Puella Magi Systema Fractus, or A Practical Guide To Fixing Everything (PMAS/APGTE)

[blast flame]

You post that list and I see a bunch of people I want to see interact to see the sparks fly.

(Also Catherine corrupting Madoka? I don't think anything but actual mindwashing could corrupt Madoka and even then it'd have to be burn the whole mind down type mindwashing. This is a girl who talks about there being a lot of things worth protecting in the world on the verge of witching in a grief spiral.)

 

[Diomedea]

Ah, the incomprehensible non-Euclidean abomination of a geometric figure that is Catherine's love life.

For some reason, I feel like we should never leave her and Homura in the same room for too long.

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I dunno, seems simple to me. She's a powerful visionary in a world where being such literally pulls other people into your orbit and has heaped responsibility and responsibility upon herself. She's super stressed out, and after the last talk with Killian she isn't willing to get with someone that is too much weaker than herself. So she has all this tension with the Woe because they're both powerful enough and trusted enough that Cat might let herself date one of them...but probably not lest she risk the dynamics of the Woe causing death and destruction to everything she loves (so more stress!). Still, she has gathered around her a group of powerful people she is very close to. They basically represent the entirety of her dating pool, and two of them are out of the running entirely (Masego and Hakram), leaving her with Indrani and Akua and maybe Vivienne if she swings that way. Indrani is weirdly romantically entangled with Masego, Akua is...Akua, and Vivienne might not be interested, and even without those complications a romantic entanglement hits the whole risking the group dynamic thing I mentioned before.

To sum up, she is very, very pent up, constantly surrounded by attractive people she is close to but can't actually risk getting involved with until after Callow is strong enough to stand without her and she isn't confident that any of them would actually go for something serious instead of the casual banter thing they do, and did I mention how amazingly stressed by everything she is?

Honestly, Homura is so different they're fine together (I know it's mostly a joke, but, eh... ). Homura is a girl who will burn the world to save the girl. Cat's first love is her whole mission to save Callow and see it stay saved and any relationship is second to that.

List of people who should not be left in a room together
Homura and Catherine (too high a risk of eldritch love lives breeding with each other)
Catherine and Madoka (See above. Also, Homura would kill Catherine if she corrupted Madoka)
Homura and Masego (Timestop is too tempting for someone who wants to dissect miracles)
Oriko and Grey Pilgrim (For the Greater Good levels dangerously high)
Mami and Akua (Mami's had enough of double-talking entities that just won't die)
Sayaka and Robber (Too high a risk of either Justice being triggered, or a shortsighted partnership based on love of goblinfire)

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Masego should probably not be left alone with any Meguca. I mean, we're from outside of creation. What self respecting Praesi mage wouldn't want to vivisect us?

 

[blast flame]

Masego should probably not be left alone with any Meguca. I mean, we're from outside of creation. What self respecting Praesi mage wouldn't want to vivisect us?

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Hmm, obviously we don't want to get vivisected but could we use the prospect of being able to examine us using more benign methods as a bargaining tool to get some stuff out of them?

 

[Kai Merah]

(Also Catherine corrupting Madoka? I don't think anything but actual mindwashing could corrupt Madoka and even then it'd have to be burn the whole mind down type mindwashing. This is a girl who talks about there being a lot of things worth protecting in the world on the verge of witching in a grief spiral.)

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Sorry, did I say corrupting? I meant corrupting in the sense of seducing lol. Cat is quite the ladykiller after all. And Madoka is a bit of a sucker for tragic people trying to do the right thing.

 

[blast flame]

Sorry, did I say corrupting? I meant corrupting in the sense of seducing lol. Cat is quite the ladykiller after all. And Madoka is a bit of a sucker for tragic people trying to do the right thing.

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Madoka was a sucker for Homura back when she was Moemura. So I think Madoka is into Homura because of she's Homura not because of her archtype.

 

[Kai Merah]

Madoka was a sucker for Homura back when she was Moemura. So I think Madoka is into Homura because of she's Homura not because of her archtype.

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Lol, of course I don't think Cat and Madoka could ever get together. Still, it's possible, and I like the idea of Homura bristling like an angry cat at the possibility.

 

[blast flame]

Lol, of course I don't think Cat and Madoka could ever get together. Still, it's possible, and I like the idea of Homura bristling like an angry cat at the possibility.

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Homura is totally the sort to let Madoka be with someone else because it makes her happy. There's a reason she doesn't try to start dating Madoka as Homucifer.

 

[065tdsa]

Homura is totally the sort to let Madoka be with someone else because it makes her happy. There's a reason she doesn't try to start dating Madoka as Homucifer.

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No. Homura might think she could manage that, but in practice it'd drive her completely nuts. Homucifer wasn't exactly sane to begin with.

 

[Sereg]

Homura ripped Madoka out of tje only place she can be happy and returned her to her depressed life as she couldn't accept not being with her

 

[blast flame]

Homura ripped Madoka out of tje only place she can be happy and returned her to her depressed life as she couldn't accept not being with her

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Homura was not of the opinion that Madoka was happy as the law of cycles, just look at the concept movie. You can argue whether she's right or wrong but that's definitely what she thought.

And Madoka didn't exactly have a depressed life, not at least until all her friends died (which Homucifer undid). Aside from some feelings of inadequacy she seemed pretty happy.

 

[Sereg]

Yeah, Homura was deluded, because of her inability to accept what happened to Madoka. She's convinced herself that Madoka can only be happy ig Homura is the only one to save her from being a damsel in distresss.

Also, the feelings of inadequacy are what demonstrate the depression. Depressed people are capable of experiencing happiness.It's not that simple a disease

 

[Raiseth]

I dunno, seems simple to me. She's powerful visionary in a world where being such literally pulls other people into your orbit and has heaped responsibility and responsibility upon herself. She's super stressed out, and after the last talk with Killian she isn't willing to get with someone that is too much weaker than herself. So she has all this tension with the woe because they're both powerful enough that and trusted enough that Cat might let herself date one of them...but probably not lest she risk the dynamics of the woe causing death and destruction to everything she loves (so more stress!). Still, she has gathered around her a group of powerful people she is very close to. They basically represent the entirety of her dating pool, and two of them are out of the running entirely (Masego and Hakram), leaving her with Indrani and Akua and maybe Vivienne if she swings that way. Indrani is weirdly romantically entangled with Masego, Akua is...Akua, and Vivienne might not be interested, and even without those complications a romantic entanglement hits the whole risking the group dynamic thing I mentioned before.

To sum up, she is very, very pent up, constantly surrounded by attractive people she is close to but can't actually risk getting involved with until after Callow is strong enough to stand without her and she isn't confident that any of them would actually go for something serious instead of the casual banter thing they do, and did I mention how amazingly stressed by everything she is?

Honestly, Homura is so different they're fine together (I know it's mostly a joke, but, eh... ). Homura is a girl who will burn the world to save the girl. Cat's first love is her whole mission to save Callow and see it stay saved and any relationship is second to that

Click to shrink...

So
This... thing... is a description of simple romantic relationships mechanics.

Good to know?

( Also, that was my joke exactly. I haven't explained it, but it goes like this: Homura's attitude to her love life is completely opposite to Cat's: Homura is in denial, Catherine is openly bisexual. Homura is only into Madoka, Catherine is into everyone powerful and confident except for her surrogate father figure, because weird. Catherine is casual about displays of affection and Homura really, really isn't. Catherine thinks there are things more important than the current object of her interest and Homucifer. Just Homucifer.

So I sorta implied the room will violently explode from the sheer amount of opinions clashing with each other. And an aside about Homura having a facade of a powerful and confident woman, so maybe Catherine could start getting hots for her. )

 

[Onmur]

Spoiler

We were disabused of that notion when we found the first landscape out of Keter itself. It was the funeral of the king we'd watch die, his body tastefully covered by a shroud so the pulped head could not be seen by those attending. Among those present in the great crypt where the entombment took place was the young man I was fairly sure became the Dead King. Not because of anything he did, but because of who was talking to him. The face I didn't recognize, I'd admit. But the shoddy lute and the flask? Those I'd recognize anywhere.

They belonged to the Wandering Bard.

That fucking bard.

 

[blast flame]

To be honest I'm looking forward to explaining to someone what our world is like, what Mitakihara is like. I'm imagining someone pulling out some of our memories somehow (or us just showing them via grief screen) and them just WTFing at all the gigantic, shiny white towers and stuff.

Yeah, Homura was deluded, because of her inability to accept what happened to Madoka. She's convinced herself that Madoka can only be happy ig Homura is the only one to save her from being a damsel in distresss.

Also, the feelings of inadequacy are what demonstrate the depression. Depressed people are capable of experiencing happiness.It's not that simple a disease

Click to shrink...

So if Homucifer gets her on some anti-depressants then she's good?

(Joking, joking. I'll stop here, I don't want to get you into an argument that gets you banned from the thread.)

 

[Raiseth]

Eh, I understand where Sereg is coming from, but I think this discussion is auxiliary to the quest at best? I mean, circumstances versus character and miscommunication versus deliberate misinterpretation debate about the Rebellion.

Sooo how about we all awkwardly dance away from this topic and start discussing something that really matters?

For example, Braid Homura versus Straight Hair Homura
Discuss.

 

[Onmur]

Apparently Masego might be the first Hieropanth (Named) ever.

"... Hierophant, however, was an unexpected variable. Apprentices have transitioned into Names other than Warlock before, but usually when both are living simultaneously a succession through murder is the outcome."

"An awkward but kind and sweet man with no interest in power did not end up murdering his relatively loving father for said power," Thief said. "However will we solve this confounding mystery, Sahelian? I just don't know."

"There is no known precedent to his Name," Akua continued without missing a beat, and I was reluctantly impressed by her ability to just plow through that level of scathing sarcasm. "Consequently the core tenet of it had to be understood from the man himself. Fascinating as his upbringing was to study, the pivot seems to have occurred after he met Catherine. It was the calibre of the opposition that forged him, you see. Choirs and demigods. There was need for one who could understand and oppose those entities, and so the Hierophant came to be."

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EDIT: Also:

"And that leaves me," Vivienne lightly said, though there was an edge beneath. "Don't disappoint now, sagely collar genie. What has your profound discernment taught you of my hidden nature? I'll go first: deep down, I always wanted to be a shoemaker. Shoes are the foundation on which rests civilization, Diabolist. We are literally barefoot without them. You ever think about that, in between ruminations about how you tried to conquer the world and got your heart ripped out instead? Food for thought."

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[Raiseth]

Look, I'm gonna tell you right now: when you get to Everything According to ( Keikaku* ), it will make your day. Possibly a week.

So, an incentive to read faster.

*Keikaku means plan

 

[Onmur]

Heads up! Smartasses exist even in Creation!

"It is said that on the eve of the Maddened Fields, the Tyrant Theodosius consulted with the many Delosi soothsayers among his host. He asked them if he would find victory or defeat, should he give battle at dawn as he intended. The Delosi squabbled among themselves for hours, until the eldest among them looked the Tyrant in the eyes and spoke his answer: Yes."
– Extract from 'The Banquet of Follies, or, A Comprehensive History of the First League War' by Prince Alexandre of Lyonis

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[Onmur]

Also, super important information for the good of our future:

His lips thinned.

"If you'd just let me-"

"We have a rule, Masego," I said patiently. "What is that rule?"

"We don't vivisect friends," he muttered mulishly. "Even when we could learn the most interesting things from it."

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In order to not get vivisected by Masego (Hierophant, who dissects miracles), we just need to BEFRIEND him first! Ez.

EDIT:

BY THE FUCKING WAY:

"That was all the questions," Adjutant told us. "It seems unwise to simply leave her here, if we are to act now."

"That one's mine to solve," Thief noted. "No card, mind you, but it's the obvious solution."

She got up and laid a hand on the Revenant's arm. Nothing happened. Vivienne sighed.

"Hold," she said.

While the sight of the undead vanishing was interesting in its own way, it was Hakram's body-wide twitch that took my attention. He winced, and I recognized from the look on his face the signs of a dawning headache.

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There's... factors that might have something to do with it, but Thief seems to be able to literally put people inside her hammerspace by touch.

 

[Raiseth]

There's... factors that might have something to do with it, but Thief seems to be able to literally put people inside her hammerspace by touch.

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I'm not sure ordinary people can survive this. The Thief of Stars was an undead Revenant, after all.

 

[Kai Merah]

Technically, we are also undead piloting a well-preserved corpse.

 

[Raiseth]

Technically, we are also undead piloting a well-preserved corpse.

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Does it mean that we are a Revenant in this setting?
Or, much more probably, that every Revenant in this setting is a Meguca?

Because, you know, discrimination by gender doesn't seem to be Sabrina's cup of tea.

Edit: leaving my general attitude to transhumanist leanings of this forum aside, the body shouldn't construe as dead if it has ( relatively ) working brain, heart, internal organs, and isn't turned by crosses or burned by holy water. That Meguca can turn these functions on and off is largely a feature, not a qualification.

So, to conclude my bout of pedantry, we are an undead piloting a well-preserved living body.

 

[Onmur]

BTW, now that I remember, Black doesn't use his third aspect lightly, but we should really protect our Gems. I'm not certain about Destroy's limitations, but it sounds to me he could break a Soul Gem as easily as Sabrina can.

BTW, I'm catching up and while this quote was quoted earlier:

"We're not picking a fight with the Kingdom Under," Indrani flatly said. "Not even the Lady does that. You kill a single dwarf and they won't send a complaint, they'll sink cities underground and slaughter everyone remotely involved. Maybe their relatives just to be sure. It doesn't matter if by some miracle you manage to beat the army they send, Catherine. They'll keep sending them, just get across the point that you don't fuck with the dwarves."

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There was another quote about the dwarves later on about how dwarves did take care of one of Praes' Empresses:

"Dread Empress Triumphant, may she never return-"

"Forced them to pay tribute, sure," I interrupted, rolling my eyes. "Once, after she flooded a few of their tunnels with demons. Didn't stop them from funding and arming a continent's worth of rebellions against her a few years later, did it? They just threw gold at her so she'd fuck off and then paid for other humans to actually put her down. Let's not pretend it was more than a headache for them."

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And there's more about the dwarves. They're considered the only force in the continent big enough to no be a mere regional power. They seem to have grown underground for milennia while everyone above ground warred with each other. The dwarves' siege engines are way above everything else seen so far, and the sheer amount ot soldiers and people they can move makes it clear they're way, way, way bigger than any other state in Calernia.

For what is worth, they don't care much about aboveground, and they're enemies of the Dead King, so if we ever deal with them, so far I'd say we're more likely to end up bargaining for mutual benefits, rather than come in conflict.

 

[Raiseth]

For what is worth, they don't care much about aboveground, and they're enemies of the Dead King, so if we ever deal with them, so far I'd say we're more likely to end up bargaining for mutual benefits, rather than come in conflict.

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I dunno, what's your opinion on genocide and forceful resettlement of 'Always Chaotic Evil' races?

 

[Onmur]

I dunno, what's your opinion on genocide and forceful resettlement of 'Always Chaotic Evil' races?

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I know the dwarves did war against the goblins and kicked them out of the underground, but no details. Also of their current war against the Drow, but well, the (current) Drow are the (current) Drow. Do we know anything else we could judge the dwaves by?