# Typhon Era Fliers *The Urth list — 3 messages, 2 voices, 23 Sep 1999* > Exported from an unofficial mirror of a public mailing list. Copyright > in each message remains with the person who wrote it. > Email addresses are obscured as `user at host`, the form the original > archive published. This file was rebuilt from parsed fields rather than > retained headers, so it is faithful in content but not byte-exact. --- ### Macronaut *23 Sep 1999, 14:49* My first post, and I hope one that does not repeat an earlier discussion! An earlier post remarked on the difference between the locust-like fliers in the era of Typhon and the cherry leaf fliers in use at the time of the Autarchy. Could the locust-shaped fliers be attack helicoptors of some sort? -- it seems to me that the blunt cylindrical bodies of such craft might resemble a locust or grasshoper. --- ### Mitchell A. Bailey *24 Sep 1999, 15:24 · follows Macronaut* Macronaut wrote:... > An earlier post remarked on the ... locust-like fliers in the era of > Typhon ...Could the locust-shaped fliers be attack helicoptors of some > sort? ... I seem to recall that Sev compared their "thrumming" sound as well as looks to that of locusts. That thought occurred to me during a period when we had an unusual amount of military copter traffic around here AND the usual early autumn grasshopper invasion. The hoppers make a racket very like little 'copters. Another thought floated up unbidden like a denizen of the Lake of Birds, who spat up its lead slingstones, even as I write: one of the final plagues in Revelation involved "locusts" which ascend from the Pit and attack people. Did Wolfe want to evoke that reference, tangentially? Make of that what you will. --- ### Macronaut *24 Sep 1999, 13:41 · follows Mitchell A. Bailey* Mitchell wrote: one of the final > plagues in Revelation involved "locusts" which > ascend from the Pit and > attack people. Did Wolfe want to evoke that > reference, tangentially? > Make of that what you will. I think it fits in very well with the idea of human interstellar empire, as represented by Typhon, as a plague upon the face of the Earth, ravaging its resources, driving down galactic property values, etc. etc. > --- "Mitchell A. Bailey" wrote: > Macronaut wrote:... >> An earlier post remarked on the ... locust-like >> fliers in the era of > Typhon ...Could the >> locust-shaped fliers be attack helicoptors of some >> sort? ... > I seem to recall that Sev compared their "thrumming" > sound as well as > looks to that of locusts. That thought occurred to > me during a period > when we had an unusual amount of military copter > traffic around here AND > the usual early autumn grasshopper invasion. The > hoppers make a racket > very like little 'copters. > > Another thought floated up unbidden like a denizen > of the Lake of Birds, > who spat up its lead slingstones, even as I write: > one of the final > plagues in Revelation involved "locusts" which > ascend from the Pit and > attack people. Did Wolfe want to evoke that > reference, tangentially? > Make of that what you will. > > > the New Sun and other works ---