Jonen C
F.M.D.G.
- Location
- Lincopense, Ostrogothia, Suecia
Nah, they SPECTRE, or maybe Quantum, to MIIOs 00-section.
False Prophets (BattleTech CYOA)
- Thread starter Acyl
- Start date
-
- Tags
- battletech mechwarrior cyoa
- Location
- Singapore
Well, Vesar said it himself in the chapter. He's double Rho-Seven.
ecs05norway
Zenryoku Zenkai!
Ruh-Rho, Raggy!
Looks like the False Prophet has made a convert! Kristofur is not to be trusted, but if he's pulling in the direct Larkin wants I guess that's a win.
ecs05norway
Zenryoku Zenkai!
Well, the idea that the Wolverines ended up with ComStar and were behind Sims (and later boneheaded moves) has been pretty thoroughly debunked as a forgery by Uncle Chandy, trying to drag the Clans into the Jihad. That doesn't mean there isn't a Sims faction, just that it isn't overboard the way some suspect. The idea that Erin could have some support from that faction is entirely believable.
You know. normally I would say that this is a bit unbelievable. I mean a secret organisation actually working towards the same goal that the MC do, how likely is that? But the religious structure of Comstar somehow makes it far more easier for to believe this is plausible though I guess that says more about me and my view of religion than anything else...
However, I think you are going a bit overboard with the interludes in this arc. I mean I like them from a worldbuilding perspective and they are a great and easy way to further the plot and I think that the rare interlude can be a valuable story telling tool. But there seems to be a noticeable shift towards them in this arc if compared to earlier arcs and far larger importance of said interludes for the story which seems somewhat problematic to me, at least if I view this as a "novel".
However, I think you are going a bit overboard with the interludes in this arc. I mean I like them from a worldbuilding perspective and they are a great and easy way to further the plot and I think that the rare interlude can be a valuable story telling tool. But there seems to be a noticeable shift towards them in this arc if compared to earlier arcs and far larger importance of said interludes for the story which seems somewhat problematic to me, at least if I view this as a "novel".
The Bushranger
In the Danger Zone
- Location
- TSAB Asura
That's because this isn't an arc. This is between arcs, and we're seeing "meanwhile at the Hall of Justice" before starting the next arc.
It's a big galaxy and there's a lot of threads to be tugged at.
And generally that type of massive, brute force info-dumbing isn't exactly seen as good writing.... If you need to drastically depart from your existing style and format in the "middle" of the story to explain your plot you generally have messed up and as an author should really take a critical look at your structure etc. Or you have committed the other big sin in storytelling and try to explain "too much", thereby weakening the central narrative(s) of your story.
Now, this is of course a fanfiction with a strong "what-if" characteristic so I don't think that this is that much of an issue but it is something I think to be aware of, especially since a lot of that info isn't necessary for the general plot.
TimEd
Meteor maker
this isnt really a massive departure of writinf style though. 6 interludes isnt the most interludes in a short while this story had after all.
I see this more as the chance conclusion of multiple plot threads happening alm9st at the same time.
The next arc is supposedly (if i remember right) haopening after another short time skip. So this isnt strange at all.
Frankly, in book form (as close as fanfiction can be deemed it), this would be book three and all the interudes are either spin-off books or part of an after book installment deal. You just have to see it structured right.
- Location
- Singapore
What happened here is that I wrote Vesar Kristofur saying "double Rho", rather than Rho/Rho, because it seemed more natural verbally. Then I realised what the hell I'd just written, and went back to make the line 'double Rho, section seven', because how could I not.
Summing up very quickly from a longer post on SpaceBattles, my take is that Kristofur is self-interested, but it's a particular kind of mission-directed self-interest. He staked his fortunes to ComStar, and now he feels that ComStar has betrayed him - trying to undermine Tiepolo's regime sits well with him. Vindictiveness against Tiepolo and his old opponents in ComStar, whom he feels fucked him over.
But he also does have a genuine stake in the Clan threat, especially now that Primus Sims' doctrine of 'beware the SLDF remnants using animal totems' seems to be borne out. I don't think Kristofur necessarily believes fully in Blakist spiritualism, but it's plausible that Sims was working off her own intel about Kerensky's people being politically and ideologically hostile. Kristofur is used to thinking of the Wolf's Dragoons - or rather Kerensky's exodus - as a potential enemy. A threat to ComStar is how he frames it in canon, but it's a short jump from that to 'a threat to all of humanity'.
Where he disagrees with Erin is reforms for ComStar itself; Kristofur may work to undermine current people in power within ComStar, but he doesn't see the need to weaken or change ComStar itself as such. Though for the time being, this distinction is not important.
The canon material about Primus Sims' era is proof of ComStar factionalism - Sims herself came to power after some maneuvering and she almost certainly assassinated her predecessor. In her lifetime, ComStar was split over whether her supposed visions were credible or whether the Primus was a raving lunatic, with her supporters outweighing her detractors. My thinking is, therefore, that there is still sizable present-day demographic in ComStar that firmly believes in Primus Sims' messages - wholeheartedly supporting the idea that Kerensky's descendants are hostile and will someday return from the Periphery to wreak havoc. These would be members of the First Circuit, and rank and file, who push for increased funding of Periphery exploration and to strengthen the Com Guard.
However, this demographic would also overlap to a large extent to ComStar's deep Blakist and staunchly spiritual members... because the story is that Primus Sims had dreams of a wolf, a six-legged bear, a green bird of prey...
Fundamentally, I've made two mistakes, as I see them. Not quite what Erandil has said, but:
a) I chose to use a first-person narrative style for a BattleTech story,
b) then I followed the chapter naming conventions of web fiction (e.g. Worm), i.e. numbers and 'interludes'
A. First Person Narrative:
Why first person? Because it's a CYOA SI story, and most are first-person. That's the style. Second, Valles did first person in Tell the World That We Tried, and this started as a response to Valles.
However... it's a BattleTech story. With a large cast of characters, a very big geographical scale (interstellar, even) and many plot threads. Without point of view bits from other characters, the story would probably be worse. Some things need the outside PoV. BattleTech is a setting with long travel times between locations, on the order of weeks or years, so Erin really can't be everywhere at once.
It's worth noting that the canon BattleTech novels are entirely third person omniscient, and the novels generally follow different character PoVs, there's lots of point of view switching.
B. Web Fiction Conventions
Therefore, the compromise I chose was to do a first person narrative, but sprinkle in some occasional third person segments from different characters. Ok, fine. But then I figured, that being the case, might as well do the web serial thing where bits are labeled things like 'Name 1.1', and other character PoVs are 'Interlude: Name'.
Problem is, the term 'interlude' is accurate for Worm and stories that follow that model very closely, with interlude segments falling mainly or only at the end of full numbered chapters... between chapters. Most of my third person segments aren't interludes, if we want to be pedantic. Because many are actually integral parts of the main narrative.
I've considered going back and stripping off the 'interlude' tag, then redoing the numbering across everything to make them main 1.X or 2.X bits, but that hurts my own ability to search quickly via threadmarks. Though possibly something like 2.X: Sarita, 4.X: Cranston Snord, etc. might work.
Ironically, the current spate of interludes that Erandil is complaining about are actually interludes... because they are indeed chapter epilogue and inter-chapter bridging bits. Most aren't. There's a lot of 'em right now because we're at the end of the 3015 era (3018 in-story, but you know what I mean) and I need to very quickly clean up the loose ends.
VhenRa
MechWarrior
- Location
- Auckland, New Zealand
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Then there is those ranting visions that Jonathan Cameron had. "These will be dark days, when Wolves prowl across Terra." and "our people, buried in dogma, ground under foot only to be liberated and
oppressed once more, thrown into Hades before rising to new glory"
Then there is Amaris's ranting ultimatum to Kerensky... "He claimed Kerensky hid his true face from the universe and was in truth the Devil, aided by an army of chimaera with scorpion tails, the bodies of snakes, wolves' faces and
the wings of eagles."
Interlude: The Men Who Would Be King
- Location
- Singapore
Interlude: The Men Who Would Be King
I have a vision, and I know
The heathen shall return.
They shall not come with warships,
They shall not waste with brands,
But books be all their eating,
And ink be on their hands.
CELESTIAL PALACE, ZIJIN CHENG, SIAN
16 JAN 3018
"Gerald was killed," Anton Marik hissed. "Murdered! In front of you!"
"I am aware," Romano Liao stated, in a frosty tone. "I was there, as you kindly have reminded me."
The Chancellor's daughter was dressed in the sombre whites and blacks of Capellan mourning colours, but Anton knew that was only for the sake of appearances.
The woman had not held any affection for Gerald. The Chancellor's daughter was all that Romano Liao was, because she certainly was not truly Gerald's widow. Her father had insisted on the union as a way of honouring the agreement made with Anton, to unite the Liao and Marik lines, in spirit, if not to the letter. A farce of a deal, now, with his nephew poisoned by assassins.
"My men are saying," Anton Marik continued, accusingly, "that perhaps we should not be so hasty to blame my brother and the Free Worlds League, when the culprit might be right here, in the Capellan Confederation. Because certain individuals in this room are happy to be rid of Gerald. Am I wrong?"
Anton Marik was on his feet, standing on the carpeted floor, in the Chancellor's chambers. The other two occupants of the room were seated, on those rigid blocky wooden chairs that the Capellans were so fond of. There was, to be fair, another chair present for Anton. But he stood, because he could not sit still, not with molten anger coursing through his veins.
Romano Liao stared daggers at Anton. Her gaze was murderous. If looks could kill, Anton was sure that the woman would have struck him down, adding another member of House Marik to the death toll.
"Anton, my friend," said Chancellor Maximilian Liao, in a placating tone. "You're upset. Tempers are high. But please, we are all on the same side, here. There's no need to fling baseless accusations. Romano had no part in this terrible affair, she's said so, and surely you believe her."
"If I wanted your nephew dead," Romano Liao said, in a far less conciliatory manner than her father, "I would have used a method that didn't endanger myself. Not poisoning the food and drink in my own ship's cabin."
There was some sense in that, though Anton Marik was reluctant to admit it. He believed in Romano Liao's desire to preserve her own skin, if nothing else.
Anton made a sort of wordless choking sound, which he couldn't even interpret, himself. He clenched his fists, and tried to get a grip on his temper before he did something that he'd regret, such as launching his own manslaughter attempt on a member of House Liao.
"Anton," Maximilian Liao said, in a calm and reasonable tone. "I share your pain. This is a great tragedy, and a grave insult. It shall not go unpunished. But the villain here is your brother. A monster who's ordered the death of his own son."
Even through his rage, Anton Marik knew that… if the assassination had been carried out by SAFE, then it was justifiable from the federal government's point of view. Anton and Gerald Marik had launched a revolt against Janos Marik's government, which was treason. Naturally, it wouldn't have been treason had they won, or if they'd managed to force Parliament into endorsing Anton as Captain-General and Gerald as his heir.
But they'd lost the civil war. Although he and Gerald had fled to the Capellan Confederation, with their remaining ships and supporters, they represented a loose end to Janos' regime. As long as they lived, they could command the loyalty of men and woman in the Free Worlds League, and hence challenge Janos' rule.
Prudence demanded that Janos kill or capture them. This was one occasion where expediency and Janos' vengeful tendencies neatly dovetailed. It seemed that SAFE had managed to do just that, once Gerald had come within reach.
"Janos would do that," Anton said. "He wouldn't lose a wink of sleep over it, the bastard."
"I do not think it fitting to use that specific insult," Romano Liao remarked, "when you are speaking of your own brother. Perhaps you might like to call him, what's the term, oh, yes, a son of a bitch?"
"Restrain yourself," Maximilian Liao told Romano. "Do not antagonise the Duke."
They still called him the Duke of Procyon and the Protectorate, in Capellan space. Janos had revoked Anton's titles and seized his lands, so Anton was properly not a duke and no longer the lord of anything. The use of the title was not a measure of respect for Anton, however. It was merely another way for the Capellans to thumb their noses at the Free Worlds League.
"I am disappointed in House Liao," Anton said. "Already disappointed. You may not have had Gerald put to death. But you didn't do enough to keep him alive, now did you?"
"Come now," Maximilian said, smoothly. "Our security services are excellent, but they are not infallible. No expense was spared in Gerald's protection. If you do not believe that, then consider that his defences were one and the same as those surrounding my daughter."
Although he wanted to argue the point, Anton knew he was standing on unsteady ground. There had been attempts on his life before, and Gerald's. This was merely a particularly sophisticated one… but the assassins only had to get lucky once.
The Capellans were still trying to puzzle out exactly how it had been done. It was obvious that Gerald had been poisoned, but the specific chemical used was a mystery, and they didn't fully understand how his drink had been tampered with. Instead of calling the Capellans' competence into question, it seemed to Anton that SAFE had pulled out all the stops for this attempt.
If Gerald hadn't been the victim, Anton might even have felt a surge of misplaced national pride. As it was, his anger was mixed with a gnawing sense of frustration and helplessness.
"It's meaningless, now," Anton muttered. "They've won. Janos got what he wanted."
"Ah," said Maximilian, "but, he has not won."
The Chancellor of the Capellan Confederation sounded pleased, when he spoke. Too pleased. There was a smile on his face, which was never a good thing to see on Maximilian Liao.
Anton looked at Maximilian, sharply. "If you mean that I still live, that is cold comfort."
"That is also true," Maximilian said. "But it is not what I refer to. I mean to say, the physicians have confirmed that my daughter is with child."
Anton tensed. He blinked, once, as a deliberate rather than a reflex action. He regarded both Maximilian, then the devil-woman that he claimed as a daughter. "She's pregnant?"
"She is right here," Romano Liao said, caustically. "I can speak for myself."
Anton grimaced. "That's not an answer. Well? Is it true?"
Romano Liao rested a delicately manicured hand on her silk-clad abdomen. "It is so."
Anton's scowl deepened. "Very convenient. I expect that you'll want me to believe that this is Gerald's child?"
"Your skepticism wounds me," Maximilian Liao said, feigning offence. "But I will forgive you, knowing that you are under a great deal of stress, and not yourself. If you have doubts, we can conduct a genetic test at the proper time. I assure you, my friend, there is no tomfoolery here."
Between his court education in the Free Worlds League, his time spent dealing with Maximilian Liao as a silent partner in the civil war, and his recent two years in exile within the Confederation, Anton Marik had learnt not to take Maximilian Liao's words at face value. At the same time, the Chancellor would not risk being caught in an outright lie, in a way that would embarrass him.
Therefore… it was true that Romano Liao was pregnant. And it had to be Gerald's. But the timing was still too convenient. Anton knew, to his chagrin, that Gerald had not been at all keen to engage in relations with his nominal wife. Romano Liao was an attractive and fit woman, but also deeply vicious.
However, there were a number of possibilities. Foremost among them, the doctors had simply ensured that Romano Liao was impregnated, through artificial, medical, means. That way, Maximilian Liao would get the half-breed Marik-Liao scion that he wanted, with a claim on the Captain-General's seat, the Marik seat on the Star League High Council, and the various Marik family holdings.
In terms of narrative, it was also very neat. A young noble struck down, leaving behind a grieving widow, pregnant with his son or daughter. Yes. Very neat indeed. Anton would salute the audacity, if he wasn't personally embroiled in the sordid plot.
The Capellans were his allies, now. This was his lot. How had it come to this?
Anton could feel the jaws of the trap closing on him. Beyond his effective exile in Capellan space, making him dependant on House Liao for support and sanctuary… Gerald was gone, but Maximilian Liao had ensured that Anton Marik was still tied to the Liaos. He felt a measure of responsibility for the unborn child. The child was almost certainly Gerald's, even if underhanded means had been used in their conception. With Gerald dead, that meant the child was Anton's heir, and his last relative that was not caught up in Janos Marik's hubris and madness.
"Fine," Anton Marik spat. "Congratulations, then. I'm happy for you."
He directed the words at Romano Liao, who received them with frigid disdain. That was no surprise. Anton hadn't expected anything else.
"Quite right," Maximilian Liao said, from where he was seated. "This should be a happy occasion. Sadly, it has been eclipsed by the events of our day, and how our enemies move against us."
The chair in the Chancellor's private chambers was not a throne, being identical to the other carved furniture in the room, and only a fraction of the scale of the ornate beast that occupied the dias in the main hall. But Maximilian Liao managed to look regal in it, all the same. There was something intrinsically imperial about his bearing, a supreme amount of confidence.
Anton Marik glared at Maximilian. "The assassination?"
"That," Maximilian Liao acknowledged. "However, there is more than our personal tragedy. This happened as Romano and young Gerald were returning from Solaris. I speak of Katrina Steiner's Solaris Summit, and the accord of nations that she has managed to forge."
Anton made a dismissive noise. "Some accord. Nothing more than a tenuous agreement to meet every one or two years."
"Ah, but then," Maximilian challenged, "that is what the Star League Council was, in effect."
Anton lifted a hand, his fingers splayed. "This isn't the Star League. You can't think… "
"It is not. It does not have the legal authority that the Star League did, it does not have the power to issue edicts, or to supercede state governments," said Maximilian. "However, it demonstrates that Katrina Steiner's Lyran Commonwealth, your own brother's Free Worlds League, and Hanse Davion in the Federated Suns… are willing to conspire against us, along with their Periphery followers. If this continues, it leaves us in a precarious position."
Anton grunted. "That might be, but you and I both know that Janos is an arrogant, stubborn, and selfish prick. If it were Martin in the Captain-Generalcy, I could see an alliance holding. With Janos at the helm? That alignment is bound to fracture."
"It will fracture," Romano Liao said, "if we apply the correct pressure, at the correct place, at the correct time."
"Quite," Maximilian agreed. "Effort must be made to derail this nascent grouping, before it solidifies. In conjunction, we must look to find our own allies. The Draconis Combine, the Taurians, the Outworlds, all those who stood apart from Katrina Steiner's circle. In this, we now have common cause, even if that commonality is simple opposition."
Anton Marik nodded, slowly. He knew full well that House Liao was only sheltering him so that they could use him as a weapon against Janos… but, so be it. He'd already gone to war, once, against his own blood and his own nation.
What was one more war, in the grand scheme of things?
***
Arc End Notes:
This marks the conclusion of Arc 6, and the end of the 3015-3018 period of the story. We'll be on pause for... a week, couple or so, before I resume regular broadcast service.
After some thought, I will be posting material to cover the timeskip rather than jumping straight from 3018 to 3025. These will be proper story posts, but they'll only be snapshots rather than a continuous narrative, with occasionally months passing by between scenes. I'll try to link 'em thematically, somehow, but they're still fast-forward transitions. Hopefully everyone gets the idea of what's going on, there. Arc 7 will therefore tentatively be named 'Fast Travel', with thanks to @consequences for the suggestion.
If you haven't see it, I've asked some questions about the post numbering and interludes further up in the thread (or more succinctly on SB). If you've got an opinion on how that should be handled, feel free to weigh in.
I have a vision, and I know
The heathen shall return.
They shall not come with warships,
They shall not waste with brands,
But books be all their eating,
And ink be on their hands.
-- G. K. Chesterton, The Ballad of the White Horse (1911)
CELESTIAL PALACE, ZIJIN CHENG, SIAN
16 JAN 3018
"Gerald was killed," Anton Marik hissed. "Murdered! In front of you!"
"I am aware," Romano Liao stated, in a frosty tone. "I was there, as you kindly have reminded me."
The Chancellor's daughter was dressed in the sombre whites and blacks of Capellan mourning colours, but Anton knew that was only for the sake of appearances.
The woman had not held any affection for Gerald. The Chancellor's daughter was all that Romano Liao was, because she certainly was not truly Gerald's widow. Her father had insisted on the union as a way of honouring the agreement made with Anton, to unite the Liao and Marik lines, in spirit, if not to the letter. A farce of a deal, now, with his nephew poisoned by assassins.
"My men are saying," Anton Marik continued, accusingly, "that perhaps we should not be so hasty to blame my brother and the Free Worlds League, when the culprit might be right here, in the Capellan Confederation. Because certain individuals in this room are happy to be rid of Gerald. Am I wrong?"
Anton Marik was on his feet, standing on the carpeted floor, in the Chancellor's chambers. The other two occupants of the room were seated, on those rigid blocky wooden chairs that the Capellans were so fond of. There was, to be fair, another chair present for Anton. But he stood, because he could not sit still, not with molten anger coursing through his veins.
Romano Liao stared daggers at Anton. Her gaze was murderous. If looks could kill, Anton was sure that the woman would have struck him down, adding another member of House Marik to the death toll.
"Anton, my friend," said Chancellor Maximilian Liao, in a placating tone. "You're upset. Tempers are high. But please, we are all on the same side, here. There's no need to fling baseless accusations. Romano had no part in this terrible affair, she's said so, and surely you believe her."
"If I wanted your nephew dead," Romano Liao said, in a far less conciliatory manner than her father, "I would have used a method that didn't endanger myself. Not poisoning the food and drink in my own ship's cabin."
There was some sense in that, though Anton Marik was reluctant to admit it. He believed in Romano Liao's desire to preserve her own skin, if nothing else.
Anton made a sort of wordless choking sound, which he couldn't even interpret, himself. He clenched his fists, and tried to get a grip on his temper before he did something that he'd regret, such as launching his own manslaughter attempt on a member of House Liao.
"Anton," Maximilian Liao said, in a calm and reasonable tone. "I share your pain. This is a great tragedy, and a grave insult. It shall not go unpunished. But the villain here is your brother. A monster who's ordered the death of his own son."
Even through his rage, Anton Marik knew that… if the assassination had been carried out by SAFE, then it was justifiable from the federal government's point of view. Anton and Gerald Marik had launched a revolt against Janos Marik's government, which was treason. Naturally, it wouldn't have been treason had they won, or if they'd managed to force Parliament into endorsing Anton as Captain-General and Gerald as his heir.
But they'd lost the civil war. Although he and Gerald had fled to the Capellan Confederation, with their remaining ships and supporters, they represented a loose end to Janos' regime. As long as they lived, they could command the loyalty of men and woman in the Free Worlds League, and hence challenge Janos' rule.
Prudence demanded that Janos kill or capture them. This was one occasion where expediency and Janos' vengeful tendencies neatly dovetailed. It seemed that SAFE had managed to do just that, once Gerald had come within reach.
"Janos would do that," Anton said. "He wouldn't lose a wink of sleep over it, the bastard."
"I do not think it fitting to use that specific insult," Romano Liao remarked, "when you are speaking of your own brother. Perhaps you might like to call him, what's the term, oh, yes, a son of a bitch?"
"Restrain yourself," Maximilian Liao told Romano. "Do not antagonise the Duke."
They still called him the Duke of Procyon and the Protectorate, in Capellan space. Janos had revoked Anton's titles and seized his lands, so Anton was properly not a duke and no longer the lord of anything. The use of the title was not a measure of respect for Anton, however. It was merely another way for the Capellans to thumb their noses at the Free Worlds League.
"I am disappointed in House Liao," Anton said. "Already disappointed. You may not have had Gerald put to death. But you didn't do enough to keep him alive, now did you?"
"Come now," Maximilian said, smoothly. "Our security services are excellent, but they are not infallible. No expense was spared in Gerald's protection. If you do not believe that, then consider that his defences were one and the same as those surrounding my daughter."
Although he wanted to argue the point, Anton knew he was standing on unsteady ground. There had been attempts on his life before, and Gerald's. This was merely a particularly sophisticated one… but the assassins only had to get lucky once.
The Capellans were still trying to puzzle out exactly how it had been done. It was obvious that Gerald had been poisoned, but the specific chemical used was a mystery, and they didn't fully understand how his drink had been tampered with. Instead of calling the Capellans' competence into question, it seemed to Anton that SAFE had pulled out all the stops for this attempt.
If Gerald hadn't been the victim, Anton might even have felt a surge of misplaced national pride. As it was, his anger was mixed with a gnawing sense of frustration and helplessness.
"It's meaningless, now," Anton muttered. "They've won. Janos got what he wanted."
"Ah," said Maximilian, "but, he has not won."
The Chancellor of the Capellan Confederation sounded pleased, when he spoke. Too pleased. There was a smile on his face, which was never a good thing to see on Maximilian Liao.
Anton looked at Maximilian, sharply. "If you mean that I still live, that is cold comfort."
"That is also true," Maximilian said. "But it is not what I refer to. I mean to say, the physicians have confirmed that my daughter is with child."
Anton tensed. He blinked, once, as a deliberate rather than a reflex action. He regarded both Maximilian, then the devil-woman that he claimed as a daughter. "She's pregnant?"
"She is right here," Romano Liao said, caustically. "I can speak for myself."
Anton grimaced. "That's not an answer. Well? Is it true?"
Romano Liao rested a delicately manicured hand on her silk-clad abdomen. "It is so."
Anton's scowl deepened. "Very convenient. I expect that you'll want me to believe that this is Gerald's child?"
"Your skepticism wounds me," Maximilian Liao said, feigning offence. "But I will forgive you, knowing that you are under a great deal of stress, and not yourself. If you have doubts, we can conduct a genetic test at the proper time. I assure you, my friend, there is no tomfoolery here."
Between his court education in the Free Worlds League, his time spent dealing with Maximilian Liao as a silent partner in the civil war, and his recent two years in exile within the Confederation, Anton Marik had learnt not to take Maximilian Liao's words at face value. At the same time, the Chancellor would not risk being caught in an outright lie, in a way that would embarrass him.
Therefore… it was true that Romano Liao was pregnant. And it had to be Gerald's. But the timing was still too convenient. Anton knew, to his chagrin, that Gerald had not been at all keen to engage in relations with his nominal wife. Romano Liao was an attractive and fit woman, but also deeply vicious.
However, there were a number of possibilities. Foremost among them, the doctors had simply ensured that Romano Liao was impregnated, through artificial, medical, means. That way, Maximilian Liao would get the half-breed Marik-Liao scion that he wanted, with a claim on the Captain-General's seat, the Marik seat on the Star League High Council, and the various Marik family holdings.
In terms of narrative, it was also very neat. A young noble struck down, leaving behind a grieving widow, pregnant with his son or daughter. Yes. Very neat indeed. Anton would salute the audacity, if he wasn't personally embroiled in the sordid plot.
The Capellans were his allies, now. This was his lot. How had it come to this?
Anton could feel the jaws of the trap closing on him. Beyond his effective exile in Capellan space, making him dependant on House Liao for support and sanctuary… Gerald was gone, but Maximilian Liao had ensured that Anton Marik was still tied to the Liaos. He felt a measure of responsibility for the unborn child. The child was almost certainly Gerald's, even if underhanded means had been used in their conception. With Gerald dead, that meant the child was Anton's heir, and his last relative that was not caught up in Janos Marik's hubris and madness.
"Fine," Anton Marik spat. "Congratulations, then. I'm happy for you."
He directed the words at Romano Liao, who received them with frigid disdain. That was no surprise. Anton hadn't expected anything else.
"Quite right," Maximilian Liao said, from where he was seated. "This should be a happy occasion. Sadly, it has been eclipsed by the events of our day, and how our enemies move against us."
The chair in the Chancellor's private chambers was not a throne, being identical to the other carved furniture in the room, and only a fraction of the scale of the ornate beast that occupied the dias in the main hall. But Maximilian Liao managed to look regal in it, all the same. There was something intrinsically imperial about his bearing, a supreme amount of confidence.
Anton Marik glared at Maximilian. "The assassination?"
"That," Maximilian Liao acknowledged. "However, there is more than our personal tragedy. This happened as Romano and young Gerald were returning from Solaris. I speak of Katrina Steiner's Solaris Summit, and the accord of nations that she has managed to forge."
Anton made a dismissive noise. "Some accord. Nothing more than a tenuous agreement to meet every one or two years."
"Ah, but then," Maximilian challenged, "that is what the Star League Council was, in effect."
Anton lifted a hand, his fingers splayed. "This isn't the Star League. You can't think… "
"It is not. It does not have the legal authority that the Star League did, it does not have the power to issue edicts, or to supercede state governments," said Maximilian. "However, it demonstrates that Katrina Steiner's Lyran Commonwealth, your own brother's Free Worlds League, and Hanse Davion in the Federated Suns… are willing to conspire against us, along with their Periphery followers. If this continues, it leaves us in a precarious position."
Anton grunted. "That might be, but you and I both know that Janos is an arrogant, stubborn, and selfish prick. If it were Martin in the Captain-Generalcy, I could see an alliance holding. With Janos at the helm? That alignment is bound to fracture."
"It will fracture," Romano Liao said, "if we apply the correct pressure, at the correct place, at the correct time."
"Quite," Maximilian agreed. "Effort must be made to derail this nascent grouping, before it solidifies. In conjunction, we must look to find our own allies. The Draconis Combine, the Taurians, the Outworlds, all those who stood apart from Katrina Steiner's circle. In this, we now have common cause, even if that commonality is simple opposition."
Anton Marik nodded, slowly. He knew full well that House Liao was only sheltering him so that they could use him as a weapon against Janos… but, so be it. He'd already gone to war, once, against his own blood and his own nation.
What was one more war, in the grand scheme of things?
***
Arc End Notes:
This marks the conclusion of Arc 6, and the end of the 3015-3018 period of the story. We'll be on pause for... a week, couple or so, before I resume regular broadcast service.
After some thought, I will be posting material to cover the timeskip rather than jumping straight from 3018 to 3025. These will be proper story posts, but they'll only be snapshots rather than a continuous narrative, with occasionally months passing by between scenes. I'll try to link 'em thematically, somehow, but they're still fast-forward transitions. Hopefully everyone gets the idea of what's going on, there. Arc 7 will therefore tentatively be named 'Fast Travel', with thanks to @consequences for the suggestion.
If you haven't see it, I've asked some questions about the post numbering and interludes further up in the thread (or more succinctly on SB). If you've got an opinion on how that should be handled, feel free to weigh in.
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I'll miss the daily updates! Looking forward to seeing where this goes next.
- Location
- Austrlia
Perhaps, Anton, if you were doing the dying, I might symathise a little more.
This guy's done bugger all right in his entire life, it seems.
I know I started this debate but I actually don't think that there is that much of a need to reorganize things, at least not as long as you write the story and collect reactions/critique to the various parts. Maybe once it is finished and you feel the need to publish a "final" version somewhere you could harmonize the titles and/or put some of them into a "side story" type of archive.
I actually don't think that the complexity of a setting ever really prevents first person/single PoV's type of stories and don't think that you actually need it that much in this story either. There are a lot of complex stories and settings that manage with a single (or very few) PoV with little detriment and in all honesty I personally prefer them over the true multi-perspective stuff like A song of Ice and Fire. Sure you couldn't explore every reaction and aspect of your "plots" and its effects on the world but in a more limited PoV story that isn't exactly necessary either.
And I am sorry if I sound so critical, it isn't my intention to dictate to you how you should write your story or even imply that it is bad. I just find it easier to focus on the few things that "bug" me than the legions of things I like and find entertaining, sorry.
- Location
- Singapore
Certainly. I agree with you. I'm not saying that first person perspective is incompatible with a large story scale.
I'm saying that particular things are not possible with first person perspective. The reader can't see action from other points of view, there's no directly conveyed alternative angles or interpretation. Certain bits of information can't be directly revealed, because the main character isn't there to see it first hand. Certain events cannot be shown firsthand, 'on screen', because the main character wouldn't plausibly be there.
There are ways to circumvent these issues while maintaining the first person perspective, but these aren't clean. If the story can't cut to another person's PoV for a particular revelation in 'real time', the main character can still find out that information later. But it delays that reveal, maybe requiring more space and word count. Or, alternatively, the event and information can be relayed to the main character, or they can reflect on it... but that becomes tell, not show.
There are strengths of the first person perspective or tightly focused third person viewpoint - I'm not trying to trash the style. It's more intimate, you get to know the protagonist better, it allows for exposition to be embedded in stream of consciousness. It allows the narrator to be unreliable. And related to that, because the first person narrator or third person single PoV character isn't everywhere at once, it allows for events in the story that they're not around for... to surprise the character at the same time as it surprises the reader.
But there's pros and cons. It can't be that one style is always better and the other's always worse, I don't agree with that. It depends on the story and context.
Well, yeah, you personally prefer them... so it's a matter of opinion rather than an objective assessment. Truth be told, I prefer it too. Consider, say, Kazuo Ishiguro's stuff like An Artist of the Floating World, which is a masterful use of the tight single introspective narrative, and an utterly unreliable narrator.
But form goes with function. Counterargument - I have a friend, he's got a PhD, works at a local university on media and lit stuff... I mean, he knows his literature, is what I'm saying. He loathes first-person perspective, hates the first person narrator style, and would much rather it fuck off and die. Third person omniscient is where it's at, for him. Okay.
Couple weeks ago, I read a short piece of fiction he wrote from first person perspective, and he's working on an interactive CYOA thing which he's conned me into maybe doing art for, in second person (i.e. quest-style 'you'). Those aren't his preferred styles, and boy does he have strong opinions, but he uses them because that's the suitable style for the work at hand.
Nah, no worries, it's cool. I also hope you don't think that my replying at length is some kind of rant or passive aggressiveness. I tend to come off as feeling strongly about stuff if I'm throwing too many words at it, but really if I were giving short and pointed responses, that would be me being pissed off.
This is chill rambling about it, and I appreciate the discussion.
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You know, I get the feeling that this conception owes less to marital bliss and more to Romano downing a fuckton of fertility drugs and then getting her doctor to remove a few milliliters of viable sperm from her husbands cooling body. Duty to the Realm and all that...
Do you think she'll have triplets?
Do you think she'll have triplets?
Ganurath
Literal Enthusiast
- Location
- A Valid Location
- Pronouns
- He/Him
The man drank cone snail poison, he'd have been dead before he hit the ground even if there had been gravity. No way Romano's sticking potentially venomous spunk between her legs.
Jonen C
F.M.D.G.
- Location
- Lincopense, Ostrogothia, Suecia
" in fact" she did not continue "I am sad that he died after all the work I put into my own plot to have him assassinated. Wasted now."
Edit:
"Which reminds me, father, we need to cancel the circus."
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If he was dead before he hit the ground, then his heart stopped beating and any sperm in the vas deferens are probably free of toxicity because it hasn't had time to diffuse into that remote sector of the body, and you overstate the toxicity of conotoxins. They primarily kill through the simple expedient of total paralysis of the diaphragm-if there is an available option for artificial ventilation, the risk is significantly lower. Their efficiency is because they are actually a large variety of different chemicals, acting on different pathways, making a single cure difficult-but if he was dead that quickly, then the 'spunk' should be relatively clean.
MN1 Sarissa Stats (3018 & 3025 variants)
- Location
- Singapore
Crosspost from SB - stats for the Kevan-Zou Consolidated Sarissa series, manufactured under license from Corean Enterprises:
(not necessarily final, this is just what I'm thinking)
MN1-2K Sarissa (3018)
- this is identical to the version VhenRa posted, just included here for completeness
- intended as a standard version of the original primitive MN1-K Sarissa (we don't have canon stats for the MN1-K, but we can guess)
- retains weapons and hardpoints from original MN1-K (1 LL, 3 ML)
- no jump jets, as this is additional mechanical complexity (JJs weren't standard when the MN1-K was designed)
- max armour, runs very cool (almost too cool for the era, but there's nothing to use tonnage on except heat sinks)
- primitive parts (e.g. engine) replaced with standard equivalents from Corean Enterprises' Trebuchet
MN1-2D Sarissa (3018)
- a version of the canonical 3080 Jihad-era MN1-D Sarissa - when the Regulans put the Sarissa back into production, they built an MN1-D instead of the MN1-K
- uses Binary Laser Cannon (Blazer), which as several people have pointed out is technically available and possible to build in pre-3025 era tech, just seen as an unpopular notion for 'Mech scale weaponry. Two lasers taped together.
- swaps CT med lasers for a small laser and a machine gun with half-ton ammo (for anti-infantry)
- half-ton less armour than the MN1-2K
MN1-2N Sarissa (3018)
- no canonical basis for this variant
- uses a copy of the stock Trebuchet's left arm, mated to the Sarissa chassis
- strips all med lasers and one ton of armour compared to the MN1-2K
- this leaves it with 1x LL and 1x LRM-15 with two tons ammo
MN1-3K Sarissa (3025)
- the 3K upgrade to the 2K adds Double Heat Sinks and installs four torso jump jets
- also swaps the Large Laser for an ER PPC
- manufactured as a factory-new 'Mech and also sold as an upgrade kit for existing 'Mechs
MN1-3D Sarissa (3025)
- the 3D upgrade to the 2D adds DHS, jump jets, half-ton armour and CASE
MN1-3N Sarissa (3025)
- the 3N upgrade to the 2N adds DHS, jump jets, half-ton armour, CASE, Artemis IV
- uses an XL engine
- swaps LL for ER LL and adds back the missing two CT med lasers from the base model
- edit: there probably needs to be a non-XL upgrade for the 2N as well, since XLs are expensive
(not necessarily final, this is just what I'm thinking)
MN1-2K Sarissa (3018)
- this is identical to the version VhenRa posted, just included here for completeness
- intended as a standard version of the original primitive MN1-K Sarissa (we don't have canon stats for the MN1-K, but we can guess)
- retains weapons and hardpoints from original MN1-K (1 LL, 3 ML)
- no jump jets, as this is additional mechanical complexity (JJs weren't standard when the MN1-K was designed)
- max armour, runs very cool (almost too cool for the era, but there's nothing to use tonnage on except heat sinks)
- primitive parts (e.g. engine) replaced with standard equivalents from Corean Enterprises' Trebuchet
Code:
Sarissa MN1-2K
Base Tech Level: Introductory (IS)
Level Era
-------------------
Experimental -
Advanced -
Standard 3025+
Tech Rating: D/X-E-D-X
Weight: 50 tons
BV: 1,166
Cost: 3,903,500 C-bills
Movement: 5/8
Engine: 250
Heat Sinks: 18
Gyro: Standard Gyro
Internal: 83
Armor: 168/169
Internal Armor
----------------------------------------
Head 3 9
Center Torso 16 24
Center Torso (rear) 7
Right Torso 12 18
Right Torso (rear) 6
Left Torso 12 18
Left Torso (rear) 6
Right Arm 8 16
Left Arm 8 16
Right Leg 12 24
Left Leg 12 24
Weapons Loc Heat
-------------------------
Medium Laser LA 3
Large Laser RA 8
Medium Laser CT 3
Medium Laser CT 3MN1-2D Sarissa (3018)
- a version of the canonical 3080 Jihad-era MN1-D Sarissa - when the Regulans put the Sarissa back into production, they built an MN1-D instead of the MN1-K
- uses Binary Laser Cannon (Blazer), which as several people have pointed out is technically available and possible to build in pre-3025 era tech, just seen as an unpopular notion for 'Mech scale weaponry. Two lasers taped together.
- swaps CT med lasers for a small laser and a machine gun with half-ton ammo (for anti-infantry)
- half-ton less armour than the MN1-2K
Code:
Sarissa MN1-2D
Base Tech Level: Experimental (IS)
Level Era
-----------------------
Experimental 3050
Advanced 3050-3084
Standard 3085+
Tech Rating: D/X-X-E-X
Weight: 50 tons
BV: 1,144
Cost: 3,942,125 C-bills
Movement: 5/8
Engine: 250
Heat Sinks: 15
Gyro: Standard Gyro
Internal: 83
Armor: 160/169
Internal Armor
----------------------------------------
Head 3 9
Center Torso 16 24
Center Torso (rear) 7
Right Torso 12 17
Right Torso (rear) 6
Left Torso 12 17
Left Torso (rear) 6
Right Arm 8 15
Left Arm 8 15
Right Leg 12 22
Left Leg 12 22
Weapons Loc Heat
-----------------------------------------
Medium Laser LA 3
Binary Laser (Blazer) Cannon RA 16
Small Laser CT 1
Machine Gun CT 0
Ammo Loc Shots
-----------------------------------
Half Machine Gun Ammo LT 100MN1-2N Sarissa (3018)
- no canonical basis for this variant
- uses a copy of the stock Trebuchet's left arm, mated to the Sarissa chassis
- strips all med lasers and one ton of armour compared to the MN1-2K
- this leaves it with 1x LL and 1x LRM-15 with two tons ammo
Code:
Sarissa MN1-2N
Base Tech Level: Introductory (IS)
Level Era
-------------------
Experimental -
Advanced -
Standard 3050+
Tech Rating: D/X-X-D-X
Weight: 50 tons
BV: 1,119
Cost: 4,046,000 C-bills
Movement: 5/8
Engine: 250
Heat Sinks: 13
Gyro: Standard Gyro
Internal: 83
Armor: 152/169
Internal Armor
----------------------------------------
Head 3 9
Center Torso 16 24
Center Torso (rear) 7
Right Torso 12 16
Right Torso (rear) 6
Left Torso 12 16
Left Torso (rear) 6
Right Arm 8 14
Left Arm 8 14
Right Leg 12 20
Left Leg 12 20
Weapons Loc Heat
------------------------
LRM 15 LA 5
Large Laser RA 8
Ammo Loc Shots
-------------------------
LRM 15 Ammo LT 8
LRM 15 Ammo LT 8MN1-3K Sarissa (3025)
- the 3K upgrade to the 2K adds Double Heat Sinks and installs four torso jump jets
- also swaps the Large Laser for an ER PPC
- manufactured as a factory-new 'Mech and also sold as an upgrade kit for existing 'Mechs
Code:
Sarissa MN1-3K
Base Tech Level: Standard (IS)
Level Era
-------------------
Experimental -
Advanced -
Standard 3050+
Tech Rating: E/X-X-D-X
Weight: 50 tons
BV: 1,420
Cost: 4,545,500 C-bills
Movement: 5/8/4
Engine: 250
Double Heat Sinks: 14 [28]
Gyro: Standard Gyro
Internal: 83
Armor: 168/169
Internal Armor
----------------------------------------
Head 3 9
Center Torso 16 24
Center Torso (rear) 7
Right Torso 12 18
Right Torso (rear) 6
Left Torso 12 18
Left Torso (rear) 6
Right Arm 8 16
Left Arm 8 16
Right Leg 12 24
Left Leg 12 24
Weapons Loc Heat
-------------------------
Medium Laser LA 3
ER PPC RA 15
Medium Laser CT 3
Medium Laser CT 3MN1-3D Sarissa (3025)
- the 3D upgrade to the 2D adds DHS, jump jets, half-ton armour and CASE
Code:
Sarissa MN1-3D
Base Tech Level: Experimental (IS)
Level Era
-----------------------
Experimental 3050
Advanced 3050-3084
Standard 3085+
Tech Rating: E/X-X-E-X
Weight: 50 tons
BV: 1,282
Cost: 4,357,625 C-bills
Movement: 5/8/4
Engine: 250
Double Heat Sinks: 12 [24]
Gyro: Standard Gyro
Internal: 83
Armor: 168/169
Internal Armor
----------------------------------------
Head 3 9
Center Torso 16 24
Center Torso (rear) 7
Right Torso 12 18
Right Torso (rear) 6
Left Torso 12 18
Left Torso (rear) 6
Right Arm 8 16
Left Arm 8 16
Right Leg 12 24
Left Leg 12 24
Weapons Loc Heat
-----------------------------------------
Medium Laser LA 3
Binary Laser (Blazer) Cannon RA 16
Small Laser CT 1
Machine Gun CT 0
Ammo Loc Shots
-----------------------------------
Half Machine Gun Ammo LT 100
Equipment Loc
----------------
CASE LTMN1-3N Sarissa (3025)
- the 3N upgrade to the 2N adds DHS, jump jets, half-ton armour, CASE, Artemis IV
- uses an XL engine
- swaps LL for ER LL and adds back the missing two CT med lasers from the base model
- edit: there probably needs to be a non-XL upgrade for the 2N as well, since XLs are expensive
Code:
Sarissa MN1-3N
Base Tech Level: Standard (IS)
Level Era
-------------------
Experimental -
Advanced -
Standard 3050+
Tech Rating: E/X-X-E-X
Weight: 50 tons
BV: 1,413
Cost: 8,646,500 C-bills
Movement: 5/8/4
Engine: 250 XL
Double Heat Sinks: 13 [26]
Gyro: Standard Gyro
Internal: 83
Armor: 160/169
Internal Armor
----------------------------------------
Head 3 9
Center Torso 16 24
Center Torso (rear) 7
Right Torso 12 17
Right Torso (rear) 6
Left Torso 12 17
Left Torso (rear) 6
Right Arm 8 15
Left Arm 8 15
Right Leg 12 22
Left Leg 12 22
Weapons Loc Heat
---------------------------
LRM 15 LA 5
ER Large Laser RA 12
Medium Laser CT 3
Medium Laser CT 3
Ammo Loc Shots
-------------------------
LRM 15 Ammo LT 8
LRM 15 Ammo LT 8
Equipment Loc
---------------------
Artemis IV FCS LA
CASE LT
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