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     Alliance Dept. of Names and Labels |
It had been nearly a month since the Alliance was formed, and things were still as chaotic as ever. Xanadu didn't even have an official designation, mainly because no one could decide what it was. "Alliance Space Station" was the easiest and most moderate, but some were angry because it simply wasn't very accurate. "Alliance Facility" was offered, as was "Alliance Asteroid Base", but the consensus was that these titles weren't very aesthetic. "It's a huge rock in space, there's nothing aesthetic about it," remarked one of the older civilians involved in the discussion. Murmurs of agreement and dissent both could be heard, and the discussion continued. "Alliance Colony" came next, but then one of the younger participants reminded everyone that the ship was mobile, and that opened up a whole new can of worms. "Alliance Mobile... Colony." "Colonies aren't supposed to be mobile," someone reminded, and there was another wave of concurring noises. "Alliance Worldship," began a woman, but a Camelynian in the room sternly reminded her that the title of worldship was already in use. "Moonship?" Too corny. "Asteroidship--" Nevermind. Then suddenly, an anonymous voice chimed in: "Alliance Mobile Inhabitable Exotemporal Transuniversal Gateway." A heavy and sudden silence followed, the participants momentarily stunned by either the large words, or simply because they remembered what Xanadu was actually capable of. Afterwards, everyone agreed that while this was the most accurate title, it was far too much to say or even remember. Random discussions about the subject continued for days. Clerks would interject during a conversation thinking they had come up with the perfect designation, only to be scowled at or shrugged off. Soon, everyone conceded that simply calling it "Xanadu" would have to suffice for now, at least until someone created a new, small word to describe the damned thing. BTC |