In Mint Condition. (Worm AU)

[DoggySoup]

Basically a thread for my double universe story.

 

[DoggySoup]

"I don't know how to turn it off... I don't know! I've tried almost everything!"

"What did you try?" asked the blonde across the cafe's outdoor table.

"Well, at first I looked for a mental off switch of some sort, but I couldn't see one. Then I thought it was a range thing, so I tried to create this distance. I was in Boston and it still wasn't enough!" I explained.

She took a sip slowly. "Then?"

"I... I got desperate. I tried to change who it worked on. I wanted it to work on anyone else. I just hoped-"

"But it didn't."

"...Yeah."

The person who called herself Lisa looked at me and then her. She was unmoving. Unable to move. Not without my help, my power.

"You hated her, didn't you?" Lisa asked.

My breath hitched and I shifted in my seat.

I was quieter than before. "I didn't know it would end up like this."

"Do you want the truth?"

I tensed up for a moment. Could I handle it, knowing there's no way to stop this? I looked at her for a moment, and took a breath to calm down.

"She's not awake at all," Lisa said. "And it is permanent. You die, she goes into a coma. You stay awake? Then you can at least pretend to be her. Don't think about her anymore, think about her family."

It took me a moment to soak it all in.

"Okay," I said.

Spoiler: Ending A

Lisa smiled as Emma took her advice to heart. She was telling the truth, but she neglected one detail that her power was screaming at her.

Taylor is aware.

Spoiler: Ending B

Lisa smiled as Taylor took her advice to heart. She was telling the truth, but she neglected one detail that her power was screaming at her.

Emma is aware.

 

[doomlord9]

Interesting. And the inability to Trigger while under a Master power is only a balance aspect for the Worm game and not canon for the actual Wormverse so the mindjacked person could still trigger from this.

 

[DoggySoup]

Interesting. And the inability to Trigger while under a Master power is only a balance aspect for the Worm game and not canon for the actual Wormverse so the mindjacked person could still trigger from this.

Click to shrink...

I'd argue that most semi competent long term masters either innately prevent the mental situation required to trigger like (Heartbreaker, Cherish and Valefor) or use it in methods that makes Stockholm Syndrome happen. (Regent)

Basically, most Masters don't have that aspect that allows their victims to trigger, which is probably what Wildbow intended to convey.

You can trigger after you wake up from Valefor's hypno-induced murderspree Or Cherish's Emotion induced rampage whenever you want, but during it you'll probably not.

---

A B

• "Who the fuck is that?"
  
  I turned to see what Sophia was looking at and saw Taylor at the gate to my house, walking up the steps. That doofy grin, that shirt that was a size too large even for her... I hated her.
  
  I hated how I was there for her and she wasn't there for me, even though I had someone. I hated how she could be so happy.
  
  She paused to look at Sophia before turning back to me.
  
  "Nice hair," Taylor said. "You seem to make anything work, don't you Ems?"
  
  She moved up to give me a hug and I took a step down, my hand touching her shoulder...
• I hated Emma. I hated how she betrayed me. I hated how she so easily turned around and tried her hardest to make me life hell.
  
  "You shouldn't be here," she said. "Just leave."
  
  Her lackeys weren't here. It was just us in the bathroom.
  
  "Doesn't matter if I do," I replied. "You'll just find someone else to turn on."
  
  Emma scowled angrily and slapped me...

Something snapped from me to her.

She was frozen in that instant, unmoving. I blinked.

A-T B-E

• Emma touched me, and I stopped.
  
  I stopped moving, I stopped breathing, I stopped everything. All there was was the feeling of my clothes on my skin and Emma's hand.
  
  I couldn't even move my eyes or blink.
  
  What?
  
  "Emma?" asked the black girl standing beside her.
  
  I took a step back, somehow. I don't even know how I did it, I was trying to speak.
  
  Emma looked at her. "It's okay, she got the message."
  
  What message?
  
  She turned back to me.
  
  "I don't want to see you any more," she said. "Understand?"
  
  My face changed and I spoke. "yeah, sure."
  
  That wasn't me, I thought in panic. What's going on?
  
  My body turned and walked down the steps and away, only to stand still and motionless in a secluded path.
  
  I spent the whole time trying to move. Nothing did.
• I hit Taylor and froze still as my hand brushed against her face. She rubbed her face and looked at me, before her features shifted to some mix of shock.
  
  I tried to move my arm and it didn't budge.
  
  Panic set in as Taylor took a slow step back and smiled.
  
  "You can't move, can you?"
  
  My arms went to my sides without any input. Taylor was controlling me. I think Sophia said it was called Mastering or something?
  
  She's fucking Mastering me. What the fuck?
  
  Taylor barked out a bitter laugh. "You can't hurt me, right?"
  
  I performed an exagerated bow and when I looked up, Taylor was grinning like a madman. She looked uncomfortable smiling.
  
  Just let me go, I thought.
  
  "Okay," She said, taking a breath. "Okay. Emma, are you in there? I hope you are, because now you know you can't hurt me. Every time you do? I'll do this. Got that?"
  
  She closed her eyes and moved to the wall.
  
  "Okay, now move."
  
  I did nothing. I tried to move but I couldn't. All I could to is stand still, watching Taylor's look change from relief to confusion, and then worry.
  
  "...How do I turn it off?"

A-E B-T

• The whole time I was there, talking to Sophia I could see Taylor, or at least see what she was seeing. I could feel her, hidden away in an alley unable to move.
  
  "...are you even listening?" Sophia interrupted.
  
  "Oh yeah," I lied. "You were mentioning you were going to Winslow too."
  
  Sophia paused for a moment, judging me.
  
  "Are you hung up over that dweeb?" she asked.
  
  "Oh, me? Um, no... Not really."
  
  Sophia was silent for a moment, meanwhile I spent my whole time trying my hardest to let go of Taylor from my powers however I could. Nothing worked.
  
  Eventually Sophia had to go home and I brought Taylor back. She'd been standing out there for two hours.
  
  "I'm sorry," I said quietly as I marched her over the bed and had her sit down on it. "I'm not sure what to do. You would, probably. You'd be loo-"
  
  I rubbed my forehead in frustration.
  
  God dammit.
  
  I had Taylor pull out my laptop and give it to me, then searched "mastering" on Parahumans wiki.
• I was in control of Emma. That was easy to understand. I can't turn it off. That's the problem. There was no off switch, no way to free Emma from my grasp.
  
  Worse still, I had the rest of school to deal with.
  
  I got up and left for home, thinking that maybe the range difference with fix this.
  
  Emma stood unmoving until I made her walk to class. I noticed that her walk felt natural, her hips swaying in that way she usually tries.
  
  Muscle Memory, I noted. That saves some problems.
  
  I also noted the fact I was looking at the school via Emma's eyes. That was handy as well, sharing senses.
  
  Still, I had to hurry and find out a solution to this. I didn't want my cape debut to be mastering some random redhead.

 

[gammoregan]

I like it, but the way things are set up with those spoiler boxes is just confusing and makes it less enjoyable to read. Maybe just have two spoilers, one with all of timeline A and one with all of timeline B, or separate posts? Whatever you do for future posts, I hope it's... not this.

 

[DoggySoup]

I like it, but the way things are set up with those spoiler boxes is just confusing and makes it less enjoyable to read. Maybe just have two spoilers, one with all of timeline A and one with all of timeline B, or separate posts? Whatever you do for future posts, I hope it's... not this.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, I might make it more like KW's First GF than this way.

 

[doomlord9]

Yeah it was kinda convoluted, it would be easier to read it as separate sections with a line-break in between. Good idea but it's clunky to use.

*Imped*

 

[Valette-Serafina]

I think that Tabs are what's needed here.

[tabs]
[tab=a]A timeline.[/tab]
[tab=b]B timeline.[/tab]
[/tabs]

makes

a b

• A timeline.
• B timeline.

 

[DoggySoup]

My god it's awesome.

 

[esotericist]

Well, this won't get confusing at all.

 

[Adyen]

The only thing I have against the whole thing is that Lisa could tell that the person inside is still conscious.

The way you described it makes me thinks that the Master controls all voluntary and involuntary movements, and that means Lisa would not be able to tell anything from the person being Mastered at all. Lisa also, as far as I know, can't know more than what the Master knows unless she studies the effects - and the effects would be a blank wall for her because she can't get anything from the target.

Well, at least that's how I see it.

 

[DoggySoup]

Yeah, the initial snip and the other chapter is contrasting, but I Think I have a way of patching that up that is somewhat believable.

 

[tilkau]

The only thing I have against the whole thing is that Lisa could tell that the person inside is still conscious.

The way you described it makes me thinks that the Master controls all voluntary and involuntary movements, and that means Lisa would not be able to tell anything from the person being Mastered at all. Lisa also, as far as I know, can't know more than what the Master knows unless she studies the effects - and the effects would be a blank wall for her because she can't get anything from the target.

Well, at least that's how I see it.

Click to shrink...

What about inferring things from the behaviour (particularly, subconscious behaviour) of the Master? How informative this might be depends on the level of mental disturbance the shard is pushing on the Master.

(ie. Taylor via the shard can have a method to detect it, and have detected it, but not realized consciously that that is what was detected)

 

[Adyen]

What about inferring things from the behaviour (particularly, subconscious behaviour) of the Master? How informative this might be depends on the level of mental disturbance the shard is pushing on the Master.

(ie. Taylor via the shard can have a method to detect it, and have detected it, but not realized consciously that that is what was detected)

Click to shrink...

It would depend on how much control the Master had, and that's why Doggy said the initial snip and the other chapter is contrasting.

One said that they have conscious control, but likely there were still hints otherwise (which means certain actions were still controllable by the person within), while the chapter implied total (even subconscious actions like breathing) control, which means there's no tells.

 

[tilkau]

It would depend on how much control the Master had, and that's why Doggy said the initial snip and the other chapter is contrasting.

One said that they have conscious control, but likely there were still hints otherwise (which means certain actions were still controllable by the person within), while the chapter implied total (even subconscious actions like breathing) control, which means there's no tells.

Click to shrink...

Why would the level of control that the Master has over the Mastered effect the tells of the Master themselves? The Master doesn't necessarily have any tells to the conscious status of the Mastered, but nor does absolute/non-absolute control over the Mastered imply that the Master definitely has no tells/definitely has tells. As far as I can see they have no causal relationship.

(unless the idea is supposed to be that Taylor and Emma are simultaneously mastering each other and are in some kind of quantum superposition such that both are simultaneously Master and Mastered, and both timelines are actually the same timeline tapdancing all over physics.. But that's too hard to follow, if that is how it is supposed to be, I'll give up on understanding the story)

 

[Adyen]

Why would the level of control that the Master has over the Mastered effect the tells of the Master themselves? The Master doesn't necessarily have any tells to the conscious status of the Mastered, but nor does absolute/non-absolute control over the Mastered imply that the Master definitely has no tells/definitely has tells. As far as I can see they have no causal relationship.

(unless the idea is supposed to be that Taylor and Emma are simultaneously mastering each other and are in some kind of quantum superposition such that both are simultaneously Master and Mastered, and both timelines are actually the same timeline tapdancing all over physics.. But that's too hard to follow, if that is how it is supposed to be, I'll give up on understanding the story)

Click to shrink...

The MASTER doesn't get any input about the mental state of the person being Mastered, thus would give no tells about that specific part of her powers. TT wouldn't be able to tell whether the target is conscious or not if the Master herself has no idea. And the person being Mastered would have no tells depending on the level of control the Master has on the body.

 

[serra2]

The whole time I was there, talking to Emma I could see Taylor, or at least see what she was seeing. I could feel her, hidden away in an alley unable to move.

"...are you even listening?" Sophia interrupted.

Click to shrink...

bit of an error there, this should be Sophia I guess. In A-E