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Divine Administration - of Gods and Bureaucracy (Worm/Exalted)

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Serafina said:
That is actually a useful and relevant comment. I am glad to hear that it can be seen as sweet.
Not that shipping will necessarily occur, mind you. I mostly just saw the possibility of Rachel - who essentially does biomanipulation at range, if limited to dogs - getting advice from another biomanipulator. Granted, we don't know whether Rachels powers were ever capable of precision beyond "pump them up more", but since it makes for a more interesting story if she can learn some tricks, she will.
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They're doggy!evangelions. Asuka had those spike launcher thingies which should be doable with bone shards and muscles. I'm sure they can think of something that works.
 
Did the Canberra gods ever learn Taylor was assassinated? I remember Tu Yu asked them for Ambrosia, but as oddly as he has been acting about them I didn't assume he actually explained why.
 
Serafina said:
What makes you think that Taylor can just automatically get that information?
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Not automatically, but if she concentrates on it I would have thought she'd be able to get in minutes any information a team of forensic accountants could get if given "sufficient time" to go over everything.

Serafina said:
But I don't think Coil is foolish enough to maintain a written list of which mercenary is stationed where exactly.
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True, but she should be able to get quite a lot of information on where they have safe houses - even if just by following the money.

Serafina said:
At this point, the best they can hope for is a long list of safe houses the mercenaries are allowed to use as they wish.
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And which of them are actually occupied and an estimate of the number of people using each (since they'd know how much water, electricity, etc... is used at each location) - and that's before Lisa gets involved and assuming there are no records written down as to how the cells communicate with one another.
 
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Something about the second half of the chapter seemed choppy - I think it might have been the jumping around you were doing, so you really had to cut back to get everything in, and I think that hurts it, since you're trying to show the brainstorming process with as little as possible (or something - not sure that's the issue, but I do think there was an issue in there).
Did enjoy the greater bureaucracy focus here as well.
Serafina said:
We've been there once since, extremely carefully
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Flipped order. I think it reads a bit better.
Serafina said:
Less than I'd expected actually.
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*Shipping intensifies*
Serafina said:
Several where it was necessary. Until they had the solution I wanted.
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Needs a capital. And lovely manipulation there Taylor - make them come up with the solution you want in a way that they want it too!
Serafina said:
and her powers were the only thing we had close to an actual counter to his
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There's a couple of other fixes for the sentence as well.
 
Spectrum said:
IMV, the heart of the problem is that Taylor is not as experienced/suited as she needs to be as the boss while new Gods form reasonably cognizant of their own abilities and willing to use them.
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In other words, a human gains the power to create life, but conflict arises because their creations, which each enter the world fully-formed and intrinsically aware of their designated purpose and functions, can't easily understand their maker's choices and behavior patterns because of the fundamental difference between how they think and how they process the world they live in.

Eventually, the created beings become frustrated with their creator's apparent foolishness and lack of conviction and rebel.

This does have some parallels with the backstory of Exalted itself, but what it really reminds me of is:



Anybody else seeing this?
 
GardenerBriareus said:
In other words, a human gains the power to create life, but conflict arises because their creations, which each enter the world fully-formed and intrinsically aware of their designated purpose and functions, can't easily understand their maker's choices and behavior patterns because of the fundamental difference between how they think and how they process the world they live in.

Eventually, the created beings become frustrated with their creator's apparent foolishness and lack of conviction and rebel.

This does have some parallels with the backstory of Exalted itself,
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Also: Teenagers.
 
Well, I may as well state the obvious by now:
Writing has stalled.

The reasons are manifold. Me having a really bad crash during March, starting new therapy, getting roped into GMing Shadowrun for a bunch of complete newbies (who're great, but still, quite a bit of creative energy needed) and my co-writer being busy with work and his own writing project.
Mostly though I just ran into a barrier where things just didn't work out in any way that made sense.

It's looking up a bit though. I managed to (hopefully) resolve the major snare around the next chapter, and I actually managed to write some 400 words today that I'm happy with (as opposed to writing stuff that just sucks).

I can't promise anything on account of stupidly fickle psychological issues, but I'll try to post the next chapter within two weeks.
Also, would anyone be interested in a preview (start of the chapter got written just fine, after all)? Don't want to come across as teasing content to excuse my slacking, hence my asking.
 
Serafina said:
It's looking up a bit though. I managed to (hopefully) resolve the major snare around the next chapter, and I actually managed to write some 400 words today that I'm happy with (as opposed to writing stuff that just sucks).

I can't promise anything on account of stupidly fickle psychological issues, but I'll try to post the next chapter within two weeks.
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This is good to hear. Don't worry about the chapter overmuch, we can wait for quality work.
 
Serafina said:
Me having a really bad crash during March, starting new therapy,
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Best wishes.
Serafina said:
getting roped into GMing Shadowrun for a bunch of complete newbies (who're great, but still, quite a bit of creative energy needed)
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I understand.
Serafina said:
) and my co-writer being busy with work and his own writing project.
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Eh, fair 'nuff.
Serafina said:
Mostly though I just ran into a barrier where things just didn't work out in any way that made sense.

It's looking up a bit though. I managed to (hopefully) resolve the major snare around the next chapter, and I actually managed to write some 400 words today that I'm happy with (as opposed to writing stuff that just sucks).
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Woohoo!
Serafina said:
I can't promise anything on account of stupidly fickle psychological issues, but I'll try to post the next chapter within two weeks.
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Awesome, thank you for telling us what's going on, and we get that RL stuff always comes first.
Serafina said:
Also, would anyone be interested in a preview (start of the chapter got written just fine, after all)? Don't want to come across as teasing content to excuse my slacking, hence my asking.
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I don't think you come across that way, and I think a preview would be lovely.
And again, thanks for letting us know, and we understand RL problems take priority.
EDIT:
landcollector said:
This is good to hear. Don't worry about the chapter overmuch, we can wait for quality work.
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Seconding this.
 
Okay, have a preview then :)
And input on this could actually help resuscitate my muse, with a bit of luck.


I slumped heavily into my office seat. I was exhausted, but the plan was working! Just four days after the meeting, and I had already come back from my third fight. And I hadn't even been in every fight against the gangs, all I could really do was beat up some gangers and serve as a priority target for them. But with my robes and the training Hu Dai had given me, I could really take what they were throwing at me.

Lotus chimed in before I could get any rest. "Mistress, while you were out several messages have arrived. I have also taken the liberty to sort all current requests for you." Right. The main reason I wasn't out there fighting all the time. Someone had to take care of the paperwork, and I now had a neat stack of that on my desk again. At least that was almost relaxing after the mental exhaustion of the fighting, I was more used to it at least.

I started to dig into the pile. Mostly it was routine things, reports for the PRT to keep them up-to-date on our activities, reports from Canberra on their ambrosia expenditure, filing our arrests properly. A page in Lisa's handwriting caught my attention, and I put it aside for later. And apparently Ver'ash had successfully modified one of Dragons stealth drones. Why you'd give a near-invisible surveillance drone wings that sparkled in the sunlight was beyond me. Though apparently he had managed to get some array out of that which could blind enemies. Predictably, the next message was a complaint from Dragon, though mostly about his lax documentation and lack of communication with her.

I was almost done with the rest of the documents and about to draft up a plan to properly use our now more strained financial resources when Lotus chimed in. "Mistress, Dragon would like to speak with you at your earliest convenience."

Of course she would. "Please tell her that I am busy, and that I already read her report, and that I'll talk to Ver'ash." I wouldn't mind talking to Dragon about this, but if I had to discuss every report I got in detail with the person who wrote it, I'd never get anything done.

Just after I managed to tackle the issue of measuring out our prayer-resources fairly from the single pool they gathered in, Lotus chimed in again. "Mistress, Dragon still inquires about an audience with you. She insisted that it is not about her report. Should I convince her to get an appointment?"

I sighed. "No, it's fine. If she insist it's probably important. Patch her through please?"

Part of my desk lit up, and Dragons face appeared about it. She looked slightly different than I remembered her, but the most notable feature was her annoyed frown. "Finally! I've been arguing with that obnoxious AI for ages!" At most she had waited for about a quarter of an hour.

I had to suppress a chuckle at her outburst. "You know she can hear you, right? And please don't be rude to her because of her nature." Lisa and I had our suspicions about Dragon, but so far it was unconfirmed. I wondered whether we'd get anything else out of the recording of this conversation. But that was for later.

Lotus just sounded amused. "Oh, I do not take offense Mistress. Why, I do believe this is the first time Dragon has actually met…"

She got cut off by Dragon. "Sorry, Lotus. I was just frustrated, but I don't mind what you are. I apologize if I gave the impression that I did, or if I offended you. You're fascinating really, as a tinker I can only admire...well, and you're a fascinating person of course too."

I interrupted before the two of them could continue their banter. "What did you want to talk about Dragon?"

Her voice turned much more serious. "Aedile. I realize that Brockton Bay needs assistance, but you freed parahumans from a Simurgh Quarantine Zone-. I have not yet informed government officials, but only to give you a chance to explain."

Panic threatened to surge into me. I wasn't ready for this yet. But I could do this, I had to. I had a prepared story, I should be able to get through this without revealing too much information. I just had to make sure it wasn't too obvious. I quickly ran my options through my mind. Hopefully Dragon wouldn't notice the delay. "Thank you for giving me a chance to explain. Neitee and Yeutta, or any of the others, aren't bad people. I'm sure you know what they have done, and…"
 
So it should be rather obvious where this is going, and yes, Taylor trying to weasel her way out of this was where I got stuck with writing.
At first I had a...rather bad way of doing it that honestly wasn't in-character for Dragon, who would have been smarter than that. So now it'll be a more challenging but hopefully more interesting way of doing things.
 
palgober said:
you can always use the argument that they were not present at Canberra when Ziz attacked
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Yes, that was my original plan as well.
And Taylor even has (very convincingly faked) documentation that all the canberran gods are people who were outside the radius of the Simurghs scream during the attack. Or at least she does for Neitee and Yeutta, for the others it's a bit thinner since she hadn't planned on there being more gods than that.

But that's not enough.
Because now they are inside the quarantine zone.
And it's not called a quarantine zone for no reason.

Specifically, there are recorded instances where it was pretty clear that a Simurgh-victim manipulated someone who wasn't one in such a way to still cause chaos and instability. It doesn't put other people under direct Simurgh-control, but it can definitely make them mentally unstable, politically radical or other such things.
And combine that with what the canberran gods are actually doing inside the quarantine zone....well, there's certainly a lot of cause for concern.
 
Miri said:
Taylor (or Lisa?) didn't already have a plan for when this question got dropped in their lap?
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Taylor did.
I didn't.

Or more specifically, I originally had it planned like Taylor lays it out in 4.3. Present the harmlessness of the Canberran gods as a fait accompli after they help bring down the gangs. Bank on that earning some trust. And only play the conversation on her terms. Analyze all the options beforehand, get Lisa on creating a perfect psychological profile of Director Piggot, have her run a life-analysis during the reveal.
Still a huge gamble, with the most likely outcome being grudging acceptance because taking action would cause too much of a mess. But Taylor isn't exactly risk-averse.

Then I remembered that Dragon should really be keeping tabs on such things. Sure, she had her malfunction, but that got fixed last chapter. And that Dragon is probably duty-bound to act here, as well as doing so on her own anyway.
And Taylor wasn't ready for that yet.
Neither was I to be perfectly honest. But it was intriguing to write. Though also really hard and due to that and other circumstances I got stuck.

Right now Taylors plan is "try to convince Dragon, gradually reveal more information where necessary (volunteering it, not getting pressured into it), count on Dragon being reasonable, play her teenager-role to get some sympathy".
And to be fair, she does have a rather good cause if she just reveals all the necessary information. She can prove that she created those gods, so they can't be Simurgh-victims themselves. She can prove how exactly their powers work, thus showing them to be not terribly suspectible to getting influenced. And most importantly she could just prove that she can give them unbreakable orders (though she's very reluctant to actually do that).

Just...yeah, I don't exactly have a full plan on selling that well. But I'm getting there, headache though it may be.
 
Speaking as someone who had been pondering a fic unleashing the power of bureaucracy on various assholes on Earth Bet, and who has just been pleasantly surprised to find that he doesn't have to make excuses as to why he isn't writing it, please keep up the good work.
 
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