Charm Learning Shard (Worm/Exalted) (COMPLETED)

[Stanley_Jeb]

I can easily see Taylor throwing out a slur or saying one of these and Aisha going "well, this is karma"

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Which then resulted in Taylor fulfilling Aisha's Heart's Desire, meaning she can order her to run into Lung the next time they meet.
Karma is a fickle mistress indeed.

 

[Ruy]

, I suddenly remembered Browbeat.

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Who?

sky. An angel-shaped... you frantically shut down sorcerer's sight. It may be closing the barn doors after the horse already burned down, but you're not giving her another high-bandwidth channel into your brain.

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But taylor. Strongest precog you know of. Stronk precog!

even with draconic stamina there's no way he's making full use of them all every day.

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If this was NSFW I would have had her copy his power on climax.

Lung: ???

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My first guess was spirit battle temperament (no idea if it was right) the one where the solar mono focuses on a fight ang gains several bonuses.

Vista: Mind-Hand Manipulation

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I honestly thought Rune was going to give that.

Every terrestrial exalt who has ever attempted sidereal enlightenment has had their soul spontaneously explode. But at least one sidereal master insists that it's theoretically possible, and keeps trying to teach them

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I think there was the one DB with SMA.

What is Taylor's goal outside of getting powers?

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Get more powers.

Vergil Syndrome

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What is this?

E88!Taylor thing well, since it started with a very in-character Taylor Hebert and had her react realistically to Nazi recruiting (in the process serving as a valuable demonstration of how a vulnerable person can be radicalized).

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Strongly disagree. This one looks way more realistic. Its way more insidious and less blatant. It's typically the community that accepts this people what sucks them in.

I would have liked to compare to IRL stuff but its verboten.

Daniel Snuts you should probably put a disclaimer stating you don't agree with the E88 views before such chapters to avoid problems.

The night never ends. This probably saves your lives. It remains dark and chilly, and you sweat relatively little as you walk. The

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Honestly she should be freezing at night.

 

[Stanley_Jeb]

I think there was the one DB with SMA.

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I think the Scarlet Empress might have SMA, but she's practically an Akuma IIRC, so I'm not sure if that counts.

 

[Zxzx24]

But also in this story in particular, Taylor is a E88 member who won't shut up about her moronic nazi talking points, and in this scene she was drugged so she lacked a filter.

I can easily see Taylor throwing out a slur or saying one of these and Aisha going "well, this is karma"

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I pinkie swear no one in the story (except the villainous PRT) will even consider Taylor as anything other than a perfectly innocent victim.

 

[Daniel Snuts]

I wonder if Brian still remembers he has a sister before she gets into her power's range with him.

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Yes. My interpretation of Aisha's power is that is has limited range, and people outside it have no trouble remembering her (though they still can't remember anything she did while around them with her power active, because those memories never formed). Because the alternative is that she's constantly Mastering everyone on earth into being unable to conceive of her existence.

Fleeing the city is actually going to be really good for her mental health, because instead of standing next to her loved ones shouting "I exist! Why won't you notice that I exist!", she'll get a concerned phone call asking "where did you go?"

Why would Aisha lead someone who hasn't been hostile to her to their death? I know she's rebellious and dislikes drugs but that seems a bit psychopathic.

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She meant no harm, she just didn't think. This is an excellent prank! Consequences, what are those?

 

[Omnomimous]

What is this?

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Vergil from the Devil May Cry series becomes so obsessed with obtaining power after demons attack his home and kill his mother (and, he thought, brother) that he eventually forgets why he wanted power in the first place, and pretty much annihilates two cities in his pursuit of said power.

 

[raisins]

Daniel Snuts you should probably put a disclaimer stating you don't agree with the E88 views before such chapters to avoid problems.

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The band of people that an explicit disclaimer would help AND who would also actually accept one in good faith is so narrow. It's not worth the keystrokes or the indignity.

 

[Ruy]

Because the alternative is that she's constantly Mastering everyone on earth into being unable to conceive of her existence.

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Actually it kinda works that way. It even erases records other people have of her (video, official documents). But I don't think anyone will mind a little tweak here and there.

The band of people that an explicit disclaimer would help AND who would also actually accept one in good faith is so narrow. It's not worth the keystrokes or the indignity.

Click to shrink...

You'd be surprised then, and it is not like it would cost too much effort.

 

[Daniel Snuts]

You had been fretting awfully over what you'd tell your dad - how would you explain going missing for almost a week? In a sense, your dragon-based misadventures were just what you needed, because they gave you the time and opportunity to come up with an answer. You enter the house without hesitation.

"Taylor!" You don't even have time to close the door behind you before you're being hugged, which is a promising start. "What happened? Are you alright? Where were you?"

"I'm fine," you barely-lie. You will be fine.

"What happened?" Danny repeats. The big question, that seemed so daunting yesterday. But like all riddles, it's easy when you know the answer.

"I'm not going to tell you."

"What?" He lets go of you, taking a step back. In his face you can see confusion gradually giving way to anger. Better nip that in the bud. A shouting match isn't going to make anyone happy.

"I'm not going to tell you," you repeat firmly. "If you press me on this I can always run away for real." You can, too. That's the epiphany you needed to make everything fall into place. With the haul from the Merchants you can easily afford your own place, and all you lose from dropping out of school is access to Glory Girl's power. You're... all grown up, basically.

Danny's expression as he comes to understand this truth is still like a stab wound to heart, though. "I'd like to stay," you hasten to add. "If you'd let me."

"As long as I don't pry," he says bitterly.

"Yes. I do love you, but you don't have that power over me anymore."

"I... of course you can stay, Taylor! I wouldn't put my little girl out on the street!"

"I'd be fine," you say softly. Maybe too softly for him to hear. Maybe not. Your earlier confidence seems to have wandered off somewhere. You wouldn't want guilt to be the only thing keeping you in his house... but perhaps you'd like that more than the alternative.

"But that you don't... that you don't trust me with what's going on, that hurts."

"Yeah."

"Just... just tell me it's not drugs." You get the impression that if you don't tell him that he might just tackle you right then and there and lock you in the basement for your own good. Better avoid that, even if a physical altercation between you would last exactly long enough for you to decide which identity to reveal - shorter if Fenrir noticed and decided to take matters into his own jaws. But nobody wants that outcome.

"I..." The words catch I your throat. What the hell, Taylor? All you had to do was look him in the eyes and say it wasn't drugs. But for some godforsaken reason you can't manage to do that.

It's probably the drugs. Lisa was right, you shouldn't have been allowed out on your own until your neurotransmitters unfucked themselves.

Rather than tackle you, Danny simply slumps in defeat. "Taylor..."

"Once!" you say angrily - you're angry at yourself, not at him. "Fine, twice!" you amend as you remember Newter, even angrier. Why are you bothering him with these details? "It was awful and I'm never doing it again!"

"...that would have been a lot more reassuring if you'd stuck with 'once', kiddo."

"There are different kinds, you know," you say, pouting. It's not a good answer, but it's probably going to upset him less than the truth.

Danny sighs. "Are you going to keep trying-"

"I swear on my mother's grave, I will not do drugs ever again." You regard each other solemnly. Danny nods. You nod back. You would not make such an oath frivolously even if you were in full possession of your faculties.

Besides, going by what Lisa said you've probably sampled all of them already. Even if some of them weren't really meant to be combined.

---

You have a plan for your Sunday: You're not going to do anything. No plots, no parahumans, no nothing. You have giant holes in your schedule where Faultline used to sit, and you're not even going to think about filling them right now. You're going to stay in bed all day, catch up on wolf cuddles, and move as little as possible. At most you'll drag yourself upstairs to eat. Maybe.

Then your Empire phone rings. That's not a punchline, because punchlines are unexpected. The universe shitting on your plans is not unexpected.

"What?" you demand.

"Where the hell are you?" Ops guy sounds like he's having an equally good time right now.

"Enjoying my day off?"

"I heard you've been sick - thanks for letting us know, by the way - but don't you read your messages?"

"No?" Okay, that's on you. 'I was marooned in another dimension and then I was busy beating up your worst enemy' is a pretty good excuse for forgetting to check your texts, but unfortunately not one you can use.

Ops guy makes a wordless noise of frustration. "The rally, Low Key! We need everyone there, as a show of force."

"Right. You know why I have so many days off, right?" You snuggle closer to the perfectly material Fenrir. "No wolf on Sundays."

"You still need to show up. People count the capes at these things."

"Fiiine. Give me the address."

---

You arrive just in time to miss an exhibition match between Fenja and Menja - you see them salute each other and shrink down to normal size as you round the last corner. Judging by the applause, the friendly spar of the 50 foot women was quite the show. You frown thoughtfully as you catch the brief flicker of power - is it worth making them your next project? You already know how to grow huge - except you don't really, stupid obstinate dragon power.

Looking around, Captain's Park is pretty packed, though the crowd is spreading out a bit as they trickle back into the space used for the mock battle. A surprising amount of regular, non-skinhead people, too. Or is it surprising? A group of people manning barbecues off to one side shows that Caesar is providing bread as well as circuses, and an anonymous benefactor just ensured that no giant rage dragons will crash the party. They really should pay you more. Instead you settle for snagging a free hotdog from the barbecue area before wandering off into the crowd. You'll figure out how to best eat it later.

Thing is, no one told you what to do once you're here. What is everyone else doing? You spot Hookwolf just standing around in the crowd, so you suppose you'll do the same until someone yells at you.

"Low Key!" No, that was just a friendly greeting: Alex spotted you wandering past. "What's up?"

"Everything sucks. Some asshole dragged me out of bed on a Sunday to listen to a stupid speech, and I missed the valkyrie fight."

He chuckles politely at your performative grouchiness (which covers genuine grouchiness, but he doesn't notice that). "It was pretty cool, but Victor-Cricket was better on a technical level." Then he spots your hotdog. "Guys, let's give Low Key some privacy."

After a quick series of nudges and gestures on his part you find yourself surrounded by beefy skinheads, standing shoulder to shoulder and facing outwards. This lets you hike up your mask enough to uncover your mouth without worrying about anyone photographing you, or sneaking up to take advantage of your complete lack of vision. "Thanks," you say before digging in.

"It's starting."

You readjust your mask and tap your protectors on the back to get them to move aside. A speaker's stage, complete with podium, is lifting into the air, suffused by Rune's power. Silver lining, at least you'll get some power study done today. Kaiser is behind the podium of course, flanked as always by his valkyries.

They say Hitler was pretty good at giving speeches (you wouldn't know, you've only ever seen brief snippets, and don't even speak German), and Kaiser follows that tradition. Very fiery, very punchy. And so educational! Who knew that pornography, gay acceptance and no-fault divorce were all jewish plots to reduce white birth rates, with the ultimate goal of white genocide?

"Question," you say to Alex as Kaiser goes on to further praise traditional christian values and the sanctity of marriage.

"Shoot."

"Are we pretending that he isn't tapping that," you gesture to the blonde supermodel twins on either side of the speaker's podium, "or are we just acknowledging that it's good to be the king?"

"Huh. You reckon he is?"

"Like Mjolnir striking a sleeping jotun."

"Guess you gotta go with option B, then," Alex says with a shrug. "Wasn't the sleeping jotun an illusion, though?"

He's entirely unconcerned with the matter. Then again, despite the paean to christian values currently being delivered, the Empire is actually made up of a mix of christians, atheists and asatru worshippers (and that one weird pseudo-Hindu). Or as they put it during their friendly theological debates at the bar: Christ-cucks, godless heathens and LARPers.

But there's another point of doctrine that isn't quite adding up here. You decide to engage in some socratic dialog.

"You know I'm a nigger trigger and not super woke on the JQ." You've been around long enough to speak their language, more or less.

"Yeah?"

"But the holocaust didn't happen."

"Uh-huh?"

"So what are they so mad about? Why are they trying to destroy us?"

"Labor camps aren't super awesome even without electric death showers," Sven butts in. Oh, so the rounding-up part of the holocaust officially did happen. Makes sense you suppose, it would be pretty fucking hard to deny.

Ignoring the secondary argument you can hear starting up in the background (in which someone is claiming that the labor camps were quite pleasant actually, and that Mengele was a nice doctor who took good care of his patients), you try another tack.

"Wouldn't civilization just collapse if they did succeed in wiping us out?"

"Sure would," white supremacist Sven says cheerfully. "They'll have to maintain a disenfranchised minority of whites to-"

"I'm trying to listen to a speech here," Alex says peevishly.

"Sorry." "Sorry."

"The jew is, at heart, an honest man," Kaiser is saying. Most of the audience laughs. A few boo. You are just really confused.

"You laugh," he continues, unperturbed, "but consider the truth behind his hypocrisies. In a land where he is the only minority, he feels exposed. 'To defend your nation's borders is like another shoah,' he cries as he reinforces the walls of Israel. When you stand up for your fellow whites, he trembles. 'A people united is like another shoah,' he cries as he conspires with his fellows. When you name him a jew he recoils, for there is nothing he fears more than to be known as the hostile outsider he is. He cannot help but to liken every threat to his power to a holocaust, because at heart, his fear is real.

"In his fear, he seeks to poison and divide us. To deceive and replace us. He fears the shoah because he knows. He knows that should his grip on the great organs of disinformation falter for the briefest moment - should the true extent of his perfidy ever become known - there'd be another one.

"You precious few, who have seen behind the veil, who dare stand up against the enemy in our midst, it is not your fist he fears. It is your voice! Your voice which he must keep from the marketplace of ideas at all costs, lest the light of truth scour away half a century of lies!

"When we are victorious, it will not be your hand holding the sword. It will be those who spat on you, the innocent masses who believed his newspapers and history books, who were told that the destruction of their world was an illusion. And if not an illusion, that it was a natural phenomenon, as inevitable as the tides. And if not natural, that it was deserved! That it should be embraced, that they should welcome their own extinction, go willingly into the grave and leave all their works to those their self-appointed masters deemed more biddable. It will be they who stand up, the scales fallen from their eyes, and strike down he who would destroy them!

"Remain strong, to defend your home against his golems. But more than anything, let your voices be heard!"

The crowd erupts in cheers and roman salutes. You have little choice but to join in.

"I thought jews were supposed to be cunning," you remark once the cheers die down.

"What's your point?" Alex asks.

"I mean, if I was a jew who wanted to prevent the rise of another Hitler, 'a jewish plot to destroy white people' would be the opposite of what I'd do," you say reasonably.

"Yeah, well, you work for a living."

"I do," you confirm, effortlessly contorting your perspective into one from which that appears true.

"You haven't been fired from 109 jobs," Sven agrees, presumably a reference which you do not get.

"Yeah. If you work for a living you can do the peaceful coexistence thing. But a parasite has no choice but to weaken the host enough that he can't make it to the pharmacy and buy delousing agent." From the way people laugh at that, you're pretty sure another reference just sailed over your head.

Your socratic dialog isn't working so well today, you grumpily conclude. It's almost as if some random noob can't just walk up to a veteran nazi and stump him ideologically off the top of her head. Hollywood lied to you again.

===

Spoiler: A/N

What the audience hears: History will vindicate you.
What Kaiser is saying: Please just stay on the reservation and complain a lot, because you being too proactive tends to spook Medhall's shareholders.

 

[Amberion]

I'm always interested in the reactions of people to stuff like this. People get so triggered by it, they don't bother to actually dissect it and find the flaws in the logic. I guess people are just tired of arguing.

 

[Rhallae]

I came over from that other website that nope'd this fic from there and I'm glad you didn't let them turn you off from writing.
Really liked reading this though I had/still have no clue how all of the Exalted stuff works and am slowly getting introduced to it through this fic and me using the web to find stuff out.
Didn't think I would get into Exalt stuff until the God Desert happened and I went into a wiki binge to find out what that was exactly so that was a fun couple of hours.

 

[Phant0m5]

"Yeah?"

"But the holocaust didn't happen."

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Your socratic dialog isn't working so well today, you grumpily conclude. It's almost as if some random noob can't just walk up to a veteran nazi and stump him ideologically off the top of her head. Hollywood lied to you again.

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"I have a phone and a Google. I bet you I can get video evidence and a documentary in under a minute."

 

[Idoneior]

There are people out there who will raise execrable ideas with the stated intent of mocking them, but make that mockery so subtle that you have to wonder at their true intentions. And sometimes those people will ultimately confess that mockery was never their actual goal.

In this case, though, the illogic of these anti-semitic arguments is fairly self-evident, as is Taylor's contempt for them. For me, at least, it doesn't raise any concern the author might be endorsing the ideas in an underhanded way.

 

[GAMB42]

And we are back to the highly contentious neo-nazi issue, though this time I think the snark, incredibility and sarcasm where much more apparent and present. As such the satire was better presented and helped sell the narrative better that this are horrible people and our MC is just humoring them in search of new powers.

Also the way Taylor decided to deal with the Danny is gonna end up festering something fierce. Hope she can come up with something better than that whole don't ask spiel. Probably better to just bite the bullet and say she got "voluntold" on the drugs because of some out of control merchants. It's even the truth if you squint at it.

 

[omni001]

And so educational! Who knew that pornography, gay acceptance and no-fault divorce were all jewish plots to reduce white birth rates, with the ultimate goal of white genocide?

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I thought King Henry the eighth invented no-fault divorce, who was technically still a Catholic at the time up to moment he did the whole church of England thing?

Out of all the possible ways I imagined Taylor would explain her absence to her dad this definitely wasn't one, though honestly it's pretty clever and interesting to have her take such a straight yet kinda brutal approach.

 

[goricnac]

I find it interesting that the chapter most filled with hateful nazi shit and retarded rhetoric is also the one that so far is the least objectionable in its depiction of the Empire. This chapter doesnt do anything to justify or excuse them like past chapters have, it is a thorough mocking of their beliefs and stance as inherently moronic and requiring some extreme delusion or actual brain damage to fall for.

The only posible criticism is the multiple paragraphs dedicated to how bad jews are from kaiser, but Taylor mocks it all so tongue in cheek that the bite is really gone and the idea that its all incredibly stupid comes across fine. Could have been a little clearer about why holocaust denialism is particularly retarded and harmful but other than that no real notes.

 

[Rerororororororororo]

"I have a phone and a Google. I bet you I can get video evidence and a documentary in under a minute."

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It is true though. If you want to debate a person on a niche issue then you have to be pretty well-read so they can't just lie to you. Any nazi dweeb is going to at least have some arguments as to why they're correct like Zyklon B being a delousing agent, 6 million isn't possible, final solution is just deportation, etc. If you aren't read up on this stuff then it's going to be hard to debate them on the fly.

 

[Cheiromancer]

Hey, if Lung is in jail, does that mean the Bakuda arc is about to begin?

 

[Ruy]

Fenrir must have heard/smelled/insert-bullshit-wolf-senses-here (seriously, how did he track you teleporting across Canada?) you coming, because his translucent form comes shooting out of the ground in front of you - a faster way to leave the basement than stairs and doors, when you're intangible. He barrels right through you, turns around and starts running in circles around you, panting happily.

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Didn't you establish that she reunited with Bubbles last chapter?

Hey, if Lung is in jail, does that mean the Bakuda arc is about to begin?

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She hasn't triggered yet. Taylor triggered on January, Bakuda arrives in Brockton around April.

Edit: Also I think Lung had to free her.

 

[Logos01]

It is true though. If you want to debate a person on a niche issue then you have to be pretty well-read so they can't just lie to you. Any nazi dweeb is going to at least have some arguments as to why they're correct like Zyklon B being a delousing agent, 6 million isn't possible, final solution is just deportation, etc. If you aren't read up on this stuff then it's going to be hard to debate them on the fly.

Click to shrink...

And that's the real challenge there. The arguments and "evidence" they use to persuade others aren't the arguments and evidence they use to defend their beliefs once those beliefs are put out in the open.

So it doesn't really matter how persuasive their defenses are. It only matters, to them, that they can stand on those defenses by even the flimsiest of measures when challenged on them.

So with Holocaust Denialism. Nobody putting that shit out there expects to persuade anybody to be convinced by it. That's not the point. It's apologetics, and nothing more.

And as with all apologists, none of the arguments or evidence presented is ever persuasive to anyone except fellow believers; and the explanations they tell each other as to why that is, are remarkably familiar in shape albeit wildly different in details.

Debating this stuff with an actual Nazi without understanding that is doomed to be an exercise in frustration as the absolute best consequence.

(Note: unlike the vast majority of people, I have actually experienced doing exactly this in person. I self-describe as a "lapsed libertarian", and one of the major reasons why is the decades I spent fighting the good fight against the infiltration of libertarian political groups by white supremacists. That's not what ultimately burned me out, but it surely didn't help.)

 

[Paralein]

What's really confusing me again and again is Taylor's assumption that her fully analyzing a cape's power will give her an exact copy. That hasn't really happened even once. So far, her powers resemble those she derives them from only in pretty general concepts and ideas, never in the details.

So I'm really not sure why she thinks copying Fenja or Menja would "only" give her a power that allows her to grow bigger.

 

[TapTwice2]

And that's the real challenge there. The arguments and "evidence" they use to persuade others aren't the arguments and evidence they use to defend their beliefs once those beliefs are put out in the open.

Debating this stuff with an actual Nazi without understanding that is doomed to be an exercise in frustration as the absolute best consequence.

(Note: unlike the vast majority of people, I have actually experienced doing exactly this in person. I self-describe as a "lapsed libertarian", and one of the major reasons why is the decades I spent fighting the good fight against the infiltration of libertarian political groups by white supremacists. That's not what ultimately burned me out, but it surely didn't help.)

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Generally speaking, someone who is both well read in niche topics and a well trained debater will be able to argue for or against anything so well that the average joe will NEVER be able to out reason them, even if the topic is something the average joe thinks he has a grasp on.

This is generally why smart people call for censorship on ideas that are harmful. Because people who are smart enough to form strong coherent and leading arguments can bend the ideological beliefs of just about any random moron. And let me tell you, there do be a lot of morons.

This censorship and it's loss of freedom is considered the lesser evil by those in charge of moderating these discussions and platforms.

I on the other hand proscribe to the belief that TRUTH and LOGIC will always win out in the end, even if it takes decades. That if you're beliefs truly are harmful, people will see that.

This of course only works if you don't allow the extreme beliefs to take control of the ability to censor, allowing the censor anything apposing them. (echo chambers are not this, as people can and will look beyond them from time to time)

I think the reason why people are so hung up on the things like communism and fascism and so on are because those ideologies in their known and common forms always strive for harsh censorship of dissenting ideas.

 

[Doc Sithicus]

Or as they put it during their friendly theological debates at the bar: Christ-cucks, godless heathens and LARPers.

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This brings a tear to my eye, I miss my 4-Chan bros something fierce. The discussions and flame wars we used to have...

On a side note, you can accept that Holocaust happened for real and still dislike the Jews/country of Isreal. The shit they do to Palestinians is no bueno. On another side note, you can understand their struggle and still dislike Palestinians as well.

Historical fact: my hometown had a 68% Jewish majority until 1942 when the Nazis decided to clear the ghetto, round them up and take the whole lot for an enthusiastic walk to Bełżec extermination camp, shooting anyone that was lagging behind.

Nearly 18% of Poland's population died during World War II, including 90% of Polish Jews. Estimated loses were 3.0 million Jews, 2.0 million ethnic Poles, and 1.0 million Polish citizens from the other ethnic groups. Most were civilian victims of the war crimes and crimes against humanity during the occupation by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. Most people conveniently forget that Nazis and Soviets were close allies until 1941.

 

[Logos01]

On a side note, you can accept that Holocaust happened for real and still dislike the Jews/country of Isreal. The shit they do to Palestinians is no bueno. On another side note, you can understand their struggle and still dislike Palestinians as well.

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It gets a whole lot easier to reconcile facts and truth with your personal agendas if you don't demand that everyone you're trying to advance the cause of actually be a good or righteous person... or that everyone you oppose be a villain.

The Jewish Settlers are unilaterally toxic and need to be moved. The Palestinian bombers are criminals. Etc., etc..

That being said -- that's all a little off course for the thread. None of it really matters for Taylor. It's interesting to see the story actually present the rank-and-file scumbags in their human side, and it's nice to finally see evidence from the author that Taylor's sociopathy is providing some level of immunity to their "palling around" levels of indoctrination.

This is generally why smart people call for censorship on ideas that are harmful. Because people who are smart enough to form strong coherent and leading arguments can bend the ideological beliefs of just about any random moron. And let me tell you, there do be a lot of morons.

Click to shrink...

Smart people have always been able to talk themselves into all manner of truly idiotic agendas. This is the core truth behind the unilateral failure of all attempts at technocracy: being smarter, ultimately, doesn't protect you from your own stupidity.

It's a bitter pill to swallow that censoring ideas doesn't make them go away, but DOES weaken your ability to make the future better. Even -- ESPECIALLY -- when those ideas are utterly repugnant and obviously wrong.

It's not even just a matter of truth winning out.

Either way, our intrepid MC isn't ever going to be in the position to do anything about that process, and especially not for the E88 members. The only real long-term solution for Brockton Bay and Taylor is for the E88 to be taken down. And that's not something that can happen as long as she remains as weak as she comparatively is, (or gains enough of a group's backing, but she is still a Taylor so that won't happen either.)

Like -- there's no talking any of the Empire's members down from this level of ideological conviction. It just won't happen. And as long as it's active, BB will never have a chance at prosperity: because for all their talk, the Empire is still nothing more than an organized criminal gang of pimps, dealers, bookies, and racketeers. They dress it all up with a spot of the old ultra violence, but they are what they are.

And as long as that kind of entity can act with the levels of impunity the E88 can, the overall community can never actually do anything but be in a state of decline.

So the Empire HAS to go. And won't be talked down. But there's no one who has the means or will to force it.

Which leaves the final question: when is Taylor, the narrative MC, actually going to get off her ass and break them?

 

[Fernando]

Which leaves the final question: when is Taylor, the narrative MC, actually going to get off her ass and break them?

Click to shrink...

Around the same time being Low Key gets too hot to keep up the charade (though some attitudes picked up by osmosis will remain), she fully learns the powers of all the parahumans (unlikely) or should it become more lucrative for Quicksilver or Smith as more adult/independent personas to take center-stage, which seeing how Taylor handled her father's concern will probably be soon.

 

[Stanley_Jeb]

So the Empire HAS to go. And won't be talked down. But there's no one who has the means or will to force it.

Which leaves the final question: when is Taylor, the narrative MC, actually going to get off her ass and break them?

Click to shrink...

I sure hope so. ABB, Merchants, and the PRT too while she's at it. Probably Coil and New Wave too, just to be safe.
It'd be typically Exalted for her to just go full warlord and conquer the place, so I really think that'll only be a matter of time.

 

[Zxzx24]

I'm always interested in the reactions of people to stuff like this. People get so triggered by it, they don't bother to actually dissect it and find the flaws in the logic. I guess people are just tired of arguing.

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And yet you bring it up first comment after the fic. Ah hypocrisy.

I find it interesting that the chapter most filled with hateful nazi shit and retarded rhetoric is also the one that so far is the least objectionable in its depiction of the Empire. This chapter doesnt do anything to justify or excuse them like past chapters have, it is a thorough mocking of their beliefs and stance as inherently moronic and requiring some extreme delusion or actual brain damage to fall for.

The only posible criticism is the multiple paragraphs dedicated to how bad jews are from kaiser, but Taylor mocks it all so tongue in cheek that the bite is really gone and the idea that its all incredibly stupid comes across fine. Could have been a little clearer about why holocaust denialism is particularly retarded and harmful but other than that no real notes.

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I know. It's terrible isnt it?

Dont backpedal on the nazis being good guys now Daniel Snuts! That salt that created added so much flavor!

 

[Amberion]

And yet you bring it up first comment after the fic. Ah hypocrisy.

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It's not hypocrisy. I remember several chapters someone going 'i'm out,' betraying a fundamental misunderstanding of what was actually happening in the story. Again, I find the reactions very interesting.

And the nazis aren't the good guys. Taylor is being exposed to their rhetoric. The big danger here is that she might actually absorb some of it and find herself agreeing with any of it.

 

[Edifier]

It's fiction, that's the fun of it!
I absolutely want to see Taylor fall in deep!

 

[Zxzx24]

It's not hypocrisy. I remember several chapters someone going 'i'm out,' betraying a fundamental misunderstanding of what was actually happening in the story. Again, I find the reactions very interesting.

And the nazis aren't the good guys. Taylor is being exposed to their rhetoric. The big danger here is that she might actually absorb some of it and find herself agreeing with any of it.

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We must be reading very different stories then.