pepperjack
A Variety of Cheese
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This is the kind of thing you can do when you don't have to listen to the US government anymore.
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Ack
(Verified Ratbag) (Unverified Great Old One)
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Given that Dragon never thought Paige deserved to be in there in the first place, maybe she can simply not take her back? After all, serving a year in the 'Cage would be like ten years anywhere else.
AliasBot
Here's to not going that extra mile
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So Akaihana's worked closely enough with at least Vicky to be on a first-name basis. Nice.
...and yet, Vicky either hasn't figured out the reason for that discomfort in two years' time, or she's being willfully ignorant because she doesn't want to dwell on the fact that it's probably her fault. Either way, Thinkers are still dumb.
Also, Akaihana's armor has the best name.
It's a very belated realization that's only tangentially related, but I finally realized how poetic it was that the three Fates were the ones that 'slew' the Simurgh, the ultimate tangler of fates. Don't know if that was intentional or not, way back when, but I appreciate it either way.
Daunmi
Shun the sun, night so nice
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Fuck, I'm assuming Dragon pulled her ass out the minute she was able, along with any of the other people she thought shouldn't be in there. As far as I know, Dragon never liked being forced to keep people who shouldn't be in the Birdcage caged.
Ack
(Verified Ratbag) (Unverified Great Old One)
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I like that, yes.
EragonVsHarry
Getting out there.
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Maybe its the late hour, but is it possible you quoted me by mistake? Cause I have NO idea whats going on or how your reply relates to what I said.
If there was no mistake, could you clarify? I dont think I can respond properly without knowing more about what you're trying to say
Daunmi
Shun the sun, night so nice
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Yeah, it just seems obvious. All this time she's hampered by laws and restrictions that require her to blindly follow the decisions of others and, even if they change their mind later, she's required to maintain the 'Nobody leaves the Birdcage' standard. She's honestly good enough that she hates having no choice in the matter and hates having to be the jailer of literally innocent people (along with people like Paige who, whilst not completely innocent, definitely got the short straw in canon).
Very much a case of "screw the rules, I'm doing what's right" and Dragon would be so ecstatically happy that she can finally do that.
As for Paige's sentence, well, I think you said it best
... Except now I'm expecting an OC because they haven't managed to crack her restraints fully yet and TanaNari is just leading us on.
Prince Charon
Just zis guy, you know?
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I'm sort of imagining this wedding being described (by a precognitive troll) to the original Vicky. Something like: "A couple of years after your death fighting Crawler, an abomination partially created by Bonesaw and known to the world as Victoria Dallon will attend the wedding of two more such abominations who are supposed to be Skitter and your sister. The only one who really sees them for what they are is Tattletale, whom your abomination torments."
Dreadis
No idea whats going on
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Made or Cooked up, both breaks the flow of the sentence.
evildice
(emotionally stable clown posse)
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Yeah, that was my assumption of what Dragon meant when she thanked Lisa, since she'd need Cauldron to do the heavy lifting of asking Doormaker to make a door, plus Avalon to give those people a place to live where the Birdcage wouldn't be a future risk.
I don't think Dragon can do that on her own -- not merely a matter of her own programming, or the other heroes watching for break-ins, but also just the plain old physical security of the place. If you don't have Doormaker, I think there's no easy way to just let the worthy ones out.
Nah, I just didn't read your post before responding.
I figured my reply would waste a small but noticeable amount of your time, which would have the positive result of a flash of enlightenment, and then you'd learn a valuable after-school lesson and we'd all get icecream just like on TV.
But I don't see any icecream.
You did have the flash of enlightenment, right?
meta_halo
Making the rounds.
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During?
Actually, if anyone deserves the blame it's Prim-the-Amazing, since I've recently been reading THE TECHNO QUEEN
Yes.
.
.
.
.
.
The real answer is that I'm not 100% sure myself. Whichever is most LOL/d'awww/gibber-inducing I guess.
I'd tell you that it was intentional dramatic ambiguity, but actually it's mainly because writing is hard, yo! Nothing like staring at a paragraph for an hour to give you new respect for authors.
And speaking of writing being hard, I'll be splitting the rest of the story up into two parts, so three total. The second is written and I just need to format and post it. The final part will hopefully be coming later today, but I might not finish it in time.
Still Totally Not Canon Omake: Happily Ever After, Part 2
meta_halo
Making the rounds.
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Part 1
Happily Ever After, Part 2
Part 3
WARNING: More crack than Piggot in a thong.
Taylia paused the story for a moment, as the mention of food had caught the children's attention. Zimmy's stomach growled, but her eyes never left her grandmother. Levi, on the other hand, had started gnawing on the carpet. Unfortunately the carpet was mostly decorative at the moment, which Taylia idly remedied by increasing its nutritional value. Noticing the change in taste, he spit it out with a "Blech!" and a sour face. Kids can be such fussy eaters.
Levi scampered over to the pile scattered pile of blocks and action figures that had been a pint-sized city at the beginning of the evening. He moved over to where Bemmy was chewing on the leg of an Eidolon action figure, which flailed weakly in a futile attempt to escape. Well, that's a bit disturbing, Taylia thought. I should probably ask one of the Dralins to tone down the realism on those toys. Levi grabbed the Eidolon's other leg, beginning a tug of war with his brother. "Who wants cookies?" she quickly asked.
"I do!" Levi shouted, followed closely by another "I do!" from Bemmy. The Eidolon figure, saved from their attentions, began slowly pulling itself to safety on its elbows. "Me too!" their sister chimed in, casually picking up the figure and throwing it back into a pile with the others.
"Okay, but only if you behave." Taylia gave the command to begin growing a box of Samosas in the kitchen as she spoke, so that she would be able to make good on her offer later, studiously ignoring an indignant "Samosas? You heathen!" from Libecca. "Promise me you'll listen quietly until the end."
"We promise!" the three siblings said in unison, and with that Taylia continued her tale.
Happily Ever After, Part 2
Part 3
WARNING: More crack than Piggot in a thong.
Taylia paused the story for a moment, as the mention of food had caught the children's attention. Zimmy's stomach growled, but her eyes never left her grandmother. Levi, on the other hand, had started gnawing on the carpet. Unfortunately the carpet was mostly decorative at the moment, which Taylia idly remedied by increasing its nutritional value. Noticing the change in taste, he spit it out with a "Blech!" and a sour face. Kids can be such fussy eaters.
Levi scampered over to the pile scattered pile of blocks and action figures that had been a pint-sized city at the beginning of the evening. He moved over to where Bemmy was chewing on the leg of an Eidolon action figure, which flailed weakly in a futile attempt to escape. Well, that's a bit disturbing, Taylia thought. I should probably ask one of the Dralins to tone down the realism on those toys. Levi grabbed the Eidolon's other leg, beginning a tug of war with his brother. "Who wants cookies?" she quickly asked.
"I do!" Levi shouted, followed closely by another "I do!" from Bemmy. The Eidolon figure, saved from their attentions, began slowly pulling itself to safety on its elbows. "Me too!" their sister chimed in, casually picking up the figure and throwing it back into a pile with the others.
"Okay, but only if you behave." Taylia gave the command to begin growing a box of Samosas in the kitchen as she spoke, so that she would be able to make good on her offer later, studiously ignoring an indignant "Samosas? You heathen!" from Libecca. "Promise me you'll listen quietly until the end."
"We promise!" the three siblings said in unison, and with that Taylia continued her tale.
Things had finally calmed down, relatively speaking, by the evening. Amelia had tracked Clarice down to her lab, which she was keeping mostly opaque to Amelia's senses. WorriedUnderstandingPatient Being reminded of her past life like that can't be easy. She'll come out when she's ready.
Taylor officially introduced Aisha to the rest of the team, being the (sober) member of Pantheon who knew her best. "Think Zach, but with Stranger powers and even less of a filter." about summed it up. Then Aisha filled everyone at the table in on what she and Alec had been up to while presumed dead, which basically amounted to "doing awful things to awful people." Taylor had to admit that the one with the Elite and a truckload of live squid was pretty impressive, albeit disgusting.
Meanwhile Zach and Alec were in the living room, having a FPS marathon. Theo had been uncomfortable with letting the son of a famous supervillain hang out in their base with so little oversight, but no one could argue with Zach's logic. "Okay, raise your hands if you'd rather put up with Alec and Aisha at the same time. Anyone? Anyone? Right, that's what I thought. Well then, I guess I'll just need to take one for the team." He feigned reluctance as he fired up the console.
"What the hell, dude?" Alec cried as the explosion took out both of their characters. "That's like the fifth time you've gone for a double kill when I was winning. What do you think this is, Sim Suicide Bomber?"
"Hey, I'm just doing what works," Zach replied. "Maybe I wouldn't need to use grenades so much if you didn't keep making my thumb twitch whenever I tried to line up a headshot."
"First of all, you did NOT just accuse me of using my powers to cheat," responded an irate Alec. "And even if I was, it was only because you were being such a FUCKING CAMPER!"
Their bickering, and Aisha's gleeful enumeration of alternative uses for quick-drying cement, were interrupted by the return of Clarice, who looked rather anxious and ashamed. "Amelia, Missy, Theo … I need to tell you something," she said hesitantly, looking down at the ground and scuffing her feet. "I was a bad girl. I, I… " she stopped.
"It's okay," Amelia replied in her kindest, most soothing voice. "Even if you did a bad thing, it doesn't mean you're a bad girl. Whatever happened, we're all friends and family here. You can tell us." Wait, are we all friends here? thought Amelia. I feel like I'm forgetting someone. ConfusionDreadSupport echoed Taylor.
"Well," Clarice began, "you know how Vicky thought it would be funny to arrange the seating chart to put Akaihana next to Chevalier, Narwhal, Adalid, and Gla- Valkyrie?" Their heads nodded in confirmation. Zach had even tried to start a betting pool on the diameter of the puddle the poor woman would leave behind in her seat, until Emma and Missy had smacked him in unison.
"After I ran out, Akaihana came up to me," Clarice continued, "and said she wanted to 'thank me for all my hard work' on her suit." Missy suddenly went rigid. "She asked if I could help her with some tune-ups, so we went to my lab." Now Theo had tensed up as well, and everyone else was looking increasingly concerned.
"Once we were in the lab she said I looked unhappy, so I told her what happened today, and how bad I felt about what I'd done to Aisha and Alec and everyone else back then. She gave me a hug, which was nice, but then she kept hugging me and started asking all these questions. Questions like:
Theo had grown increasingly livid over the course of the story, and had started looking around for something, or someone, to vent his barely-contained rage on. Missy, however almost seemed to have become calmer, if not for two things. The first was her thousand-yard stare. The second was a growing distortion around her right fist, which she seemed unaware of. Taylor could feel her nearby bugs being sucked toward it, the heavy Ygdrassil-wood table was beginning to crack and splinter, and even light was beginning to bend around Missy's clenched fist. Everyone except Clarice began slowly backing away.
RageHorrorVengeful Taylor made an effort to control her voice as she asked, "Clarice, did she do anything to you? Anything … inappropriate?"
"Umm," Clarice hesitated before working up the courage to reply, "no, but that was about when she … slipped. And hit her face on the corner of my workbench. Three times."
The burgeoning singularity in Missy's hand dissipated with an audible out-rushing of air, as her expression changed from grim determination to grim satisfaction. Everyone relaxed fractionally. But Clarice had just pause to gauge their reactions; she wasn't done yet.
"And then she kind of tripped into some of my wrenches, and the welding equipment, and the workbench again, and then she accidentally fell into a healing pod for a bit, and when she came out she slipped again …"
"The goo from those damn pods is an occupational safety hazard." Zach deadpanned.
"… she slipped and landed on some of the zerg I was upgrading, and my old remote-controlled body, and the welding equipment again, and another healing pod, and finally she somehow managed to stumble into the body swapping machine, which was mysteriously active at the time, and now she's a platypus."
Everyone was silent for a moment as they digested this information. Finally, Amelia spoke in carefully measured tones, "Well, I guess accidents happen. The important thing is that you're okay." She hugged the grateful Clarice, and it soon became a group hug as Missy, Theo, and Zach joined, while Taylor and Emma contented themselves with patting her on the head.
"Thanks everyone," Clarice said as she blinked back tears. "I try to be good, I really do, but it can just be so hard sometimes."
"It's okay," Missy replied, "just keep trying. And don't ever stop being you." With that she kissed Clarice on the cheek, making her blush profusely.
"I hate to talk strategy at a time like this," Taylor interrupted, "but what happened to Akaihana's body?"
"It's still in my lab, in a state of suspended animation," said Clarice. "I could put her mind back at any time. Maybe I should go do that; I'm already feeling a bit bad…"
Taylor was already assuming her role as commander. "No, don't be too hasty about that. Let's give her some time to reflect on what she did. No one who attempts to take advantage of one of our members should expect to get off lightly." ReluctanceAgreement She looked around the room; there were no objections. "And in the meantime we should think about how we can turn this situation to our advantage. What happened was unfortunate, but there could be a silver lining."
Amelia joined the discussion next. "We have to be careful though, and discreet. Akaihana is potentially one of the strongest parahumans in the world. If our enemies learn that she's … temporarily indisposed … they might also try to take advantage of the situation." The others nodded in agreement. But why did I get the sense that someone was laughing madly when I said "discreet"? Amelia wondered.
"Eh, don't worry about it," Zach scoffed. "She's surrounded by some of the other strongest parahumans in the world, safe inside the very heart of Avalon, and we're the only ones who know what went down. What's the worst that could possibly happen?" Zach paused for a moment to reflect.
"Why do I get the feeling that I just said something really stupid? And who was I playing multiplayer with before Clarice came in, anyway?"
Taylor officially introduced Aisha to the rest of the team, being the (sober) member of Pantheon who knew her best. "Think Zach, but with Stranger powers and even less of a filter." about summed it up. Then Aisha filled everyone at the table in on what she and Alec had been up to while presumed dead, which basically amounted to "doing awful things to awful people." Taylor had to admit that the one with the Elite and a truckload of live squid was pretty impressive, albeit disgusting.
Meanwhile Zach and Alec were in the living room, having a FPS marathon. Theo had been uncomfortable with letting the son of a famous supervillain hang out in their base with so little oversight, but no one could argue with Zach's logic. "Okay, raise your hands if you'd rather put up with Alec and Aisha at the same time. Anyone? Anyone? Right, that's what I thought. Well then, I guess I'll just need to take one for the team." He feigned reluctance as he fired up the console.
"What the hell, dude?" Alec cried as the explosion took out both of their characters. "That's like the fifth time you've gone for a double kill when I was winning. What do you think this is, Sim Suicide Bomber?"
"Hey, I'm just doing what works," Zach replied. "Maybe I wouldn't need to use grenades so much if you didn't keep making my thumb twitch whenever I tried to line up a headshot."
"First of all, you did NOT just accuse me of using my powers to cheat," responded an irate Alec. "And even if I was, it was only because you were being such a FUCKING CAMPER!"
Their bickering, and Aisha's gleeful enumeration of alternative uses for quick-drying cement, were interrupted by the return of Clarice, who looked rather anxious and ashamed. "Amelia, Missy, Theo … I need to tell you something," she said hesitantly, looking down at the ground and scuffing her feet. "I was a bad girl. I, I… " she stopped.
"It's okay," Amelia replied in her kindest, most soothing voice. "Even if you did a bad thing, it doesn't mean you're a bad girl. Whatever happened, we're all friends and family here. You can tell us." Wait, are we all friends here? thought Amelia. I feel like I'm forgetting someone. ConfusionDreadSupport echoed Taylor.
"Well," Clarice began, "you know how Vicky thought it would be funny to arrange the seating chart to put Akaihana next to Chevalier, Narwhal, Adalid, and Gla- Valkyrie?" Their heads nodded in confirmation. Zach had even tried to start a betting pool on the diameter of the puddle the poor woman would leave behind in her seat, until Emma and Missy had smacked him in unison.
"After I ran out, Akaihana came up to me," Clarice continued, "and said she wanted to 'thank me for all my hard work' on her suit." Missy suddenly went rigid. "She asked if I could help her with some tune-ups, so we went to my lab." Now Theo had tensed up as well, and everyone else was looking increasingly concerned.
"Once we were in the lab she said I looked unhappy, so I told her what happened today, and how bad I felt about what I'd done to Aisha and Alec and everyone else back then. She gave me a hug, which was nice, but then she kept hugging me and started asking all these questions. Questions like:
'Have you ever seen a grown woman naked?'
'Do you like movies about women in prison?'
'Have you ever been to a Lustrum fanclub meeting?'
'Would anyone miss you if you disappeared for a week or two?'
I started to feel … funny. My sensors told me that she was emitting thousands of times the normal level of attraction pheromones, and then … hands."'Do you like movies about women in prison?'
'Have you ever been to a Lustrum fanclub meeting?'
'Would anyone miss you if you disappeared for a week or two?'
Theo had grown increasingly livid over the course of the story, and had started looking around for something, or someone, to vent his barely-contained rage on. Missy, however almost seemed to have become calmer, if not for two things. The first was her thousand-yard stare. The second was a growing distortion around her right fist, which she seemed unaware of. Taylor could feel her nearby bugs being sucked toward it, the heavy Ygdrassil-wood table was beginning to crack and splinter, and even light was beginning to bend around Missy's clenched fist. Everyone except Clarice began slowly backing away.
RageHorrorVengeful Taylor made an effort to control her voice as she asked, "Clarice, did she do anything to you? Anything … inappropriate?"
"Umm," Clarice hesitated before working up the courage to reply, "no, but that was about when she … slipped. And hit her face on the corner of my workbench. Three times."
The burgeoning singularity in Missy's hand dissipated with an audible out-rushing of air, as her expression changed from grim determination to grim satisfaction. Everyone relaxed fractionally. But Clarice had just pause to gauge their reactions; she wasn't done yet.
"And then she kind of tripped into some of my wrenches, and the welding equipment, and the workbench again, and then she accidentally fell into a healing pod for a bit, and when she came out she slipped again …"
"The goo from those damn pods is an occupational safety hazard." Zach deadpanned.
"… she slipped and landed on some of the zerg I was upgrading, and my old remote-controlled body, and the welding equipment again, and another healing pod, and finally she somehow managed to stumble into the body swapping machine, which was mysteriously active at the time, and now she's a platypus."
Everyone was silent for a moment as they digested this information. Finally, Amelia spoke in carefully measured tones, "Well, I guess accidents happen. The important thing is that you're okay." She hugged the grateful Clarice, and it soon became a group hug as Missy, Theo, and Zach joined, while Taylor and Emma contented themselves with patting her on the head.
"Thanks everyone," Clarice said as she blinked back tears. "I try to be good, I really do, but it can just be so hard sometimes."
"It's okay," Missy replied, "just keep trying. And don't ever stop being you." With that she kissed Clarice on the cheek, making her blush profusely.
"I hate to talk strategy at a time like this," Taylor interrupted, "but what happened to Akaihana's body?"
"It's still in my lab, in a state of suspended animation," said Clarice. "I could put her mind back at any time. Maybe I should go do that; I'm already feeling a bit bad…"
Taylor was already assuming her role as commander. "No, don't be too hasty about that. Let's give her some time to reflect on what she did. No one who attempts to take advantage of one of our members should expect to get off lightly." ReluctanceAgreement She looked around the room; there were no objections. "And in the meantime we should think about how we can turn this situation to our advantage. What happened was unfortunate, but there could be a silver lining."
Amelia joined the discussion next. "We have to be careful though, and discreet. Akaihana is potentially one of the strongest parahumans in the world. If our enemies learn that she's … temporarily indisposed … they might also try to take advantage of the situation." The others nodded in agreement. But why did I get the sense that someone was laughing madly when I said "discreet"? Amelia wondered.
"Eh, don't worry about it," Zach scoffed. "She's surrounded by some of the other strongest parahumans in the world, safe inside the very heart of Avalon, and we're the only ones who know what went down. What's the worst that could possibly happen?" Zach paused for a moment to reflect.
"Why do I get the feeling that I just said something really stupid? And who was I playing multiplayer with before Clarice came in, anyway?"
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Ack
(Verified Ratbag) (Unverified Great Old One)
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I have just one question. Two.
1) Where did they get the platypus from?
2) Why a platypus? Those things have one of the oddest mammalian genetic setups in the world (WZ chromosomes instead of XY) and they will literally walk off a dose of venom that will have an adult human being writhing in pain on the ground ... or, possibly, dead.
When it comes to 'bizarre' and 'badass', platypus actually tick both boxes.
But eh, no opposable thumbs, so I guess they miss out there.
1) Where did they get the platypus from?
2) Why a platypus? Those things have one of the oddest mammalian genetic setups in the world (WZ chromosomes instead of XY) and they will literally walk off a dose of venom that will have an adult human being writhing in pain on the ground ... or, possibly, dead.
When it comes to 'bizarre' and 'badass', platypus actually tick both boxes.
But eh, no opposable thumbs, so I guess they miss out there.
evildice
(emotionally stable clown posse)
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Australia.
Or was that a trick question?
Biotinkers presumably collect odd things.
If it's weird, you should expect to see seven of it in Riley / Blasto / Emma's labs.
sephlington
Making the rounds.
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I'd imagine Clarice was trying to see if she could improve them.
Starting with thumbs! Duck-billed, human-thumbed platypi! platypuses platypodes platypalooza whatever the plural is
Ack
(Verified Ratbag) (Unverified Great Old One)
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Platypus/es/i (opinion is divided as to what the actual plural is) do not have duck bills. They have flexible rubbery snouts, which look more like a cartoon duck bill than a real duck bill. And it's only on the upper jaw; the lower jaw is just a jaw. The 'bill' is packed with pressure sensors and electrosensors; they use it to sift through bottom mud, and detect everything that moves across it (pressure sensors) and can pick out which are bits of sand, and which are bugs (the electrosensors pick up bioelectricity).
But now I'm being too pedantic.
I would like to take the opportunity to say that I welcome the arrival of our new platypus/human hybrid overlords.
TanaNari
Verified Dick
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What's wrong with THIS one?
Yup.
What makes you think it's something that happened two years ago? For one thing, at most it would only be one year. For another, if they hang around a lot, they have PLENTY of time. For all you know, the two of them dragged Chevalier into a threesome last week.
They didn't. But you wouldn't know that if not for WoG.
And I was beginning to expect no one would EVER notice that symbolism.
TanaNari
Verified Dick
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I threw up a little at that descriptor.
Also, I spent a minute laughing at the platypus line. Is that a Phineas and Ferb reference?
dasstan
:)
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Oh, just the standard 'altered Vicky's brainmeats to make her more positively disposed towards Clarice'. Looking back, I really shouldn't have gibbered. It really didn't deserve anything more than a rueful sigh.
This is another one of those "I thought it was obvious so I didn't comment on it" ones. Pretty sure a lot of other people noticed and didn't comment for the same reason.
Snake/Eater
Myth Maker of the North
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I have a cracked theory that Amelia is a prequel to Adventuretime and Avalon will become the Land of OOO.
fishbait08
I trust you know where the happy button is?
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Finally have a chance to comment on the latest chapter.
See that our lovely newlyweds could have to deal with some drama at family gatherings in the future, since Vicky's still not entirely sold on her new sister-in-law, while Carol looks primed to go off on someone & cause a scene, most likely Mark, at some point in the future, assuming everyone makes it that far.
Seeing Vicky & Lisa needle each other was great.
Not surprised that she (and probably a lot of others) are still pissed over the stunts Lisa pulled to force her departure from Pantheon, and LOL at that description of Cauldron
Got a chuckle out of that line as well
See that our lovely newlyweds could have to deal with some drama at family gatherings in the future, since Vicky's still not entirely sold on her new sister-in-law, while Carol looks primed to go off on someone & cause a scene, most likely Mark, at some point in the future, assuming everyone makes it that far.
Seeing Vicky & Lisa needle each other was great.
Not surprised that she (and probably a lot of others) are still pissed over the stunts Lisa pulled to force her departure from Pantheon, and LOL at that description of Cauldron
Got a chuckle out of that line as well
Amelia, Ch 402- Weld
TanaNari
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Amelia, Ch 402- Weld
It was weird, being here on Avalon. And more than that, in the capital city. Pantheon's still not officially named seat of power. More than that, there was the thought that I could have been a part of this. I could have been one of their royal family, at least in as much as Osiris and some of the other peripheral members were.
I felt Sveta squeeze my arm. "You act like you've never seen a fancy building before."
I looked over at her. How much would it cost me to get a self healing shapeshifting suit that could turn into anything I wanted? "Well, never one which was hosting the marriage of the rulers of a planet, at least."
In retrospect, I was better off for not joining. I could make more of a difference campaigning for proper treatment of the Case 53s on Bet through the Protectorate than I could through Pantheon. Especially when they already had Sveta and some others to represent our interests on their side. I had to worry about the side that needed the help.
"They really are adorable together. You went to school with them? What were they like?"
Huh, but I only went to school with them for a few weeks. "Quiet. They were the shy types. Kept their heads down, tried to avoid being noticed. The smart, nerdy type that no one really pay attention to. Really the exact opposite of both of Amelia's sisters." They're a lot like you, actually. I left that part out. I personally found Sveta's shyness to be cute, but she resented that part of herself, so I didn't make a deal about it.
She smiled at that. "Vicky always says her sister is the quiet one. I always thought that meant she was quiet by Vicky's standards."
I laughed. "I get the feeling everybody's quiet by Vicky's standards."
Sveta's laugh was lyrical. "I just have trouble believing it. I've seen them give interviews in front of billions, and during the Endbringer battles, Khepri... Taylor... she had more command than anyone else there. Even the Triumvirate and Chevalier would defer to her orders. It just doesn't fit to imagine them as anything other than these larger than life figures."
"When you bring an army of mind controlled superweapons to the fight with you, I imagine people start listening." I put my arm around her waist. "Besides, you punched Leviathan in his face. You're one of the Endslayers. Powers aren't given out based on personality."
"Yeah, I guess." She looked behind me and her smile vanished. "Well, looks like our conversation's about to be interrupted."
"Sorry about that." A man's voice, I turned and was face to face with Chevalier. I'd met him before, a few times. But never had an opportunity to talk to him in person. The leader of the Protectorate, the second half of the Victoria-Chevalier interaction that was at least giving the Case 53s a chance at having a life. Not a normal life, but better than anything some of them might have been able to hope for, before. I was luckier than most in that regard.
"I'm assuming Vicky sent you this way to screen my new boyfriend? Why isn't she doing it herself, this time?"
Oh, that's pretty obvious. "I don't think her lie detection powers work on me." I tapped my arm just hard enough to get a metallic clunk out of it. My body wasn't hollow, and too dense to get the ringing noise typically imagined in metal hitting metal. This sounded more like hitting a concrete wall.
Chevalier nodded. "I see the two of you have it all figured out. I won't insult you by pretending otherwise. If it makes you feel any better, I vouched for you. Vicky trusts my judgment, so this is more a formality than anything."
Sveta sighed theatrically. "Well, if it makes Mom happy. I'll go mingle while pretending I don't know you're threatening my boyfriend with fates worse than death." She stood up on her toes and gave me a kiss on the cheek. "If they scare you off, at least let me know before you leave. That way I know whose ass to kick and why."
I returned the kiss. "I'll be sure you get the message. By carrier pigeon if I have to."
I watched her head off for a second, before turning back to face the man that could easily cost me my job if he wanted. "So, what's the rundown, sir?"
"You've already figured everything out anyway. Think Sveta knows?"
Oh, yeah, she's too smart not to have. "I think she suspects. She's a smart girl, and probably the most popular Case 53 on the planet. She has to be wary of people who might try to manipulate her. Given my blanket immunity to most forms of emotion or biology based Thinker powers, I am the most logical candidate if the Protectorate wanted to find a way to influence her. And, through her either Pantheon or the Case 53s. It doesn't help that other people have tried the same thing in the past."
Chevalier nodded. "In the immortal words of my girlfriend: 'fucking politics'. Vicky's instituted her own version of the Master/Stranger protocol involving Sveta's boyfriends. Most have just been individual opportunists and... Well, they say no matter what it is, there's going to be someone with a fetish for it."
I cringed inwardly. Most of the Case 53s had to deal with that once or twice in their lives. It never got any less awkward. "I'm going to assume that's what set off Vicky's one woman crusade against the Elite." That had been national news. And I did follow Vicky's career. I was even subscribed to her blog.
"Yeah. One of their former management, a social manipulation Thinker named Shark, hired a guy to try to seduce and manipulate her. Vicky figured it out. He may have said something along the lines of how there wasn't a law against what he did, so she couldn't do a thing about it. She took that as a challenge." Chevalier had to stop his story when we were interrupted by a commotion near the entrance. The newlyweds had finally arrived. "We'll have to finish the conversation later. Don't worry, I'm on your side here."
A woman's voice, I wasn't sure whose, spoke. "Presenting the Empresses of Avalon, Amelia and Taylor Hebert!"
The Empresses came wearing their armor, much like the rest of the wedding party had been. Not the full combat gear. Khepri was missing her wings, and Gaea wasn't in a nine foot tall plant thing. Just the dress outfit with their military medals glinting in the light. Apparently they had enough of being in dresses for the evening. A pair of spotlights I didn't even know were hidden in the ceiling focused on them. Leading them to the part of the floor intended for dancing, while those who'd opted to have conversations there backed out. Chevalier and I were safe enough in our corner.
Amidst the cheers of encouragement, including a very enthusiastic Victoria and Clarice, the pair walked out into the center of the dance floor. Taylor turned to the crowd. "We'd just like to thank you coming. This is a big day for us, and we're glad we can spend it with our friends and family. I just..."
"You're welcome and we love you, too," A woman in a black costume responded. "Now quit stalling and dance, already!"
Taylor smiled, and turned to put her hands on Amelia's hips. Then the music started and my heart stopped, figuratively speaking. The song was soft, romantic, and I had no idea what language it was in. The girls were enraptured by each other, we were enraptured by the music.
There could be absolutely no doubt who the singer was. Humans have five senses to interact with the world. I only had hearing and sight. And of those I was more sensitive to my hearing. This was Canary's song. I'd attended one of her live performances before, I'd never forget her voice, or the effect it had on me.
I stood, enraptured by the song while the two girls slowly danced in front of all the people present. Eventually, after a few painfully short minutes, the song ended. If there was any doubt in my mind before, it ended at that moment. The audience kept listening to the song even after it stopped. The couple danced for another minute before her power bled off and we returned to our normal mental states.
"Sir? I think... I think we need to talk to the singer. This is... there might have been an escape from the Birdcage."
He came down slower than I had. He didn't have the resistance I'd developed, or maybe it was my biology that let me recover faster, but that snapped him out of it. "You're sure?"
"Positive." I didn't want to do this, but there wasn't really a choice, was there? I worked around toward the back while everyone else was setting up for the food. I'd want allies for this, I might need them. I could trust Sveta. I worked my way toward her, tapping her shoulder.
I could see hurt in her eyes the moment she saw my face. "Please don't tell me you're really-"
"No, this is something else. I need you to come with me."
The three of us made our way into the back. If the caterers and other staff wanted to say something about the three of us not belonging back here, they did nothing. I overheard the conversation before opening the door.
"-appears stable. Minor fluctuations, nothing we can't null after a couple seconds. We just have to make sure you don't spend any longer than ten m-"
"Company." The door opened a second later and Vicky stepped out to greet us. "Oh, hi guys. We'll be out in a minute. Just a last minute chat with the singer."
I almost rolled my eyes. "We know she's Canary."
"Ah, gonna be that. Well, I guess you may as well come in." She stepped back.
I took the invite. I didn't think I was in any danger, I trusted Sveta and Chevalier, at least. I got a look at the room the band was in. The lead singer was a tall woman of apparent Hispanic ancestry, she didn't look anything like Canary. But this was Pantheon, and appearances meant nothing. In the corner, Clarice and another woman I didn't recognize, but was wearing Avalon's armor were toying with a machine I had to assume was Tinkertech of some sort.
"Hey, Paige, Weld here's a fan. Thinks you're Canary."
"I'm not." The woman replied. "But I'm a fan, too. Thus the stage name."
Really? "I'm sorry, but I know what Canary's singing was like, and I know all of her songs. This was her singing, but none of her songs. You're not going to convince me it's lip syncing."
Paige sighed. "Okay, you caught us. We're using Tinkertech to cheat. I'm afraid you'd have to talk to them, I'm not a Tinker at all." She gestured at the women at the machine. "They're why I can sing like that."
"Speak for yourself," one of the backup singers spoke. "We're totally using our powers. Circe, is there any way we can keep these after the party? I'm thinking maybe we serenade some of the girls who came here without dates? And later we could make careers as rock stars with these powers."
Another guy, who I guessed was the first one's twin since they looked identical, not that looks mattered around Pantheon, nodded emphatically. "Oh, we could get so much action from that."
"Men are such pigs," muttered the unknown woman. Circe? "I've got the recordings, we might be able to work it into a frequency we can plug into your armors. It's up to you to convince the Empresses to sign off on the rest of it."
I still wasn't buying it. Pantheon broke into the Birdcage, took someone out, and no one knew even knew it happened. This was a huge freakin' deal.
Paige approached me. "You heard that Canary died, right?"
I nodded. "That's what the news said at least." It had made the feeds almost a year ago.
"They left out how and why." Paige's eyes met mine. "We both know the real answer. They killed her, the courts and that corrupt fucking judge. Her trial was a sham. If she didn't look different, if she was given a fair trial. If she wasn't treated like an animal, if they saw her as a human being, she would never have been convicted. Not of anything Birdcage worthy."
Nothing I hadn't heard before, some of it I'd even argued myself. I publicly supported the protests after news of her death was released.
"Hey, Dragon, care to tell us how Canary died?" Vicky's voice startled me slightly.
"The prisoners refer to it as 'offering tribute'." Dragon wasn't here, but her voice came through the coms. "Glaistig Uaine, an incredibly powerful and undeniably insane Trump that can steal the powers of others by killing them, occasionally demands them. Or sometimes the cellblock leaders simply offer one to purchase some favor from her. The reports indicate that her power kills instantaneously, with no signs of pain. However, most victims used as tribute are aware of their impending fates. Canary was no exception."
"Horrific, right? That an innocent woman was fed to a monster. Not even as revenge or some kind of crime of passion. There's something human in those kinds of crimes. She was merely as a piece of property to be bought, sold, and used. Can you imagine a hell where that's so normal they've even given it a name? In a way, she was lucky. Being dead is preferable to living in that place." There were tears running down Paige's eyes by the time she finished speaking.
She's not wrong. I glanced over at Chevalier and Sveta. I could push this, and I should at that. Dragon is in control of the Birdcage, and through it Pantheon has access to all those monsters and all of their powers. But speaking out about it means Paige would be sent back to that hell.
I smiled, as best I could. "I'm sorry. I have always been a big fan of Canary. Your music is... well, that and the idea that she might still be alive. I might have jumped the gun a little. Hopefully you can understand the case of mistaken identity."
"Understand? I'll take it as a compliment. I expect I'll have to get used to it, if I want to perform like she does," Paige responded. I could see the relief in her eyes. "I'll probably limit my career to Avalon, for that reason."
"That's probably a good idea."
"What's your name, anyway?"
"Weld. I know, it's not normal, but I never bothered to get a civilian name. No point, it's not like I can have a secret identity."
"Okay, Weld." She held out her hand. "I'm glad to meet a fellow Canary fan. Hopefully you'll keep an eye on my career, too."
"Absolutely." I took her hand. I didn't dare squeeze, too great a risk of me hurting her. I wasn't willing to do that.
===============
A/N- Goddamn giant ass chapters. At this point, maybe I should just commit to singular 3k chapters a day instead of two ~1500-2k chapters.
Pick your own choice for what the music may have been.
Also- I *really* regret not putting a "Canary murdered in 'cage" chapter somewhere in the time skip. Oh well, hindsight. And sometimes I don't think of something in time to foreshadow it...
It was weird, being here on Avalon. And more than that, in the capital city. Pantheon's still not officially named seat of power. More than that, there was the thought that I could have been a part of this. I could have been one of their royal family, at least in as much as Osiris and some of the other peripheral members were.
I felt Sveta squeeze my arm. "You act like you've never seen a fancy building before."
I looked over at her. How much would it cost me to get a self healing shapeshifting suit that could turn into anything I wanted? "Well, never one which was hosting the marriage of the rulers of a planet, at least."
In retrospect, I was better off for not joining. I could make more of a difference campaigning for proper treatment of the Case 53s on Bet through the Protectorate than I could through Pantheon. Especially when they already had Sveta and some others to represent our interests on their side. I had to worry about the side that needed the help.
"They really are adorable together. You went to school with them? What were they like?"
Huh, but I only went to school with them for a few weeks. "Quiet. They were the shy types. Kept their heads down, tried to avoid being noticed. The smart, nerdy type that no one really pay attention to. Really the exact opposite of both of Amelia's sisters." They're a lot like you, actually. I left that part out. I personally found Sveta's shyness to be cute, but she resented that part of herself, so I didn't make a deal about it.
She smiled at that. "Vicky always says her sister is the quiet one. I always thought that meant she was quiet by Vicky's standards."
I laughed. "I get the feeling everybody's quiet by Vicky's standards."
Sveta's laugh was lyrical. "I just have trouble believing it. I've seen them give interviews in front of billions, and during the Endbringer battles, Khepri... Taylor... she had more command than anyone else there. Even the Triumvirate and Chevalier would defer to her orders. It just doesn't fit to imagine them as anything other than these larger than life figures."
"When you bring an army of mind controlled superweapons to the fight with you, I imagine people start listening." I put my arm around her waist. "Besides, you punched Leviathan in his face. You're one of the Endslayers. Powers aren't given out based on personality."
"Yeah, I guess." She looked behind me and her smile vanished. "Well, looks like our conversation's about to be interrupted."
"Sorry about that." A man's voice, I turned and was face to face with Chevalier. I'd met him before, a few times. But never had an opportunity to talk to him in person. The leader of the Protectorate, the second half of the Victoria-Chevalier interaction that was at least giving the Case 53s a chance at having a life. Not a normal life, but better than anything some of them might have been able to hope for, before. I was luckier than most in that regard.
"I'm assuming Vicky sent you this way to screen my new boyfriend? Why isn't she doing it herself, this time?"
Oh, that's pretty obvious. "I don't think her lie detection powers work on me." I tapped my arm just hard enough to get a metallic clunk out of it. My body wasn't hollow, and too dense to get the ringing noise typically imagined in metal hitting metal. This sounded more like hitting a concrete wall.
Chevalier nodded. "I see the two of you have it all figured out. I won't insult you by pretending otherwise. If it makes you feel any better, I vouched for you. Vicky trusts my judgment, so this is more a formality than anything."
Sveta sighed theatrically. "Well, if it makes Mom happy. I'll go mingle while pretending I don't know you're threatening my boyfriend with fates worse than death." She stood up on her toes and gave me a kiss on the cheek. "If they scare you off, at least let me know before you leave. That way I know whose ass to kick and why."
I returned the kiss. "I'll be sure you get the message. By carrier pigeon if I have to."
I watched her head off for a second, before turning back to face the man that could easily cost me my job if he wanted. "So, what's the rundown, sir?"
"You've already figured everything out anyway. Think Sveta knows?"
Oh, yeah, she's too smart not to have. "I think she suspects. She's a smart girl, and probably the most popular Case 53 on the planet. She has to be wary of people who might try to manipulate her. Given my blanket immunity to most forms of emotion or biology based Thinker powers, I am the most logical candidate if the Protectorate wanted to find a way to influence her. And, through her either Pantheon or the Case 53s. It doesn't help that other people have tried the same thing in the past."
Chevalier nodded. "In the immortal words of my girlfriend: 'fucking politics'. Vicky's instituted her own version of the Master/Stranger protocol involving Sveta's boyfriends. Most have just been individual opportunists and... Well, they say no matter what it is, there's going to be someone with a fetish for it."
I cringed inwardly. Most of the Case 53s had to deal with that once or twice in their lives. It never got any less awkward. "I'm going to assume that's what set off Vicky's one woman crusade against the Elite." That had been national news. And I did follow Vicky's career. I was even subscribed to her blog.
"Yeah. One of their former management, a social manipulation Thinker named Shark, hired a guy to try to seduce and manipulate her. Vicky figured it out. He may have said something along the lines of how there wasn't a law against what he did, so she couldn't do a thing about it. She took that as a challenge." Chevalier had to stop his story when we were interrupted by a commotion near the entrance. The newlyweds had finally arrived. "We'll have to finish the conversation later. Don't worry, I'm on your side here."
A woman's voice, I wasn't sure whose, spoke. "Presenting the Empresses of Avalon, Amelia and Taylor Hebert!"
The Empresses came wearing their armor, much like the rest of the wedding party had been. Not the full combat gear. Khepri was missing her wings, and Gaea wasn't in a nine foot tall plant thing. Just the dress outfit with their military medals glinting in the light. Apparently they had enough of being in dresses for the evening. A pair of spotlights I didn't even know were hidden in the ceiling focused on them. Leading them to the part of the floor intended for dancing, while those who'd opted to have conversations there backed out. Chevalier and I were safe enough in our corner.
Amidst the cheers of encouragement, including a very enthusiastic Victoria and Clarice, the pair walked out into the center of the dance floor. Taylor turned to the crowd. "We'd just like to thank you coming. This is a big day for us, and we're glad we can spend it with our friends and family. I just..."
"You're welcome and we love you, too," A woman in a black costume responded. "Now quit stalling and dance, already!"
Taylor smiled, and turned to put her hands on Amelia's hips. Then the music started and my heart stopped, figuratively speaking. The song was soft, romantic, and I had no idea what language it was in. The girls were enraptured by each other, we were enraptured by the music.
There could be absolutely no doubt who the singer was. Humans have five senses to interact with the world. I only had hearing and sight. And of those I was more sensitive to my hearing. This was Canary's song. I'd attended one of her live performances before, I'd never forget her voice, or the effect it had on me.
I stood, enraptured by the song while the two girls slowly danced in front of all the people present. Eventually, after a few painfully short minutes, the song ended. If there was any doubt in my mind before, it ended at that moment. The audience kept listening to the song even after it stopped. The couple danced for another minute before her power bled off and we returned to our normal mental states.
"Sir? I think... I think we need to talk to the singer. This is... there might have been an escape from the Birdcage."
He came down slower than I had. He didn't have the resistance I'd developed, or maybe it was my biology that let me recover faster, but that snapped him out of it. "You're sure?"
"Positive." I didn't want to do this, but there wasn't really a choice, was there? I worked around toward the back while everyone else was setting up for the food. I'd want allies for this, I might need them. I could trust Sveta. I worked my way toward her, tapping her shoulder.
I could see hurt in her eyes the moment she saw my face. "Please don't tell me you're really-"
"No, this is something else. I need you to come with me."
The three of us made our way into the back. If the caterers and other staff wanted to say something about the three of us not belonging back here, they did nothing. I overheard the conversation before opening the door.
"-appears stable. Minor fluctuations, nothing we can't null after a couple seconds. We just have to make sure you don't spend any longer than ten m-"
"Company." The door opened a second later and Vicky stepped out to greet us. "Oh, hi guys. We'll be out in a minute. Just a last minute chat with the singer."
I almost rolled my eyes. "We know she's Canary."
"Ah, gonna be that. Well, I guess you may as well come in." She stepped back.
I took the invite. I didn't think I was in any danger, I trusted Sveta and Chevalier, at least. I got a look at the room the band was in. The lead singer was a tall woman of apparent Hispanic ancestry, she didn't look anything like Canary. But this was Pantheon, and appearances meant nothing. In the corner, Clarice and another woman I didn't recognize, but was wearing Avalon's armor were toying with a machine I had to assume was Tinkertech of some sort.
"Hey, Paige, Weld here's a fan. Thinks you're Canary."
"I'm not." The woman replied. "But I'm a fan, too. Thus the stage name."
Really? "I'm sorry, but I know what Canary's singing was like, and I know all of her songs. This was her singing, but none of her songs. You're not going to convince me it's lip syncing."
Paige sighed. "Okay, you caught us. We're using Tinkertech to cheat. I'm afraid you'd have to talk to them, I'm not a Tinker at all." She gestured at the women at the machine. "They're why I can sing like that."
"Speak for yourself," one of the backup singers spoke. "We're totally using our powers. Circe, is there any way we can keep these after the party? I'm thinking maybe we serenade some of the girls who came here without dates? And later we could make careers as rock stars with these powers."
Another guy, who I guessed was the first one's twin since they looked identical, not that looks mattered around Pantheon, nodded emphatically. "Oh, we could get so much action from that."
"Men are such pigs," muttered the unknown woman. Circe? "I've got the recordings, we might be able to work it into a frequency we can plug into your armors. It's up to you to convince the Empresses to sign off on the rest of it."
I still wasn't buying it. Pantheon broke into the Birdcage, took someone out, and no one knew even knew it happened. This was a huge freakin' deal.
Paige approached me. "You heard that Canary died, right?"
I nodded. "That's what the news said at least." It had made the feeds almost a year ago.
"They left out how and why." Paige's eyes met mine. "We both know the real answer. They killed her, the courts and that corrupt fucking judge. Her trial was a sham. If she didn't look different, if she was given a fair trial. If she wasn't treated like an animal, if they saw her as a human being, she would never have been convicted. Not of anything Birdcage worthy."
Nothing I hadn't heard before, some of it I'd even argued myself. I publicly supported the protests after news of her death was released.
"Hey, Dragon, care to tell us how Canary died?" Vicky's voice startled me slightly.
"The prisoners refer to it as 'offering tribute'." Dragon wasn't here, but her voice came through the coms. "Glaistig Uaine, an incredibly powerful and undeniably insane Trump that can steal the powers of others by killing them, occasionally demands them. Or sometimes the cellblock leaders simply offer one to purchase some favor from her. The reports indicate that her power kills instantaneously, with no signs of pain. However, most victims used as tribute are aware of their impending fates. Canary was no exception."
"Horrific, right? That an innocent woman was fed to a monster. Not even as revenge or some kind of crime of passion. There's something human in those kinds of crimes. She was merely as a piece of property to be bought, sold, and used. Can you imagine a hell where that's so normal they've even given it a name? In a way, she was lucky. Being dead is preferable to living in that place." There were tears running down Paige's eyes by the time she finished speaking.
She's not wrong. I glanced over at Chevalier and Sveta. I could push this, and I should at that. Dragon is in control of the Birdcage, and through it Pantheon has access to all those monsters and all of their powers. But speaking out about it means Paige would be sent back to that hell.
I smiled, as best I could. "I'm sorry. I have always been a big fan of Canary. Your music is... well, that and the idea that she might still be alive. I might have jumped the gun a little. Hopefully you can understand the case of mistaken identity."
"Understand? I'll take it as a compliment. I expect I'll have to get used to it, if I want to perform like she does," Paige responded. I could see the relief in her eyes. "I'll probably limit my career to Avalon, for that reason."
"That's probably a good idea."
"What's your name, anyway?"
"Weld. I know, it's not normal, but I never bothered to get a civilian name. No point, it's not like I can have a secret identity."
"Okay, Weld." She held out her hand. "I'm glad to meet a fellow Canary fan. Hopefully you'll keep an eye on my career, too."
"Absolutely." I took her hand. I didn't dare squeeze, too great a risk of me hurting her. I wasn't willing to do that.
===============
A/N- Goddamn giant ass chapters. At this point, maybe I should just commit to singular 3k chapters a day instead of two ~1500-2k chapters.
Pick your own choice for what the music may have been.
Also- I *really* regret not putting a "Canary murdered in 'cage" chapter somewhere in the time skip. Oh well, hindsight. And sometimes I don't think of something in time to foreshadow it...
Last edited:
dasstan
:)
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A thinker named Shark. [squits] I guess this is one fish that Sveta didn't bite the head off of.
heh.
dasstan
:)
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It was worth a chuckle. Jokes makes me laugh. Symbolism makes me go "Oh, look. Symbolism. *CONTINUES READING*"Oh. Sure. The Fates slaying Simurgh is "too obvious". But 'Circe' calling men pigs? That's worthy of comment.
CptTagon
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GiftofLove
A Gift From The Heart
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I smell a whiff of Suzaku Syndrome here.
Interesting chapter. It was cool to finally figure out what happened with Sveta's boyfriend.
Interesting chapter. It was cool to finally figure out what happened with Sveta's boyfriend.
cosoco
Not too sore, are you?
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An update. Thank god, I was starting to lose the ability to tell the difference between crackfics and canon.
1) asked Lustrum to offer Canary as tribute to GU
2) asked GU to not eat her
3) asked Cauldron to Door her out
4) altered her appearance, and removed her powers
5) gave Paige a Tinkertech device that could do something similar to her old powers.
(Or possibly Pantheon subcontracted steps 1-3 to Cauldron. That has less risk of a major political backfire.)
Paige has four major defenses:
1) "I'm not Canary." Depending how Avalon-US extradition works, this might not go to a court where they use lie detectors.
2) "I am Canary, but I'm not guilty by the standards of Avalon, and therefore I can't be extradited." She can take a lie detector test and show that she didn't mean to hurt anyone. Requires Pantheon to admit that they abused their authority to steal Canary away.
3) Canary goes to Amelia, and has Amelia alter her mind until Canary no longer believes that she is the same person. Pretty drastic, but also pretty effective.
4) Canary goes to Clarice, and has her make a clone of herself, and the clone can go back to jail. According to Lisa, this has no ethical problems.
anything
Man, it's been so long that I forgot that Taylor attended Arcadia in this fic.
italics?
song
What is this hinting at? From the background information, my guess is that Pantheon:
1) asked Lustrum to offer Canary as tribute to GU
2) asked GU to not eat her
3) asked Cauldron to Door her out
4) altered her appearance, and removed her powers
5) gave Paige a Tinkertech device that could do something similar to her old powers.
(Or possibly Pantheon subcontracted steps 1-3 to Cauldron. That has less risk of a major political backfire.)
I think Weld is overestimating his influence, here. Let's imagine that Weld decides to use his influence in order to upgrade this into an international incident.
Paige has four major defenses:
1) "I'm not Canary." Depending how Avalon-US extradition works, this might not go to a court where they use lie detectors.
2) "I am Canary, but I'm not guilty by the standards of Avalon, and therefore I can't be extradited." She can take a lie detector test and show that she didn't mean to hurt anyone. Requires Pantheon to admit that they abused their authority to steal Canary away.
3) Canary goes to Amelia, and has Amelia alter her mind until Canary no longer believes that she is the same person. Pretty drastic, but also pretty effective.
4) Canary goes to Clarice, and has her make a clone of herself, and the clone can go back to jail. According to Lisa, this has no ethical problems.
I'm trying to identify the powers of the backup singers, and I'm coming up blank. Anyone?
Daunmi
Shun the sun, night so nice
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Question: Will Amelia, now that she actually has access to the dresses, craft herself a couple of biotinkered up copies so she and Taylor have easy to put on/take off versions in case they ever want to reminisce about the day? I mean, just being able to grow the things around them would be so much easier than having to put on a couple of wedding dresses.
Daunmi
Shun the sun, night so nice
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One of them is Gemini, one of the twins that borrow powers from thinkers. I'm assuming the other one is Akihana, little miss broken.
Also, since Paige is looking more normal than before, did Akihana make use of the Chevalier combo with Vicky to keep him out of the loop?