - otherwise they could wind up anywhere in the Multiverse - even an antimatter universe is possible. The risk of going without guidance is too great.
But once traveled, the road will be known. The Vajra are certain of it. A return trip, though needing a great deal of energy, can be done. There is a chance that friends and loved ones can be reunited again. And this becomes a potent driving force behind the Vajra's hive mind.
Minmei remembers the seed Garrick gave her for safe keeping. It has to have some kind of connection. They check. It does. They're not sure where it leads, but it's the only thing they have.
Preparations are made. The fold drive is modified and optimized. The Vajra, in a surprising show of solidarity, send a small clutch of Larva to the Megaroad-1. They are special. One is intended to become a new queen. The others... They will be capable of being their own persons, of deciding their own fates, but still tapping into the network.
Seperate beings, but never alone.
And who better to teach them than the ones who've been doing it since they could remember?
When asked why, the answer was simple. We don't want you to go alone. We want a part of us to be with you. We want them to be there when Minmei and Garrick are reunited. We hope that we will learn how this story ends, and that it has a good ending.
The last outbound space liner leaves the Megaroad-1, bearing the few who would not make the journey.
Everything is ready. The Megaroad-1 makes it's fateful jump.
There is a long and dreadful silence, one where no time passes for what seems like an eternity.
And then, there is Earth. And there is much shitting of platinum bricks.
So there you have it. How Garrick's story in the Macross Universe ends, and how an entirely new journey with new friends and allies begins. While I'm glad that I finally figured out the ending for this volume, I would dearly like to know what you guys think.