#barish-estranza

[mayhaps-a-blog]

I've only JUST started my re-read of System Collapse and I'm already obsessed with the Barish-Estranza SecUnit in the literal first scene.

Like, we never do figure out what's going on with it, and every single option is fascinating.

All we know is that it shows up, kills the contaminated ag-bot - nearly killing Murderbot in the process - and then leaves when asked. So, is it just a shitty SecUnit, like MB suggests? Not good enough to realize that its shot could have killed someone?

Or was it "on purpose"? MB mentions that the action it would have taken would be too fast for a human to countermand it, so did Barish-Estranza already order the SecUnit to try and kill the opposing team, when possible? Or did it just know that B-E wanted them dead, and knew it could take the easy shot without consequences?

MB's narration of what it would have done includes that it would have "tried to" - which means that it might have failed, and thus been harmed. Is the B-E Unit advanced enough to know that it would have failed, and so not tried? Or did it just not want to risk it? If its directive was to protect the B-E team, and it knows the ag-bot is fast and dangerous, then its best chance is to take the thing out while it's distracted. If MB goes down with it, well, too bad - the B-E Unit doesn't have any mandates around that, so why risk itself?

We've only really met MB and Three, who both fall into the "I want to get a good grade in SecUnit, something that is both normal to want and possible to achieve" school of thinking, even if MB claims to just want to watch media and Three might be mainly on autopilot. But there's no guarantee that every SecUnit will follow that pattern. Maybe the B-E Unit is one of the truly apathetic SecUnits - the ones actually half-assing their job, and if someone dies because it didn't risk its own life to save them, whatever. It's not paid enough for that, lol.

Or maybe it's one of the vengeful ones - not just half-assing, but actively maliciously complying its way into as much murder as possible. Maybe it's dealt with more active abuse than just being treated as equipment like MB and Three, and without MB's media touchpoint, hates humanity - or at least, some very specific humans. Maybe, since it can't kill those humans, it's turned its rage outwards - watching this human get squashed by an ag-bot, lol, in a way no one can criticize the B-E Unit for.

Or maybe it did recognize MB as a SecUnit and knew it could get out of the way, but didn't report it - maybe it doesn't have the fear of rogue units that MB seems to have (leftover Ganaka Pit trauma, perhaps?), or maybe it saw MB defending its humans, and decided to hold off until it figured things out. Maybe it was hoping MB could help it.

We'll probably never know. But what a fascinating one-scene character!

[shorroh]

Three my beloved

[andreai04]

Zero. Mass. Transport. This is supposed to be a civilized space station, in space, why the fuck am I driving a ground vehicle to get to a fucking port on a fucking— (Emotion check: I am absolutely fine.)

She hadn't been foolish or resentful or any of the things Farai had considered, just... trusting. Of an adult human who should have been taking care of her.

…Three looked at me and said, "Perihelion-drone is angry that I didn't follow the plan."

Yeah, I bet. "You know that's a you problem."

"Oh." Three was disconcerted. Welcome to the consequences of your actions, Three. It said hopefully, "It can't be a we problem?"

"No, it can't," I said. "Get in the shuttle."

Mensah just looked at me and said, "SecUnit." In that voice. The voice that's the only reason I'm still here and alive and surrounded by... friends.

[imitationgame77]

SecUnits fight

So. The company SecUnits have onboard (arms) energy weapons whereas the Barish-Estranza SecUnits have onboard projectile weapons. Since the weapons are usually hidden inside their lower arms, they need to be relatively small. So, with the projectile weapons, once they have finished shooting whatever the number of rounds, they cannot easily reload, presumably. In heavy combat situations, what do they do? Do they carry a spare or two and re-install? (I guess they don't replace their entire arms...)

Anyway. I was thinking about how they fight differently and made this table. (Yes, spreadsheet again...)

It's not really validated in text. Just imagined based on what I read in the book series...

[kittygameratx]

"Black hole sun, won't you come / And wash away the rain?" 

Introducing my Barish-Estranza executive OC, Setoka Junkōsei!

Alone and grief-striken, Setoka dove deeper into her effort to "replace" her lost partners with her ComfortUnit. She lied to her friends, her coworkers, even her children, about the true nature of her new partner. To the outside world, she remarried another human, but behind closed doors, the two of them developed an inbalaced and toxic relationship.

If you want to read more about her story, go check her out on ArtFight!

https://artfight.net/character/10597665.setoka-junkosei

[alphamecha-mkii]

Network Effect - Barish-Estranza Supply Ship by Tommy Arnold

[wyndlerunner]

Laying in bed thinking of Leonide

She’s spent years working for Barish-Estranza and is from the Corporation Rim. She sees other humans as property, and does not care about their rights or dignity

And she comes across this weird group of academics who not only think people have rights and should be respected (ICK!), they treat their PROPERTY with that same level of consideration?

She must be looking at these people like Boomers look at Millennials who treat their dogs better than the Boomers raised their own children

[rosewind2007]

Photograph from @MaxWaughPhoto on Twitter!

Why Three misses the other two Barish-Estranza SecUnits 💔