Strip 550 -- First Seen: 2010-10-15
Escape From Terra is updated with new pages every Monday through Friday.

Halfway there!

The Kickstarter campaign to print the next volume of Quantum Vibe: Novo Palermo - Part 1 is now halfway to our goal. We need your help getting the rest of the way there. Tell your friends, family members, and your pets to back our campaign.

Every little bit helps! The campaign ends midnight (US central time) November 18. So there's still time to get the word out, or maybe add another item to your current pledge.

Your reward for backing our campaign starts with a personalized signed copy of the perfect bound printed collection of the online strip. You may also choose the ebook edition, a PDF downloadable from DriveThruComics.

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QV on a short break

QUANTUM VIVE is taking a break for a few weeks, as we prepare for Part 2 of the Novo Palermo story, and also for a Kickstarter campaign for Part 1, which will start in September.

In the meantime, Not-Safe.Space will continue, as a murder mystery begins and the relationship between Eithne and Diana develops in unexpected directions.

Not-Safe.Space is a NSFW strip but more than half the pages are SFW so I've set those to *not* require a Patreon membership. Readers should be able to follow the story without seeing the NSFW pages. If I've done this right.

The Transcript For This Page

Panel 1
Wide panel. Over on the left, Bert (with Ernie seated next to him) is giving testimony. On the right, Merry is holding her hand up and stating objections. We can see several spectators seated on the benches behind them.
Bert: … So at the end of the second day, we returned to the shuttle landing site and found the shuttle was stolen.
Merry: Objection!
Bert: We were stranded on Ida, and figured that the pirates …
Merry: Objection!
Bert: … would just wait for our suits to run out of power and they could then just come back and grab our claim over our frozen bodies.
Merry: Objection!

Panel 2
Narrow panel. Medium shot of Pablo at his desk, leaning back in his chair with his hands folded (fingers entwined) across his belly.
Pablo: Shush, Merry. You and your clients will have their turn.

Panel 3
Looking past Bert at Pablo, who is now sitting up in his seat, hands folded together on his desk.
Caption: Finally ….
Bert: Yes, Sv. Rosenberg, that's when I commed P.J to let him know his rental craft was left on Dactyl.
Pablo: Thank you. Sv. Guzmán.
Pablo: Sv. Petzger, do you have any questions for Bert or Ernie?

Panel 4
Three shot of Bert, Ernie and Merry. The brothers are seated, Merry is standing near them, with her little electronic note-pad in hand, as she cross-examines them. Of necessity we'll have to be looking at the brothers from either behind or from the side, but in this frame they need to be to the right of Merry.
Merry: Yes, Sv. Rosenberg, I do.
Merry: Sv. Guzmán, did you actually witness my clients taking your transport?
Bert: No, but …

Panel 5
Close-up on Pablo, pointing a directing finger towards Bert.
Pablo: Sv. Guzmán, please answer the question asked.
Pablo: I will give everyone plenty of opportunities to explain and clarify everything, ad nauseam.

Panel 6
Merry is standing in front of Bert, leaning over, getting in his face. Bert just sits there looking unhappy.
Merry: Did you personally witness my clients damaging your craft?
Bert: No ma'am.

Panel 7
Medium c/u of Merry, pointing one index finger skyward in a gesture of triumph.
Merry: Then how can you say with any certainty, that my clients were the ones who did these things?
Panel 8
Three-shot of the brothers, and Merry. We can see some of the spectators behind them. Merry has started to walk back to her seat but stops short as Bert unexpectedly answers her question. Bert is holding up a small object that looks like an SD smart card.
Bert: Oh, it was all video recorded and digitally signed by Little Toot's security system.
Bert: I've got the surveillance recording right here.