Kotori said:
Yangfan, I love you! Sort of ~_^
But not in a "Brokeback Mountain" way, I'm sure. XD
Kotori said:
Questions haunting the back of my mind for awhile now :
1. Who's Chiharu? I know she was a Taisho, that a ship-class was created with her as a namesake, that she went 'boom' and that Yui loved her to bits.
I don't recall much more than what has been mentioned.
Kotori said:
2. From where in heck did Irim Kessaku come from? I know she's important, that a ship-class was created after her and that she's sort of the Star Army of Yamatai's second-admiral-in-command... but I also have little insight in the character, how she came up and what she did (or currently does).
The Kessaku Clan is aligned with the Ketsueruis. They're the ones running Kessaku Electronic Systems. It is therefore not surprising that most clan members are engineers and scientists.
Irim is the black sheep of the family:
Bookish girl she ain't.
Irim, aka the Ice Lady, (a moniker bestowed by her underlings). She climbed the ranks while working in SAINT. Yui trusts her and her martial skills enough to make her Taisho. And the only reason she's no longer Mistress Taisho is because Yui wanted that job. ^_^
That's all I know about her. There's enough there to build some sort of personality profile if you wanted to, I believe.
Kotori said:
3. From reader-available knowledge, just how did Yuumi die?
<s>The official word is that she was assiassinated. I wasn't around when it happened, so I don't know the details.</s>
Wes's edit: No, the capital city was turned into a crater by Elysians, and Yuumi was supposedly in it at the time.
Kotori said:
4. Please, tell me what the Jaaq'tah are and why the Star Army seems dedicated enough to kick their collective behinds as to make it an actual law proposal (I think I saw that somewhere).
It's simple psychology really. You see two powers trying to wipe each other out: The Draconian Leage (with the NDI being its military arm for all intents and purposes) and the Jaaq'tah. One is comprised mostly of humans, with a few alien races sprinkled in there. The other is comprised mostly of xenophobic lizards.
I'm guessing that you'll side with the guys who share most of your DNA.
Some of my answer for question 5 will shed more light on this.
Kotori said:
5. Background check on who the NDI are (race, cultural notes even?), where they come from (like, what star systems) and what their interests are?
(Derran, let us know if I get this wrong...)
The Nerimian Defense Initiative / The Nerimian Confederacy:
* Named for the Treaty of Nerima, which united several competing factions under the Confederacy.
* Species:
homo stellaris, genetically-engineered and/or evolved humans, relatively high chance of being born psionically-attuned.
* Cultural notes: the Nerimians trace their origins to their Earth, which they left a few centuries ago. (This might not be the Earth Yamataians and Nepleslians originated from, since they believe they have been space-faring for longer than that.) Nerimian culture has Japanese, American, and European influences. (Think a blend of Yamataian and Nepleslian culture.)
It has been noted that the military forces of Nerima and Yamatai get along very well. This might be a consequence of the fact that those serving in the Nerimian forces are mostly men, while those serving in the Yamataian forces are mostly Nekos. (I leave the rest to your imagination.)
However, put a Nerimian citizen and a Yamataian citizen in a room together, and things will get un-civil fast.
The Nerimian citizen would see the Yamataian as a traitor to humanity, as someone who would allow himself to be subjugated by and take orders from Nekos.
The Yamataian citizen, besides taking exception to that sentiment, would see in the Nerimian both the uncouthness of a Nepleslian and the arrogance of an Elysian Patrician.
If you ask me, both of them needs to mellow out.
Final history lesson coming soon, hopefully. Schoolwork is starting to look like a three-headed hydra again.