No narration. Just speech.
"What do you think?"
"I don't know yet. Can it move?"
"Oh! It just did."
"Okay, but that doesn't mean it's sentient."
"No, of course not. It's way too soon to be drawing that kind of conclusion."
"We need to evaluate its behaviour, see how it reacts to stimuli."
"Okay. We're in luck: it's stirring."
"Oh my, it only has four appendages. That's not very promising."
"Oh, but look, each of its appendages has five more appendages. And ...some of them seem to be useless."
"Yes, but the other ones are prehensile. Don't lose hope just yet."
"It appears to be intentionally changing its shell. I certainly haven't seen anything do that before."
"This is a peculiar species, if nothing else."
"It appears to be able to create and use complex tools. This is very promising indeed."
"I must agree, it does look as though you've found a sentient life form."
"Indeed, it... what's it doing?"
"It seems to have chosen a resting location. Scanning... It's in front of a heat source."
"But what's it doing there?"
"Very little. It seems to be moving its upper outer appendages back and forth in predefined movement patterns."
"It's making sounds! Listen!"
"I hear them. They seem to be the same tones repeated over and over again. I'm sorry."
"You mean... that means..."
"Not a sentient being."
"But it was so promising."
"I know. I really thought you had one there too for a moment."
"We should still study it though."
"Absolutely. We can't find a new life form and then leave without knowing anything about it."
"It looks like there are many different colours for this species."
"Yes. The darker ones are more resistant to the sun, so they must be the superior variety."
"What? How do you know that?"
"Doctor Hopsklin loaned me his bio reader. It scans a being's biology and tells you what its strengths and weaknesses are."
"That's neat. Can I try?"
"No. Talk to Hopsklin if you want it."
"Bah. What else does it say?"
"You have a cyst on your Kendlrak Node."
"It doesn't... it says that?"
"Yes. You should get that looked at."
"I will. What else does it say about my new species?"
"It's vulnerable to millions of known diseases and maladies."
"Well then how advanced could they even really be?"
"I think this one may be a bust, good buddy."
"You'd think after this many planets and species that we'd have found at least one with sentient life on it."
"The numbers do suggest it. It's weird that it hasn't happened yet."
"Could the numbers be wrong?"
"Melklran... please."
"You're right. Well, on to the next one. You said you found one on 8A7-492-UP349?"
"Yes! And I'm very excited about it. I think it might be the one."
"Onward, then!"
2020-06-22 · Boss Music Intensifies
2020-06-15 · Accept the Unexpected
2020-06-08 · Failing The Test
2020-06-01 · Best Laid Plans
2020-05-25 · The End?
2020-05-18 · The Only Explanation
2020-05-11 · Personal Victory
2020-05-04 · Six Questions
2020-04-27 · It's A Team Effort
2020-04-20 · The More Things Change
2020-04-13 · It's All About Perspective
2020-04-06 · Fake It 'Til You Make It
2020-03-30 · Keeping It Clean
2020-03-23 · How To Save The World
2020-03-16 · Time For A Change
2020-03-09 · Music To My Ears
2020-03-02 · Unfamiliar Territory
2020-02-24 · Something From Nothing
2020-02-17 · The Times Are Changing
2020-02-10 · The Missing Piece
2020-02-03 · Wrong Place, Wrong Time
2020-01-27 · Overexposure
2020-01-20 · As Seen On TV
2020-01-13 · Written By A.I.
2020-01-06 · Promises Kept
2019-12-30 · Ringing It In
2019-12-23 · Happy Unspecified Seasonal Holiday!
2019-12-16 · The Lair
2019-12-09 · Time To Get Cracking
2019-12-02 · Not A Suicide
2019-11-25 · The One That Knows What Number It Is
2019-11-18 · Venting Frustrations
2019-11-11 · The Test Takers
2019-11-04 · Make Your Play
2019-10-28 · Horror With Smart People
2019-10-21 · The Interview
2019-10-14 · It Must Have Happened At Some Point
2019-10-07 · Work The Problem
2019-09-30 · Cogs in the Machine
2019-09-23 · First of One
2019-09-16 · Curse Your Inevitable Betrayal!
2019-09-09 · Be Brief
2019-09-02 · Changing Channels
2019-08-26 · It's A Process
2019-08-19 · Armed And Dangerous
2019-08-12 · Good Intentions
2019-08-05 · A Simple Procedure
2019-07-29 · Finale Feelings
2019-07-22 · Fun And Profit
2019-07-15 · It Builds Character
2019-07-08 · Aviator Safety
2019-06-24 · Something's Been Bugging Me
2019-06-17 · It's All About You
2019-05-27 · Rough Encounters
2019-05-20 · Wishes Three
2019-05-13 · A Gentle Nudge
2019-05-06 · A Simple Misunderstanding?
2019-04-29 · Don't Spoil It
2019-04-22 · Under Scrutiny
2019-04-15 · Prepare To Resist
2019-04-08 · Making Small Talk
2019-04-01 · The Crisis
2019-03-25 · Just Kidding
2019-03-18 · How About That Local Sports Team?
2019-03-11 · Public Engagement
2019-03-04 · The Hero We Need
2019-02-25 · The Negotiation
2019-02-18 · Executive Orders
2019-02-11 · The Talk
2019-02-04 · The Big Game
2019-01-28 · If It's A Girl...
2019-01-21 · The Nature Of Picasso
2019-01-14 · I'm Sorry, Ms. Jackson
2019-01-07 · Never Saw It Coming
2018-12-31 · Duelling ...Holidays?
2018-12-24 · Too Much Cheer
2018-12-17 · Taking Out The Trash
2018-12-10 · Let's Go To The Movies
2018-12-03 · Not For Donuts
2018-11-26 · Horizons Made Broad
2018-11-19 · It's The Journey That Matters
2018-11-12 · Anthing You Can Do...
2018-11-05 · Let's Call It "Laundry"
2018-10-29 · Unfriended
2018-10-22 · A Conversation About "Tacos"
2018-10-15 · Changes
2018-10-08 · An Adult-Sized Secret
2018-10-01 · Street War
2018-09-24 · Whither Whether Why
2018-09-17 · The Pitch
2018-09-10 · The One That's Meta
2018-09-03 · A Night At The Movies
2018-08-27 · We're Vampires
2018-08-20 · The Final Showdown
2018-08-13 · The End Of The World
2018-08-06 · A More Rational Kind Of Love
2018-07-30 · Death Troubles
2018-07-23 · True Love
2018-07-18 · At Least It's Not Des Moines