I could read a book where this was the prologue. Many good things in this piece - I can't pick which made it stand out the most. In no particular order:
1. The pacing. Tension in the scenes was spot on, setting high stakes in one, dread in the other, and building to an action scene right out of Star Trek.
2. Tying the narratives together, especially after a time jump of 500 years.
3. Karos narrative, scene 2. The image of the redwood scenes was brilliant. Never thought of it that way.
4. The technical language. Believable, but never overwhelming.
Great choice on the ambience, really enhanced the read. Enjoyed the split narrative and the hint at hyperspace horrors, would love to know what had happened aboard the HEARKEN, or should I say HRAKKN.
lol no! This isn't referenced in Sandbox Earth--it's referenced in my old story "Chess" that I published in highschool, and in the worldbuilding/timeline notes I published where you asked if we will ever get the story of the lost colony!
What amazes me is how the emotional punch of terror comes so strongly over the written a span of time. Nightmare material...and the music in my head was the Homeworld soundtrack :D
Thank you so much, Sujan! If you click the “sandbox earth” link at the top, under the image, it will take you to the tag i started using to collect all my in-universe stories. Some of it is lore, some of it is sidequests, all of it was fun for me to write.
I have not seen Love Death and Robots but i am aware of it! Ive been intrigued more than once, ill have to look into it more closely!!
Thanks for the background ambiance. Great addition to the story!
WOW. ❤️
Fantastic story!! Loved the split narratives
I could read a book where this was the prologue. Many good things in this piece - I can't pick which made it stand out the most. In no particular order:
1. The pacing. Tension in the scenes was spot on, setting high stakes in one, dread in the other, and building to an action scene right out of Star Trek.
2. Tying the narratives together, especially after a time jump of 500 years.
3. Karos narrative, scene 2. The image of the redwood scenes was brilliant. Never thought of it that way.
4. The technical language. Believable, but never overwhelming.
Thank you so much! Your comments are always both encouraging and specific and i really appreciate it!
Seconded. I would buy this book.
Great choice on the ambience, really enhanced the read. Enjoyed the split narrative and the hint at hyperspace horrors, would love to know what had happened aboard the HEARKEN, or should I say HRAKKN.
It only just occurred to me how much of a nightmare they must have experienced. Definitely some dark sci-fi hidden in there....
Hrakkn. That rang familiar and I went looking and I KNEW IT. OH MY GOODNESS.
wait dangit do i need to go back to SBE for this reference?
lol no! This isn't referenced in Sandbox Earth--it's referenced in my old story "Chess" that I published in highschool, and in the worldbuilding/timeline notes I published where you asked if we will ever get the story of the lost colony!
ooooooh okay thanksssss
The "Get out and push!" line was hilarious. The reveal at the end, the ambience, oh man oh man oh man. This was fantastic.
Sheer horror.
What amazes me is how the emotional punch of terror comes so strongly over the written a span of time. Nightmare material...and the music in my head was the Homeworld soundtrack :D
Definitely homeworld inspiration in here! Really happy it packed a punch!
Heh, love this! This is Love-Death-and-Robots worthy!—have you seen those?
Definitely want to know what happened next—are there more bits of lore connected to Sandbox Earth?
Thank you so much, Sujan! If you click the “sandbox earth” link at the top, under the image, it will take you to the tag i started using to collect all my in-universe stories. Some of it is lore, some of it is sidequests, all of it was fun for me to write.
I have not seen Love Death and Robots but i am aware of it! Ive been intrigued more than once, ill have to look into it more closely!!
Will do—will finish them off one by one.
And yes, you should, there’s even a couple of lost-spaceship stories, in Season 1, I think.