The Galactic Trade Tongue of the Milky Way, Core Speak.
Common Phrases
"This-being who I am assess your visual appeal elevated beyond the standard."
—Flirting in Core Speak (A task many consider borderline painful)
"This-unit observes negative outcome trajectory. Recommend cessation."
—Polite way of saying "You're about to get yourself killed."
"Emotive noise registered. Intent: humor?"
—Asking if someone just told a joke.
"Hunger state: elevated. Recommend intake of thermal-processed organic protean."
—“I’m starving. Let’s get lunch.”
"This-interaction achieves sub-optimal parameters. Permission to disengage?"
—The diplomatic equivalent of "I'm done with this meeting."
"Gratitude metric exceeds protocol baseline."
—“Thank you… a lot.”
Military Jargon
"Probability of success: non-ideal. Proceed anyway."
—Military slang for “We’re doing this the hard way.”
"Situation suboptimal. Chaos dominate."
—Military Core Speak slang akin to Earth's FUBAR
"Friendly units dispersed. Threat vectors multiply. Morale: theoretical."
—Battlefield humor for “We’re losing badly and everyone ran.”
"This-unit requests post-conflict system shutdown. Beverage priority: high."
—“I need a drink after this.”
"Hostile detected. Logic loop: initiate violence."
—Deadpan announcement before combat.
"Stealth protocol failed. Noise threshold: celebratory."
—Someone just blew the plan—and probably something else.
"Tactical cohesion: vaporized."
—Mission gone completely sideways.
Mercantile and Trade Phrases
"Profit vector acceptable. Proceed with transaction."
—Equivalent of “Deal.”
"This-contract’s clause node contains embedded risk spikes. Recommend renegotiation."
—“There’s a trap in the fine print.”
"Service-to-credit ratio: unsustainable. Terminate engagement."
—“You’re not worth what I’m paying.”
"Inventory discrepancy detected. Initiate forensic audit protocol."
—“Someone’s stealing. Check the books.”
"Negotiation parameters exceeded. Aggression threshold nearing."
—The polite way of saying “This haggling is about to get ugly.”
"Unit delivers functionally. Charisma module absent."
—“They get the job done, but nobody likes them.”
"Favor accrued. Repayment requested: mild."
—Calling in a minor debt.
"Payment confirmed. Honor cycle complete."
—“Thank you for your business.”
"Core compliance tag verified. Trust node: green."
—“They’re certified legit.”
"This-being who I am assess your visual appeal elevated beyond the standard."
—Flirting in Core Speak (A task many consider borderline painful)
"This-unit observes negative outcome trajectory. Recommend cessation."
—Polite way of saying "You're about to get yourself killed."
"Emotive noise registered. Intent: humor?"
—Asking if someone just told a joke.
"Hunger state: elevated. Recommend intake of thermal-processed organic protean."
—“I’m starving. Let’s get lunch.”
"This-interaction achieves sub-optimal parameters. Permission to disengage?"
—The diplomatic equivalent of "I'm done with this meeting."
"Gratitude metric exceeds protocol baseline."
—“Thank you… a lot.”
Military Jargon
"Probability of success: non-ideal. Proceed anyway."
—Military slang for “We’re doing this the hard way.”
"Situation suboptimal. Chaos dominate."
—Military Core Speak slang akin to Earth's FUBAR
"Friendly units dispersed. Threat vectors multiply. Morale: theoretical."
—Battlefield humor for “We’re losing badly and everyone ran.”
"This-unit requests post-conflict system shutdown. Beverage priority: high."
—“I need a drink after this.”
"Hostile detected. Logic loop: initiate violence."
—Deadpan announcement before combat.
"Stealth protocol failed. Noise threshold: celebratory."
—Someone just blew the plan—and probably something else.
"Tactical cohesion: vaporized."
—Mission gone completely sideways.
Mercantile and Trade Phrases
"Profit vector acceptable. Proceed with transaction."
—Equivalent of “Deal.”
"This-contract’s clause node contains embedded risk spikes. Recommend renegotiation."
—“There’s a trap in the fine print.”
"Service-to-credit ratio: unsustainable. Terminate engagement."
—“You’re not worth what I’m paying.”
"Inventory discrepancy detected. Initiate forensic audit protocol."
—“Someone’s stealing. Check the books.”
"Negotiation parameters exceeded. Aggression threshold nearing."
—The polite way of saying “This haggling is about to get ugly.”
"Unit delivers functionally. Charisma module absent."
—“They get the job done, but nobody likes them.”
"Favor accrued. Repayment requested: mild."
—Calling in a minor debt.
"Payment confirmed. Honor cycle complete."
—“Thank you for your business.”
"Core compliance tag verified. Trust node: green."
—“They’re certified legit.”
Writing System
Core Speak’s written form is a hybrid alphanumeric code derived from binary logic, optimized for machine readability and universal translation. Each character represents a phoneme or function, combining simplified alphabetic elements with numeric modifiers to indicate tense, plurality, or command level. For example, T9-VX3 might denote “Transmit (priority level 3).”
The system uses monospaced glyphs for clarity, designed to be easily rendered by holography, digital display, or etched into hard surfaces. It reads left to right, top to bottom, with punctuation serving structural, not expressive, purposes. Every symbol has a fixed value—no cursive, no calligraphy, no artistic variance. It is pure function, designed to be read by eye or machine at speed.
Geographical Distribution
Core Speak originated at the Galactic Core and radiated outward alongside the expansion of hyperspace jump networks and trade lanes established by the Core Council. Its adoption is near-universal among FTL-capable civilizations, particularly those engaged in interstellar commerce, diplomacy, or transit through Core-controlled gates. Today, fluency in Core Speak is considered a practical necessity—and often a cultural expectation—for any species wishing to participate in the wider galactic community.
Phonology
Core Speak was engineered for clarity across a broad range of vocal anatomies. Its phoneme set is intentionally minimal, built around universally producible sounds: open vowels, soft consonants, and limited tonal variance. Glottal stops and sharp fricatives are avoided due to potential translation errors across species.
Morphology
There are no gendered nouns, no case inflections, and minimal redundancy. Ambiguity is treated as failure. Redundancy is permitted only for error-checking in mission-critical speech. The result is a blunt, modular language that machines can parse and sapients can trust.
Syntax
There is no passive voice. Commands always begin with the verb. Questions use an initial query particle (“Query:”) followed by standard syntax. Word order is never flexible—rigidity ensures precision. If Core Speak sounds blunt, it's by design. Clarity overrides nuance.
Vocabulary
The lexicon of Core Speak is function-first and deliberately compact. Each term is unambiguous, often multisyllabic to aid machine parsing, and derived from simplified roots (e.g., “Thermo-Surge” for explosion, “Cognitive Echo” for memory, “Aqua Compound” for water). Synonyms are deprecated—one concept, one term.
Idioms and cultural expressions are rare, but some standardized metaphors have entered common use (e.g., “Error Cascade” for a chain reaction of failures). Slang is discouraged in formal use but exists in frontier dialects. Vocabulary expands only by Council-approved compound construction, preserving interoperability across species and systems.
Idioms and cultural expressions are rare, but some standardized metaphors have entered common use (e.g., “Error Cascade” for a chain reaction of failures). Slang is discouraged in formal use but exists in frontier dialects. Vocabulary expands only by Council-approved compound construction, preserving interoperability across species and systems.
Phonetics
The phonetics of Core Speak are deliberately modular and adaptable. It was engineered to be phonetically neutral, ensuring it can be articulated by a wide range of vocal anatomies—or bypass speech entirely.
Core Speak can be expressed through:
Standard vocalization, using a set of clearly distinguishable phonemes across common humanoid vocal ranges.
Tactile signals, such as rhythmic taps or pulses.
Color-coded light patterns, especially among photonic or non-vocal species.
Synthesized tones, for transmission via machine or ambient audio systems.
This multimodal design ensures that Core Speak can be communicated in hostile environments, vacuum, through machines, or even between species with no shared biology—making it the lingua franca of the stars by necessity, not elegance.
Core Speak can be expressed through:
Standard vocalization, using a set of clearly distinguishable phonemes across common humanoid vocal ranges.
Tactile signals, such as rhythmic taps or pulses.
Color-coded light patterns, especially among photonic or non-vocal species.
Synthesized tones, for transmission via machine or ambient audio systems.
This multimodal design ensures that Core Speak can be communicated in hostile environments, vacuum, through machines, or even between species with no shared biology—making it the lingua franca of the stars by necessity, not elegance.
Tenses
Core Speak uses a strict temporal marker system rather than conjugation. Verbs remain in a base form, while tense indicators are applied as prefixes or numeric suffixes to clarify time.
Sentence Structure
Core Speak follows a rigid Subject–Verb–Object (SVO) structure to ensure universal clarity. Modifiers and additional data always follow in ordered, bracketed segments.
Rules:
No implied context — all core data must be stated explicitly.
Modifiers are non-nested, always sequential.
Subject omission is not allowed, even in repetition.
This rigid structure sacrifices poetic flow for unambiguous utility. In Core Speak, a sentence is a data packet—clean, direct, and machine-readable.
Rules:
No implied context — all core data must be stated explicitly.
Modifiers are non-nested, always sequential.
Subject omission is not allowed, even in repetition.
This rigid structure sacrifices poetic flow for unambiguous utility. In Core Speak, a sentence is a data packet—clean, direct, and machine-readable.
Adjective Order
Adjectives follow a strict Data-Type > Attribute > Quality sequence. Only up to three descriptors are permitted before a noun to avoid parsing confusion.
Order Structure:
Data-Type (e.g., species, function)
Attribute (e.g., size, color, material)
Quality (e.g., condition, rating)
Order Structure:
Data-Type (e.g., species, function)
Attribute (e.g., size, color, material)
Quality (e.g., condition, rating)
Structural Markers
Core Speak uses explicit structural markers to define a sentence’s function and prevent ambiguity. These are typically placed at the start or end of a sentence, and can also be embedded in brackets.
Common Phrases
“Signal received.”
Translation: I understand / Got it
(Used in place of “okay” or “roger that.”)
“Sync error.”
Translation: Misunderstanding or conflict
(Often said sarcastically when someone is clearly wrong.)
“You still think the Dreev started the war? Sync error, friend.”
“Full clarity.”
Translation: Total transparency or truth
“Speak with full clarity, or I walk.”
“Loop closed.”
Translation: Done, over, resolved
“We got the credits. Loop closed.”
“Non-priority data.”
Translation: I don’t care / Not important
“His opinion? Non-priority data.”
“You’re running softcode.”
Translation: You’re being emotional/illogical
“Pull it together—you’re running softcode.”
“Core-stable.”
Translation: Reliable, trustworthy, emotionally grounded
“She’s Core-stable. I trust her with my life.”
“Vocal drift.”
Translation: Talking nonsense or rambling
“Cut the vocal drift and state your intent.”
“Dead channel.”
Translation: Someone’s gone, unreachable, or ghosted
“Tried pinging her again. Still a dead channel.”
“Ghostline runner.”
Translation: Smuggler, hacker, or someone operating off-grid
“He’s a ghostline runner—don’t expect honesty.”
“Protean spill.”
Translation: Violence, usually sudden or messy
“That was no clean op—it was a full protean spill.”
“Scrub the data.” Translation: Forget it / Erase the evidence
“What happened on Yllion? Scrub the data.”
“Hard ping.”
Translation: Direct question or accusation
“You gonna answer that hard ping, or keep stalling?”
“Syntax frag.”
Translation: Confusing mess, corrupted logic
“That plan? Total syntax frag.”
“Time-buffer it.”
Translation: Wait a moment / Hold on
“Whoa, time-buffer it. We need clearance first.”
“Stack your lines.”
Translation: Get your story straight / Prepare to speak
“Ambassador’s here. Stack your lines.”
Translation: I understand / Got it
(Used in place of “okay” or “roger that.”)
“Sync error.”
Translation: Misunderstanding or conflict
(Often said sarcastically when someone is clearly wrong.)
“You still think the Dreev started the war? Sync error, friend.”
“Full clarity.”
Translation: Total transparency or truth
“Speak with full clarity, or I walk.”
“Loop closed.”
Translation: Done, over, resolved
“We got the credits. Loop closed.”
“Non-priority data.”
Translation: I don’t care / Not important
“His opinion? Non-priority data.”
“You’re running softcode.”
Translation: You’re being emotional/illogical
“Pull it together—you’re running softcode.”
“Core-stable.”
Translation: Reliable, trustworthy, emotionally grounded
“She’s Core-stable. I trust her with my life.”
“Vocal drift.”
Translation: Talking nonsense or rambling
“Cut the vocal drift and state your intent.”
“Dead channel.”
Translation: Someone’s gone, unreachable, or ghosted
“Tried pinging her again. Still a dead channel.”
“Ghostline runner.”
Translation: Smuggler, hacker, or someone operating off-grid
“He’s a ghostline runner—don’t expect honesty.”
“Protean spill.”
Translation: Violence, usually sudden or messy
“That was no clean op—it was a full protean spill.”
“Scrub the data.” Translation: Forget it / Erase the evidence
“What happened on Yllion? Scrub the data.”
“Hard ping.”
Translation: Direct question or accusation
“You gonna answer that hard ping, or keep stalling?”
“Syntax frag.”
Translation: Confusing mess, corrupted logic
“That plan? Total syntax frag.”
“Time-buffer it.”
Translation: Wait a moment / Hold on
“Whoa, time-buffer it. We need clearance first.”
“Stack your lines.”
Translation: Get your story straight / Prepare to speak
“Ambassador’s here. Stack your lines.”
Comments