Intruder: Toonami's interactive event in September of 2000 that rocked the anime, sci-fi, and computer grafics world. In Intruder, an unidentified entity breachs the 49th level of the Absolution, the starship responcible for all Toonami transmissions. Of coarse, being incharge, Tom had to save the day. Sara, the ships onboard computer, has no idea what this unknown presents aboard the ship is. After getting knocked out of the ship by the Intruder and found by the clydes, Tom goes down to level 49 only to find a three level long hole running through the Absolution. The entity is growing and is now consuming the Starboard engine. Tom follows it to the engine, ready to take it on, uh, after sending a clyde ahead first. Scaring the sh*t out of fans, Tom is eaten the Intruder. But all is not lost, of coarse. With three spare frames sitting in the sleep chambers somewhre aboard the ship, Sara 'reincarnates' our host with some serious upgrades. The Intruder has now completly taking over the Starboard engine, and with only one choice, Tom sets explosives on the starboard wing. The destruction of the engines, sends the remains off into space, leaving the Intruder to wander again. The ship now has one missing engine and, put to a vote by the fans, the Talon ST model took the old ones place. Once repaired by Starpower, the Absolution launches again with some major changes but it's all good.
CHARACTERS
Tom Profile:
Tom-1
I'm writing this one myself folks due to no info on Toonami.com. It's all to the letter, nothing made up or favoratized.
Tom's original model was that of a communications droid. He was created to run and maintain the Absolution, an L Class D Space Explorer. Three other 'shells' were also made in the event that something happened to the first and Tom's AI Matrix would need a new body. The Absolution itself is large ship in relation to others and hard to run. Tom created robots known as Clydes to help with the ships up keep. Still with a large ship to run, Tom finially decided to activate the Absolution's onboard computer, "Sara".
Tom's original model wasn't meant for demanding tasks or combat by any means. Being discribed as 'moving parts' now and then, there wasn't much impressive outwardly about the original model besides his extremely advanced AI programing. This programing aloud Tom to develope a unique personality and make him a likeable guy.
From here out it's official Toonami text
Tom-2:
Not much is known about the specifics of the Tom-2 chassis. Work was begun on Tom-2 immediately following the activation of the "Sara" AI. Upon careful examination of the spare Tom-1 frames still in the storage pods, Sara decided - based on interaction with the original Tom - to make some upgrades. Manufacturing parts inside the Absolution, Sara upgraded Tom-2 slowly over the course of several weeks. These upgrades are rumored to include a new camera tracking system mounted on Tom's helmet, front bending knees, and the nuclear reactor which powers the unit has been moved into the (protective) chest cavity. This is obviously the more "combat ready" model. In light of more recent events, Sara chose this body above the other two still in the sleep chamber because of it's combat potential. Meanwhile, Sara continues to upgrading the Tom frames still in the storage pods. After all, space is a very dangerous place......
(It's Evolution People!)
Sara Profile:
"Sara" is the Absolution's onboard computer. An Artificial Intelligence Matrix, "Sara" is a model designed by Professor William Gill. Gill was one of the pioneers of a new way of looking at AI - which he called "non linear imaging capacity". An artificial intelligence with the ability to learn not only from cause/effect experiences, but able to learn simultanious tasks and their relationships to one another within the context of a larger whole. Processing the sum total of this information is something humans can do but until recently no "program" could mimic this ablity. Gill also created an emotions chip (modifiable) for the Sara AI that allowed for further depth in character. The Sara AI became, for a time, a standard option on many of the large freighter/tanker sized ships. Sara could act as a navigator, pilot, maintenance crew and even captain for deep space operations. Eventually Sara was replaced by the now popular "Bob" AI, also developed by Gill. Yet, to this day the Sara Matrix is considered a highly reliable AI fit for just about anything. The Absolution being a large (M) class starship, came with a Sara Matrix onboard (factory standard). Sara has only recently been activated on the ship. Tom discovered that running a vessel of the size and complexity of the Absolution was growing increasingly harder to accomplish on his own. As a result, Tom activated the "Sara" Matrix. Being an artificially intelligent robot himself, Tom discovered that he enjoyed Sara's company - and she enjoyed his. The rest, as they say, his history.
Clydes:
The Clyde 50s were developed by Tom. A close relative of the Clyde One, the Clyde 50's were designed to have slightly less personality flaws. They are not artificially intelligent beings - they are merely robots. Tom designed them to be floating camera/toolboxes, with a wide range of functions, but not much in the way of consciousness. This way, they couldn't get in too much trouble. Theoretically. The Clyde 50 runs off an anti-gravity power cell, which allows minimal propulsion but great maneuverability. The true extent of the Cylde 50's powers are only know by Tom, and he isn't talking. We do know that the Cyldes all come with at least four telephoto lenses, though their range remains a mystery. They also have ultraviolet and infrared spectrum imaging capabilities. The Cylde 50's aren't the first, and they wont be the last, but they are a Tom original.
Intruder Back Story:
Little is known about the Intruder that boarded the Absolution. It spread from deck AA23 and appeared to be consuming the starboard engine of the ship. According to recent files this entity has been seen in connection with several disturbances going back atleast 100 solar years. Below is a list of all known disturbances in which the Intruder is suspected to have appeared. (All dates correspond to the Universal calander, and may not be relevant to records of certain quadrants).
UC 194 - Entity destoyes deep space way station reliant in Alpha Quadrant. Description fits profile of current Intruder: A large, ever-expanding gelatinous life form that appears to be impervious to enegry weapons of any kind, and eats metal. Once the station way destroyed, the "blob" disappeared.
UC 199 - Deep space mining vessal "Cygna 5" reports contact with "unknown lifeform". Two solar days later "Cygna 5" broadcasts universal distress signal, detailing near complete destction of ship, followed by escape of 85% of crew into life boats. The crew was recued, delirious, 15 solar days later. Agian, contact with the entity is lost.
UC 210 - Earth scientific research probe "Voyager IV" reports back contact with unknown alien - "A large amoebae-like being" floating in deep space. Contact with Voyager is lost permanently thereafter. Voyager IV is assumed eaten by entity.
UC 220 - Galactic Congress orders interstellar combat vessel "Horizon" to patrol quadrant where last known sighting of the entity was reported. After arriving at the last known position of the entity, the Horizon disappeared from scanners and is never heard from agian.
As you can see from the above data, the Intruder that boarded the Absolution fits the above discriptions. These reports paint a disturbing picture. Maximum care should be taken when confronting this entity. All possible intelligence should be gathered and broadcast for furtherance of scientific study of this life form.
Guns:
(Pistol) Kiefer B-9 Pistol
The Kiefer B-9 is used primarily in home defence situations within frontier towns of the other rim. Its most common application is for a stun gun/blaster for police forces. The B-9 is commonly used by bounty hunters, due to its low price and cost of ammo replacement. The B-9 runs on a nuclear fusion reactor that requires replacement every 500 solar years. The phase range of its capabilities range from level 4 (stun) to level 9 (coma). Its blaster application is a mini-ion discharge, which is capable of delivering enough force to destroy 5 cubic feet of matter. Lightweight, highly accurate, and available in mass quantities, the B-9 is one of the most common weapons in the known universe. CAUTION: The blaster function of the B-9 is not to be used on anti-matter being of any kind. This can cause a chain reaction with enough force to destroy any surrounding planets. (See 9/4/95, Earth calendar, destuction of 4 worlds in Olon System). The Kiefer Corporation is not liable for the misuse of the B-9 Blaster in reference to anti-matter reactions.
(Rifle) Kiefer A-1 Plasma Rifle
A companion to the B-9 Blaster, the A-1 Plasma Rifle is one of the most commonly used weapons of our time. The A-1, while not as ubiquitous as the B-9 Pistol, is still a stable law enforcement in most civilized galaxies. The A-1 is lightweight, yet packs enough to punch a hole through almost any unshielded ship or structure. The A-1 is more expensive than most other weapons of its type, but is not outrageously priced (except on the black market). The A-1 has three main settings. The first is a laser blast, which is highly accurate to and beyond 1500 meters - yet is not exstreamly powerful. The second is a focused electron beam, which is almost strictly a short range weapon, but is extremely volatile and powerful enough to nullify some shields. The third and final setting is a photon grenade, which uses most of the power in the nuclear cell (half life is 50,000 years). This grenade is capable of destruction on a massive scale - to such a degree that it is illegal to own the A-1 on several civilized worlds. The Kiefer Corporation is currently developing an add-on for the A-1 that allows it to become an automatic photon blaster - This application would be used more in deep space combat involving armored suits. This add on in extremely costly, and is currently not very widely used in conjuction with this weapon.
