User:Stargazer
I started reading Brandon's works in 2015 and have been following the community on and off since then. Finally decided to start contributing here in 2019. I'm new to editing wikis, so I'm mostly going to be using this for figuring that out.
Current Projects
- Ironsides (Admiral Judy Ivans): Research complete; putting it into article form.
- Cognitive Shadow: Noticed this on the urgent list and thought I'd put some work into it. Examples section done; will keep working.
Ironsides Work Somebody else's ctrl+f results:
- Ivans
- 5,33,40,49,52, I-1, I-2, I-3
- Ironsides
- prologue, 2,4,5,6,9,11,17-19,21,22,24,27,29,30,35,39,40,43,44,47-52,54, epilogue
“I'm not sure I'd wish this command on [the pilots I used to fly with]. Not even the ones I hated. ”
Admiral Judy Ivans (Callsign: Ironsides) is the leader of the DDF.[2] She is a First Citizen, and fought in the Battle of Alta. After Chaser's actions during the Battle of Alta, she is terrified of another person with the "defect" (the brain condition that grants access to Cytonic abilities) becoming a pilot and does everything in her power to prevent that from happening.[3] To that end, she tries to keep Spensa out of Flight School,[4] but does not have the authority to stop Cobb from adding her to his class.[5] However, in an effort to make life so difficult that Spensa gives up and quits, she issues an order barring Spensa from using any of the Flight School's facilities, including the mess hall and dormitories.
She is continually frustrated by the National Assembly Leaders denial of the existence of the "defect,"[3] removing their children--some of the top pilots--from the DDF,[6] and refusal to send up their private ships to aid the DDF during Krell attacks.[7]
Appearance and Personality
Admiral Ivans is "a tall older woman" with silver hair that comes down about to her chin.[2]
History
Early Days of the DDF and the Battle of Alta
Prior to the Battle of Alta, Ivans was the flightleader for Cobb and Chaser's flight and argued that Chaser should be allowed in the DDF despite having the defect. As the Krell descended prior to the Battle of Alta, she was outspoken in urging the DDF to fight, despite the high number of incoming Krell. In the battle, she gave Chaser permission to fly up to space after he promised that he could control the defect. When he returned and began attacking DDF pilots, she gave the order to shoot him down, though her name was redacted in the official report. After the battle, to protect his family, she insured that the official report said Chaser turned coward and tried to fly away rather than that he was a traitor.
Command of the DDF
Some time after the Battle of Alta, she realized that she was getting too old to fly and became Admiral of the DDF; she may have spent some time as a junior admiral between retiring as a pilot and assuming command of the entire DDF.
As a military commander, Ivans is cautious and reluctant to commit the entirety of her forces. However, she has a limited number of both pilots and acclivity rings and lowers the standards to be accepted as a cadet and sends up less experienced cadets just to be able to fend off the Krell incursions.
When Spensa attempts to take the pilot's test, Ivans specifically orders that she is not to be admitted, personally supervises the administration of the test, and gives Spensa a test to be a sanitation worker, not a pilot. Later, Cobb forces her to allow Spensa to be enrolled in his class, but she forbids Spensa from using any of the Flight School facilities in an effort to make Spensa's life so difficult that she drops out. After seeing Chaser turn on her flight members, she is terrified of someone else with the defect joining the DDF.
As her number of pilots and acclivity rings dwindles, she eventually decides to make a bold strike for a shipyard in a decaying orbit. When a lifeburster slips past, she is forced to send a scout flight to destroy it. When a second lifeburster makes it past the death ring, she authorizes Spensa to shoot it down regardless, in the hopes of saving Igneous.