Brockton's Celestial Forge (Worm/Jumpchain)

[Walliseatscheese]

*snip*

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Just wanted to say that this interlude prep for Somer's Rock was pretty great, and I too would be happy if you wanted to do more explorations like it.

I'm also happy with Joe Updates, but learning about the other players and their headspaces is both interesting and a good way to set up pacing imo.

 

[Aurora Raven]

An interlude! Praise the Lord.

I love these so much.

 

[Neodart]

I don't have a problem with the pace of the story in itself (I follow Taylor Varga and compared to that, while this story isn't exactly a bullet train, it's a decently fast car).

The speed at which the powers are gained though? I do think they could come a little slower. It's just my opinion, and feel free to ignore it, but if I understand the principle of the way they are gained, it just by number of words written, right? It worked well at the beginning of the story but, as the story progressed, that word count seems to have started consisting more and more of explanations on how the new power worked and how it interacted with previously gained ones and less of story progression. It has come to the point I wouldn't be surprised if, in the next few chapters, there come a section of the story where an explanation of what a new power mean, both by itself and in relation with the rest, is interrupted by another one being gained, necessitating the explanation to be started again from the beginning...

It's a little late to change that, what with the "3-days old" thing having become an established fact in universe (though the new power to always find ways to upgrade things could allow for the hardwares to keep getting better without needing new power for every single increase), but I do think that, in these kind of stories, the word counter during those explanations should either be paused or only increase at half (or a third) of the speed that it does for the plot. That way, authors can write with their own style, at their own pace, but still have to advance the plot to gain new toys to play with...

 

[aleksds1]

That's what happens when you skim, her shardspace zombie status has been confirmed for months.

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Dude, it's literally impossible to remember all of 2kk words of this story in such big timespan.

This story is great, it has character defining on the level of the best classical book, we also have awesome and explained power...

But that pacing...

I love this story, I truly do. But thanks to this pacing now reading this story for me is like hate-fucking: you hate the person before you, but you can't stop feeling the pleasure from the act.

 

[Mesaphrom]

Fair enough. I get most of my Worm knowledge from fanfiction too, since I just didn't find the actual story that interesting.

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Pretty common in the Parahumans fanfic comunity, hell, I stopped reading right at the start of the BEHEMOTH arc because-

I had to skip large parts of canon due to how depressing it all was.

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Yeah, that, and it severily lacks down times in the story where one can just stop and look at the shit show that's been happening. I know the whole "escalation" thing is a meme, but it became a meme for a reason.

That's what happens when you skim, her shardspace zombie status has been confirmed for months.

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That just remind me the shit ton of hyperlinks in the TvTropes page, with every trope having at least one to quote Lord's comments, making it look like a mess.....

As for the chappy, I really feel bad for Scrub, even in canon I kinda felt bad for him, for Skidmark giving him a stupid name if nothing else.

And because of We Got Worm'd I can't help but to read his name as SCRUUUUUUUUB, mah boiiiiiiiiii!

I also really liked L33T's part, I won't say he doesn't deserve evrything that's coming his way, cuz he totally does, but I can still symphatize over him being in an absolute shit place by somehow being the only sane one. And wanting to bitch slap Bakuda to make her shut the fuck. By the way, am I the only one who thinks he may end up getting a Second Trigger with the way this is going? It isn't exactly the same as his original one, but is following really similar beats, and while it's only been two weeks (one and a half?), it's still a "problem that has been becoming worse for a long time" to count as a Tinker Trigger.

And finally Rey, who I really want him to become pals with Monkey Steel Man, same with Poison Apple with what little I know of her (read: wiki diving), I mean, yeah, he is still the mad scientist with a concience that somehow thought it was a smart idea to try to clone the Smurf (before he was gagged by Bonesaw, who actually said SHE wasn't that insane to do it), but having to deal with 18-minus yeas old teenagers that you can't ask to go on a milk drug without being sure they will not get drunk/drugged on the way and come back without the milk (the dicks!), seems like hellish enough to let him of the hook at least a bit....

And before I forget:

Barrows: I will not sell my ideals!.......... *whispers* For numbers like that~

 

[Blaflaix]

he knew that she only wished she could have pulled off something on that scale.

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Bakuda desperately wants to catch up to Aperion's freebies.

the culture there gets kind of stifling. Don't underestimate how restrictive a place without rules can get."

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The freedom of bureaucracy!
Where nobody gives a fuck what you do as long as they don't have to do paperwork for it.

 

[Norr]

Love the chapter, it gives us some good context for what's happening in the world and sets us up well for the coming summit.

I know 'tinker of fiction' fics postdate Worm as a story, but I'm wondering if Leet isn't some grimderp expy for a 'tinker of fiction'-type character from some other story.
I also want to say I love how he is portrayed in this fic. He's still a villain, but I can completely understand how he got where he is now and what drives him forward. Lord is a master (or at least a journeyman) of character crafting.

Might I recommend a sarcasm tag in the future? As someone who loves sarcasm more than the next person, it really doesn't translate well through writing.

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I've seen used to indicate anything from jokes to sarcasm. It's a good emote that comes off as less serious than "/s".

Also the idea of botanic mining is super cool. I bet there's some really neat ways to make pharmaceutical products with it too.

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Pycnandra acuminata a real life example of Botanic mining in a way. There are also other plants that absorb metal bet this is the most well known.

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I remember seeing a video covering the concept a while ago. I could see a lot of this in the future if we got some proper bioengineering going.

 

[Mourning Glory]

Well leet got sleeper data
rey got trouble children
and scrub got layed and trauma

Also made a little meme

View: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jUd0yppu4YCDMhnIlfqZAxP8PeRrdM0J/view
Should have been poison apple, but eh what you gonna do.

 

[LoquaciousLizard]

like an implacable lightning wreathes force of nature

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Wreathed

Not some hologram, or robot, or piece of technology aping at power. A fundamental expression of reality, the enforcement of a waveform across the resolution of the universe. The very fabric of reality expressed as data and bending to his control

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But not for me. I could see the structure of how digistruct worked, the enforcement of a waveform across the resolution of the universe, information expressed on the Planck scale, but manifested as a physically present and persistent effect

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Orangutan copper is really going to go " oh wow leet this is a really nice digistruction system you have here, it's definitely better than what I have on me" and then digistruct a grenade that disrupts the entire grid.

 

[Mesaphrom]

Well leet got sleeper data
rey got trouble children
and scrub got layed and trauma

Also made a little meme

View: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jUd0yppu4YCDMhnIlfqZAxP8PeRrdM0J/view
Should have been poison apple, but eh what you gonna do.

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Funniest part is that the battery is literally a compost heap. They are worth less that shit (that gives electricity) to him

 

[AmateruThorn90]

Seeing as he just got Digistruct tech, the Game Grid is already a hard sell, but once he gets that one Moon-Cell Magitech perk it's basically completely done for. Not to mention him just hacking the shit out of the Game Grid's tech once he can connect to whatever control panel Leet will be using.

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I am thinking the Gamer Grid is some kind of reality warp to make the world or just the bay, into a video game. One where Leet, and to a lesser extent the ABB, have control over the system and can de-level, control or ban any other "players", which would be everyone else.

Would be interesting if Aperion sees what Leet is trying to do and hacks to grid to make take control. Maybe giving every parahuman in the bay a sort of Gamer -lite power boost. One where parahumans can, like gamers, improve their powers and abilities very quickly.

That would be a game changer that every group in the world would want, one where even Cauldron would have to put the Bay on a protected site list.

 

[Stratagemini]

So, just so we're clear, Damsel of Distress is going to be at the summit, right?

 

[Cunuroi]

I enjoyed it but this was an ominous chapter. Reminds me of the Leet prelude before the Lung fight. That didn't go well either.

Just when you thought Uber was the biggest idiot in the chapter Leet somehow takes the cake, and this is in a chapter where one of the characters spent their time in canon Worm trying to clone the Simurgh. Even Bonesaw thought it was crazy.

I don't know what is worse: Uber stealing the tech and trying his decapitation strike or Leet actually completing whatever the Game Grid is.

Apeiron can take most hits and is obviously the MC. Garment is fiat-backed right? Fleet and Survey would probably be fine in most cases since I assume Apeiron wasn't so thoughtless as to make them incapable of having backups while making the bodies. But Aisha and Tybalt might get hurt by whatever bullshit Uber and Leet are planning to launch at Somer's Rock/BB. Tybalt IS a god but the whole March thing proved that no one is invincible.

The second problem isn't really tied to this chapter, but it was kind of foreshadowed by Blasto: Apeiron getting some sort of roll that makes him fuck up at the summit and it being taken as him breaking the truce. That's like the one thing everyone is sure he wouldn't do. That would be...not good.

If anything the rate time progresses in the story may help here: he could roll the worst things before he ever gets to Somer's Rock .

I did think Ivy in the Scrub prelude had some sort of secret purpose (someone else trying to get another annihilator on their team) turns out she did have a secret but the Barrow kids don't do plans. Lucky for Scrub I guess.

 

[Stratagemini]

But Aisha and Tybalt might get hurt by whatever bullshit Uber and Leet are planning to launch at Somer's Rock/BB.

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It's pretty clear that if an attack ends up coming on the summit it'll just be Uber, with maybe Bakuda. Not Leet. But honestly? I don't think an attack will happen at the summit. I think an attack will happen on the ABB shortly after that forces Leet's hand.

 

[Rogowaz]

I remember Lord WoG, something like when Aperion will be immune to PtV, Cauldron will board panic train too. Aperion is immune and will be out of Workshop.
Kill Order may be near enough.

 

[TitanFrost]

We found out that March is functional enough for all the contracts that she put into place to stay in play. She's paying the bills with the ABB funds. Basically, the Dragonslayers and U&L that we know of. There may be someone from New York being contracted as well.

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She's not actively directing them. They're just old plans chugging along due to the resilience being thinker designed gave them.

Either you die a hippy or you sell out to the "man"

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Isn't it the fate of most things to either die as the thing they are or change to another thing before they die?

So I don't know if this topic has already been covered... but any predictions on Team Apeiron's big entrance to the cape meet-and-greet?

Hammy Herald?

Theme music?

Subtle but piss-your-pants terrifying?

Flashy entrance?


Personal Ideas
1) Teleporter: I really enjoyed Thor's dramatic arrival to Wakanda in Infinity War in a column of light. I'm sure that adding mass teleportation to Apeiron's known abilities will not disturb the capes of BB at all.

2) Supernatural: the wind changes direction, lights start flickering and bursting, the roof starts rattling, the door bursts open,... then the gathered villains blink and realize that Apeiron and his TEAM are already in the bar and comfortably seated. Apeiron could even sigh and point at one of his allies and claim that they are always overly dramatic.

3) Meet the real boss: Apeiron has utilized misdirection and false leads in the past. Having a new mysterious boss appear (in addition to the other assorted team members) could provide Apeiron with additional excuses/opportunities.

4) Grand Entrance: Apeiron and team are the best-dressed crew in the world. Constructing vehicles flashy and luxurious enough to compliment the garb would take minutes (seconds?). Why not have the team show up looking impossibly sleek and professional while the rest of the BB capes look like brutish slobs in comparison? Apeiron has done dramatic and big-damn-hero entrances. Now is his opportunity to be classy and glamourous.

5) The Master's Touch: The meet-up at Somer's Rock seems to be expanding rapidly beyond canon's participants. Apeiron might need to enlarge and modify the bar in order to accommodate the additional attendees... incidentally transforming a dingy pub into the world's greatest bar. A speakeasy theme seems appropriate.

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I'm pretty sure he's just gonna walk in. Joe's big revelation about how to present himself at the meeting was literally, "my pals make me feel better :^D" Forgive me for not thinking he's put much more effort into a dedicated entrance plan, though I'm sure his perks will pick up the slack.

Pycnandra acuminata a real life example of Botanic mining in a way. There are also other plants that absorb metal bet this is the most well known

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Whoa, neat.

Or make a new rule that state that Interlude bypass the CF activation amount.

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Interlude word counts already don't count for power gains.

That's what happens when you skim, her shardspace zombie status has been confirmed for months.

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Eh, I don't blame anyone for ignoring out of story thread discussion. Sometimes you just want to read a fic.

(Unless they also post in the thread to to repeatedly complain about things that have been discussed to death…)

 

[GunnarS14]

I think people are really underestimating just what exactly Leet is building here. Sure, its using the same language as Digistruct technology, but Joe is currently limited in what he can use it for. He needs a bit of R&D to make it something other than another flavour of Projection. Leet is building a Mangum Opus here, something on the level of Bakuda's deadman's switch, and it's been established that the top tiers of Shardtech is still incredibly impressive. Hell, Joe still hasn't cracked the deadman's switch, although it's just a matter of time, and the Servo Skulls still found Bakuda's grenades far more impressive than most of Joe's tech.

Also, if my understanding is correct, both the Game Grid and Digistruct operate off the principles of Quantum Field Theory. When Leet says he's working with a fundamental expression of reality, he is not exaggerating. This theory basically says that all of reality is just a bunch of waves interacting with each other, so if he is actually able to build something that can manipulate these waves he will literally be a reality warper.

 

[Mesaphrom]

I enjoyed it but this was an ominous chapter. Reminds me of the Leet prelude before the Lung fight. That didn't go well either.

Just when you thought Uber was the biggest idiot in the chapter Leet somehow takes the cake, and this is in a chapter where one of the characters spent their time in canon Worm trying to clone the Simurgh. Even Bonesaw thought it was crazy.

I don't know what is worse: Uber stealing the tech and trying his decapitation strike or Leet actually completing whatever the Game Grid is.

Apeiron can take most hits and is obviously the MC. Garment is fiat-backed right? Fleet and Survey would probably be fine in most cases since I assume Apeiron wasn't so thoughtless as to make them incapable of having backups while making the bodies. But Aisha and Tybalt might get hurt by whatever bullshit Uber and Leet are planning to launch at Somer's Rock/BB. Tybalt IS a god but the whole March thing proved that no one is invincible.

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As cruel as it may sound, the AIs and their bodies wouldn't even need backups since they were made in the workshop, so they would pop up again two days later like every other object made there. I think.

The second problem isn't really tied to this chapter, but it was kind of foreshadowed by Blasto: Apeiron getting some sort of roll that makes him fuck up at the summit and it being taken as him breaking the truce. That's like the one thing everyone is sure he wouldn't do. That would be...not good.

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Well, I can see a couple of ways, like some Thinkers thinking they are more intelligent that they actually are and use their powers against him, or some unecesarily picking fights during a truce, or Francis pulling a Francis like Francises usually do under pressure, or the Dragonslayers drinking too much of the kool-aid while talking to him, DoD having an episode of EEEEEEEEEEEVIIIIIIIIIIIILLLLLLL because of her Passenger, etc. There actually many things that could go out of control and make Jozef break the truce, though at that point I think the truce would have been broken anyway.

And yes, it is hilarious that the man who wanted to make himself a Simurgh Clone Waifu is currently one of the sanest Capes that is going to attend. Well, not sane, but the one who doesn't want to start shit against anyone but the ones (partly) behind that mess.

But, hey, that's what being the responsible adult does, it makes you a dad

 

[Bombastus]

I thought Scrub was an OC, and I had forgotten about Flechette, so its actually worse then I had been thinking. Most of my worm knowledge comes from fanfic, the original story is too grim for my taste. Scrub isn't one that comes up a lot.

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If it makes you feel better, it's actually fairly plausible for the four of them to be in the city, because most of them were in the city together in canon. Fletchette was transferred in to reinforce the Wards after a few of them died fighting Leviathan, and Scrub triggered at a Merchant rally. While she never appeared 'on-screen' in Worm, March did canonicaly visit Brockton Bay twice (during the timeskip) to fuck with Fletchette/Foil. She even kidnapped Parian, the second time.

Damsel is the only one of the four that never was never canonicaly present in Brockton Bay as far as I know, but it's not too unreasonable for her to be there since she did live nearby.

 

[The Shallow]

I remember Lord WoG, something like when Aperion will be immune to PtV, Cauldron will board panic train too. Aperion is immune and will be out of Workshop.
Kill Order may be near enough.

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...His anti-thinker powers would either be interpreted as more power-tinkering or more-mindfuckery, both of which would cause... C O N C E R N...

I think people are really underestimating just what exactly Leet is building here. Sure, its using the same language as Digistruct technology, but Joe is currently limited in what he can use it for. He needs a bit of R&D to make it something other than another flavour of Projection. Leet is building a Mangum Opus here, something on the level of Bakuda's deadman's switch, and it's been established that the top tiers of Shardtech is still incredibly impressive. Hell, Joe still hasn't cracked the deadman's switch, although it's just a matter of time, and the Servo Skulls still found Bakuda's grenades far more impressive than most of Joe's tech.

Also, if my understanding is correct, both the Game Grid and Digistruct operate off the principles of Quantum Field Theory. When Leet says he's working with a fundamental expression of reality, he is not exaggerating. This theory basically says that all of reality is just a bunch of waves interacting with each other, so if he is actually able to build something that can manipulate these waves he will literally be a reality warper.

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Worm certainly plays with that theory in Stilling, so yeah very likely. Then again that level of bullshit, combined with the earlier breach, might actually get Scion to act up. So yeah, kinda wish we had gotten a Kevin Norton interlude when it seemed Scion had flown to talk to him.

 

[Introverted]

I'm pretty sure he's just gonna walk in. Joe's big revelation about how to present himself at the meeting was literally, "my pals make me feel better :^D" Forgive me for not thinking he's put much more effort into a dedicated entrance plan, though I'm sure his perks will pick up the slack.

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The entrance of Apeiron with another team of capes is genuinely more terrifying than him having a cool entrance.

 

[Mesaphrom]

I remember Lord WoG, something like when Aperion will be immune to PtV, Cauldron will board panic train too. Aperion is immune and will be out of Workshop.
Kill Order may be near enough.

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Ah, but the thing is that he isn't 'immune' per say, it's more of a 'notice me not' effect, so it will take a while before they take notice, if they notice at all that is him messing with PtV and not the usual suspects (Zion, Eidolon, the Endbringers, new Triggers, etc.) or even just the usual precog spuffing he have been doing until now.

If it makes you feel better, it's actually fairly plausible for the four of them to be in the city, because most of them were in the city together in canon. Fletchette was transferred in to reinforce the Wards after a few of them died fighting Leviathan, and Scrub triggered at a Merchant rally. While she never appeared 'on-screen' in Worm, March did canonicaly visit Brockton Bay twice (during the timeskip) to fuck with Fletchette/Foil. She even kidnapped Parian, the second time.

Damsel is the only one of the four that never was never canonicaly present in Brockton Bay as far as I know, but it's not too unreasonable for her to be there since she did live nearby.

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If anything I'm more surprised Whilygig is canon, because by god I can never remember where she appeared, she is THAT much of a minor character.

The entrance of Apeiron with another team of capes is genuinely more terrifying than him having a cool entrance.

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Every other Cape (including the Undies): What can one man do besides the current mess in the city, we can probably take him with enough support!

Man Steel Oragutan: *appears with a fully armored Cape team, including two C53s*

EoC: ........Fuck.

 

[Mourning Glory]

I remember Lord WoG, something like when Aperion will be immune to PtV, Cauldron will board panic train too. Aperion is immune and will be out of Workshop.
Kill Order may be near enough.

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That was if Joe rolled M/E perk first and got OCP perk which scarmbles powers and is clearly subverted, Lord has stated now that even if Joe got M/E then Cauldron won't immediately know, so they will be fine

 

[PrinceOfDoom]

Well... shit.

Everything is pointing to this meeting being a god damn, quite literal, EXPLOSION.

And its only a matter of time until the bomb goes off.

I expect the meeting to be multi-chapter and be utterly chaotic and deeply, deeply INTENSE.

And I expect Apeiron, the Crew, and the Undersiders to be escaping as everything goes to hell. Probably with Uppercrust. And maybe some Ambassadors. Because holy fuck this is going to be AMAZING and INSANE at the same time.

 

[savlbaeiwq]

The entrance of Apeiron with another team of capes is genuinely more terrifying than him having a cool entrance.

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Also laughing @ the fact that the group from this interlude is rolling in 5 people deep and... so is Apeiron. I'm going to love the reactions to his group. I don't think people are expecting him to show up alone, but I also don't think the group trigger theory is expecting a Brute 10/Stranger 10 to be accompanying him lol.