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Stealing Fire (Worm SI)

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SCO said:
I'm firmly in the camp that the meta-knowledge SI that is dropped in a ideal situation to share knowledge that can then be verified and acted upon better but then doesn't is a asshole and sharing is not immersion breaking simply because its a survival mechanism and people would be more worried about not being drowned or bonesawed etc.

Unless he ties himself in (stupid) knots about predestination or the Simurgh, in which case he might as well leave the city and forget about the 'plot' therefore nuking the real reason this bull is a issue, namely the writer being a hack that wants to use meta but doesn't want it to change events unpredictably (which it would anyway btw) because he then would have to actually work.
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Well, you'll be happy to know I am planning to set fire to the Stations of The Canon, shoot the resulting flaming wreckage out of a mass driver, and plunge it into the sun.

The metaknowledge of how people act is much more important here than the knowledge of what will happen at a given time, with few exceptions.

And the SI will be worried about the Simurgh, and with pre-cogs as a whole. That's called 'not being idiotic'. Reliable knowledge from the future can become an instant global victory condition if used right, though the fact that in Worm precognition is really just outrageously effective (on the level of Artilect) predictive software is helpful.

With that, the Tinker power, and the meta-knowledge, I've been brainstorming ways for the SI to avoid it.

I've thought of four. One will protect from the Simurgh and PtV, but not necessarily all other precognition, one will definitely protect from the Simurgh, and it should protect from all other precognition as well, but I'm not sure about PtV, one if it works will protect from every single type of precognition including PtV and the Simurgh, and the last would definitely protect from PtV, probably the Simurgh, and likely many other types of precognition.
 
the first sounds like the best overall, due to the actions you'll be taking in general. the third sounds like the one you make next, as while the first is good, it doesn't cover all the bases. You wouldn't make it first, because if the other two get even a whiff of what you're doing and it doesn't work, then you're fucked.
 
Jack Stargazer said:
Well, you'll be happy to know I am planning to set fire to the Stations of The Canon, shoot the resulting flaming wreckage out of a mass driver, and plunge it into the sun.

The metaknowledge of how people act is much more important here than the knowledge of what will happen at a given time, with few exceptions.

And the SI will be worried about the Simurgh, and with pre-cogs as a whole. That's called 'not being retarded'. Reliable knowledge from the future can become an instant global victory condition if used right, though the fact that in Worm precognition is really just outrageously effective (on the level of Artilect) predictive software is helpful.

With that, the Tinker power, and the meta-knowledge, I've been brainstorming ways for the SI to avoid it.

I've thought of four. One will protect from the Simurgh and PtV, but not necessarily all other precognition, one will definitely protect from the Simurgh, and it should protect from all other precognition as well, but I'm not sure about PtV, one if it works will protect from every single type of precognition including PtV and the Simurgh, and the last would definitely protect from PtV, probably the Simurgh, and likely many other types of precognition.
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Sounds interesting. Why not have him pitch those four ideas to Tattletale and try to imagine what she would think. That might be what he goes with or it might be the opinion that punches him towards one of the others.
 
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1.2 - Disclosure
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    • Suddenly: CONTENT!

    Again, this is unedited. Please let me know if I dun goofed.

    Edit: Fixed the smell.

    1.2 - Disclosure

    Although I've lost most of my tension by the time we arrive at the Undersiders' lair, the only reason I'm not shaking is this new control I seem to have over my own body. Although we're supposedly safe in this bubble of blackness, I know that this city is pretty much the dictionary definition of not safe, and all the people I can see could probably kill me before I could do anything to stop them. I don't think they would, however.

    The other thing is, seeing them also let me know something else. The sense I have for my own body isn't unique to me. I don't know what happened, but I seem to have a kind of 'bio-radar' for humans now. It's hard to explain, because it isn't really a visual sense, but it is sort of like 'seeing' how a person's body functions, and identifying inefficiencies or things which may be functioning incorrectly. When I looked at Taylor, I could tell she had eye problems (astigmatism) as well as some of the more recent bruises and scrapes which must have been the result of cape or bullied life. This of course immediately triggered my Tinker power, which gave me schematics for cybernetic eyes, genetic retroviruses, artificial lenses, and something that looked like Geordi Laforge's visor. I cleared them out almost automatically - is it weird that I'm getting used to this?

    That's only on the surface though. There's a sort of mental knob, and if I turn it, I can zoom in. I can go beyond just overall issues and start identifying patterns. It's gotta be connected to some serious Shard-level extrapolation engine, because I can see patterns and map them forward. I can tell that Regent eats a     lot of sugar, and if he continues at his current rate, he's about 29 years from the onset of type 2 diabetes. I can tell that Grue carries a recessive gene that, if matched with another carrier, has a 25% chance to lead to a child with cystic fibrosis. I can tell that excessive use of Tattletale's power causes migranes by stressing the blood vessels which feed the brain, and that pushing through could lead to a stroke or aneurysm. I can almost predict to the second how much continued use would lead to that outcome.

    I can tell Rachel is damaged. I can get a general idea as to how, but if I didn't know, I wouldn't be able to guess 'dog instincts'.

    It's not quite as useful as I'd hoped. I can't cold read people like Tattletale can, and I can't watch flashes of neurons and know what a person is thinking about (unless something is wrong, such as Regent's completely fucked fear/pain/threat response. Holy shit Heartbreaker did a number on the kid. His amygdala is     fucked.) and I can't really judge emotions directly in the way Gallant can, though I can tell from certain chemical signals if someone is angry, afraid, aroused, alarmed or any of the other a-words which cause you to dump a load of adrenaline into your bloodstream.

    It's a sort of diagnostic-vision. If I was in a video game, it'd be like I could see their Status screen. It seems to be much more effective on myself - if others are a status screen, I've got the source code of my own body. Somehow that lets me control my normally unconscious motions consciously as well. How?

    It's shard-magic. I dunno.

    I didn't really know if that dominance challenge and submission display would work, but going both from my metaknowledge and how Bitch seemed to calm down once I started, I had a feeling I was on the right track.

    And I didn't get punched in the face, so I'm calling that one a win.

    Eventually we wander deep into the Docks and come upon the Undersiders' lair. It doesn't look like much from the outside: some 1960s era factory which hasn't been used since, with a rusty metal door and red brick or faux-brick siding. Huge though, must take up half the block. Three stories easy. A mostly faded sign on the side read "Redmond Welding", and my eyes lit up with glee. Glory of glories! Equipment!

    My excitement was cut brutally short when Grue led us through a door in the south side of the building. There was barely any light, except for the light pollution of the city and moonlight leaking through windows near the ceiling, but my careful eye could pick out the wreckage of various machines and conveyors, stripped down to their most basic parts from what I could see. I'd have to do an inventory later, but my hopes of a fully equipped ready-made lab were dashed.

    Ah well. I'd have to improvise. I had an idea, but I would need an internet connection. I could put those well-earned research skills to good use.

    Grue led us up a spiral staircase in the corner of the room. The loft thus revealed was much cleaner than the factory floor. It had three levels - what must have been bedrooms, a living room with several couches and an entertainment system I had to hold myself back from rushing towards, and a vague impression across the darkness of a kitchen.

    Grue moved over to the couches and sat down. Tattletale and Skitter followed, the former still rubbing her temples. Regent sauntered towards the television and entertainment system, and sat down with a controller. Bitch walked right past us, towards a room in the back where I could hear something scratching at a door. Must be her dogs.

    Well, here's hoping I'm not dinner.

    I sit down on a couch across from Grue, Tattletale, and Skitter.

    "So." Grue intones. I don't know if it's the mask or some aspect of his power that's adding the slight echo to his voice, but it's actually a little intimidating. "Who are you really, and what do you want?"

    Tattletale and Skitter turn to look at me as well. Tattletale's mouth is slightly frowning which is uncharacteristic, and Skitter is almost unnaturally still. Part of that is probably that I can't see her face, but regardless, it's creepy.

    Well, here goes nothing.

    "As mentioned, my name is Jack. You probably can already tell from whatever led you to me - I'm guessing a sudden case of unconsciousness - but I just triggered tonight."

    I take a deep breath.

    "What you might not know is that I'm not from around here. I have no idea how I got to Brockton Bay. In fact, my last memory was being on a plane to Toronto."

    Grue tilts his head, I assume as a sign of confusion or an acknowledgement - body language with full face masks is weird. "So you claim you can't remember anything. Well, some Masters or Strangers can erase memories, and a bunch of capes can teleport or effectively teleport, though I don't know much about Canadian capes outside of the Guild, and they are not exactly in the kidnapping game…"

    Tattletale speaks up. "You're leaving something out."

    I wince slightly.

    "Yes. What I didn't mention is that before I woke up here, I had been heading to Toronto after a brief stop off in Newfoundland."

    The room is silent for a moment. Rachel walks by with the dogs, looks at the rest of us, and turns to walk out the door after sending a glare at me. I make sure to back away and scrunch myself down slightly and she nods as she turns to leave.

    I guess it's walkies time?

    "Bullshit." Grue finally says. "You've actually lost that long? Years? Wait, if you did, how would you know about…"

    "It's not that, Grue." Tattletale says, closing her eyes tightly for a moment before grimacing, then smiling slightly as if in triumph. "He's not just from before Leviathan, where he's from Leviathan     doesn't exist." She looks up and smirks at me. "You're from Earth Aleph aren't you? Or, no…" Her smile widens. "A completely different Earth! One we've never had contact with before!"

    I nod. "Yup. No capes, no Scion, no big apocalypse gribblies. Let's call it Earth Prime for ease of reference."

    This is the moment of truth.

    "And I seem to have gotten some information about Earth Bet, somehow. I really can't tell you how it happened, but I know about this city, the big players, Scion, the Endbringers, all the stuff someone who grew up in this world would know. It's possible I'm just memories added to the body of my dimensional counterpart on this world, I don't know. I've seen that kind of thing happen in fiction before but…" I shrug.

    As I say this, I take control of my body-language. I firm up my facial cues, and specifically give a split second look towards Tattletale. I twitch my fingers slightly, each time performing the start of a motion which, if I finished, might form a letter. Tattletale's super intuition should be able to pick out the message I'm sending.     Not safe. Will tell you alone later. Coil must not know.

    It looks like it worked. I can see her body dumping adrenaline when she figures it out. She sits up slightly and hisses a breath before realizing that Grue turned to look at her, at which point she holds her head and groans. "Tattletale?" Grue asks.

    She looks up, still wincing slightly. "Sorry, he's really hard to read, and I've used my power too much today. But he's not lying that I can tell."

    There's a pause, where I let out the breath I was holding, and Grue turns to me.
    "Alright, well, you're new here and not established in with any of the major players. You say you've got some information on how this world works, and that's good. Frankly, I don't really care about your background. What I do care about is the possibility of tinker assistance. We've got a job to do in the next few days, taking down the ABB. We could really use some high-tech help, especially with that bitch Bakuda out there prepping and waiting for round 2."

    Skitter twitches at the mention of the name. Then seems to collect herself, as she interrupts Brian's pitch. "What can you do anyways? How did you spoof Tattletale and avoid getting tackled by Bitch?"

    I grin. "Answer to both? I've got a thinker power. From what I can tell, it gives me control over my own body language, and gives me a read on the biology of other people. It seems to only work on people I can see, but it's a pretty good edge. From what I can tell, Tattletale reads people from microexpressions and other unconscious tells that your body gives off when you lie or think about certain things. I have conscious control over those parts of myself, so it's harder for her to get a read on me unless I'm surprised or distracted."

    Tattletale nods. "He's about right. Some things are obvious, or from his environment, like the fact he's apparently taken a bath in garbage tonight, and those are easy to get. But reading his impressions or emotions is a lot harder."

    I feign offense. "Well, I'm sorry. I'll have you know that in Canada we have much nicer garbage. It's hidden under all the snow, you know, and the only smell is that of pine sap and maple syrup, as is proper. Your American trash is much worse. Back me up here Regent."

    Regent flinches for a moment, though I don't think anyone except Tattletale and I noticed, and I almost slap myself as my heart drops into my stomach. Fuck. They don't actually know that he's Heartbreaker's kid at this point in time. Fuck. I'm screwed.

    Regent quickly recovers however with characteristic aplomb. He raises a single middle finger at me and turns back to his game. "I don't even like maple syrup on pancakes. Sorry beaver-boy, you're on your own here."

    Grue and Skitter chuckle, and I join in after sharing a look with Tattletale. I don't need superpowers to know that she's threatening serious bodily harm if I don't explain what's going on.

    Alright. Time to change the subject.

    "Anyways, you were making a pitch? I assume you want me to join? My first request is going to be a shower, for obvious reasons."

    This gets a slight laugh out of everyone again, and I relax just a bit.

    Grue starts up again. "Basically? Yes. I can only assume the Boss will front some serious cash for the benefits a Tinker can bring. We can't promise you as much as the Protectorate or one of the big gangs would, but we can promise you a lot more freedom than they will allow you. You'd be expected to go on jobs whenever we have them, and we should be able to get some cash for you if you help us with the ABB problems, assuming you can get something together by tomorrow. As a part of the group, you'd get a minimum of 2k a month just for being here, and I'm sure we can work something out to give you time to tinker."

    I pause as if considering. "Well, I'd like to have a chance to search the bottom floor of this place. It's pretty looted, but there might be a few things I can use lying around. I'd probably convert some of that area into a workshop, if you're alright with that." Grue nodded so fast I'm surprised he didn't get whiplash. "Other than that, it seems like a good deal. I don't know anybody around here personally, and I'm sure that the Merchants or E88 wouldn't give me as nice a welcome, or as much of a choice as you guys did."

    "I do have one other condition however."

    Grue leans forward.

    "I need to borrow a computer, then I need to borrow Tattletale for the rest of the night."

    Grue nearly falls off the couch, Skitter's head whips sideways to look at me, and Tattletale groans and covers her face as she realizes what's about to happen. Regent drops his controller and starts laughing, at first slowly and then just barely choking words out through the tears. "He… he wants to take her on a     date! Hahaha! You work fast gearhead!"

    Well, time to sell it. I push blood into my cheeks to fake a blush and turn my head slightly.

    "I-it's not that. I need her help to find some.. Some stuff I need for tinkering. I wouldn't be able to get it without her. I need the computer to find it."

    Rule #1 of effective deception: Always allow your opponent to think he's caught you. He's much easier to fool that way.

    Rule #2: If the truth sounds less plausible than the lie the other guy's convinced himself of, say it. It'll just reinforce the idea that he's right.

    Not something I learned at law school     directly, but when you play Resistance with a bunch of lawyers and law students once a week for a year, you learn to get good at lying or to love losing.

    I hate losing.

    Tattletale groans again as Skitter starts to giggle slightly. Grue shakes his head, but I get the impression from my body sense that he's barely holding back laughter himself. "Tattletale?"

    She puts her head up and glares at me, before ghosting a wink that actually unnerves me more than Grue's apparent willingness to rent out a teammate for tinker support. "Fine. Skitter, I'm borrowing your mace. Just in case."

    Regent actually falls off of his couch at this point, and is gasping for air. Skitter hands over the small container, her shoulders still shaking slightly. Tattletale walks off towards her room, I assume to get her computer.

    "Wear something nice! Get out the good under-" Regent chokes out before he suddenly starts coughing, as if a fly just flew down his throat. "Ugh! Gross! Damn it Bugs!"

    Skitter stands and moves over towards Tattletale's room. "I'm going to go talk to her. Try to keep the jokes tasteful Regent."

    I turn to look at Grue, the blush slowly fading from my face.

    "So, do I get to see who you guys actually are? You know my name already, and it's not like I know anyone to tell."

    Grue pauses and then shrugs. "I suppose it's only fair." He removes his helmet, revealing a young black man, about 18, with shoulder length cornrows and a solid jaw. "Brian. Brian Laborn. The guy falling over himself over there is Alec…" Regent waves as he catches his breath. "Bitch is Rachel, though that's pretty much the worst kept secret in the world."

    I nod.

    Brian continues. "The girls can decide whether to tell you their names or not themselves. Skitter is pretty new to the group, so I wouldn't want to intrude, and with Tattle, well." He grins. " I'm sure it'll come up over dinner."

    I groan and cover my face. "It isn't like.. Y'know what, I give up."

    Regent's guffaw is cut off by another slight choking sound. "Goddamn it Bugs! Stop it!"

    Well, now I've been thoroughly embarrassed.

    Just as planned.

    I see Tattletale coming back out without her mask, and with a laptop under her arm. Skitter is right behind her, with her mask held under one arm.

    "Alright," Tattletale starts "so this is my laptop. My only laptop. You absolutely     cannot disassemble it, no matter how much you think you can upgrade it. Do not go through my files. Y'know what, I'm just going to sit right behind you and watch what you're doing." She pauses for a second and smirks. "I'm Lisa by the way. This is Taylor." Taylor waves, and smiles slightly, but keeps her eyes down. I can't tell if she's shy, embarrassed or both.

    Probably both.

    I nod and smile. "Sure. That's fine. Well, let's get started then…"

    It takes me about 10 minutes to write and execute a short search algorithm. They don't even have Google here! The philistines! I manage to find what I'm looking for, and its monumental digital security lasts about 0.4 seconds against the minor worm I included in the search. I see Lisa narrowing her eyes at me in the screen's reflection, and I assure her that it is otherwise harmless and will self delete after it's downloaded the data and cleared the traces of the hack.

    Bitch returns a short while later, has a quiet chat with Grue, and heads back off to her room with her dogs.

    A short print job (and a much longer shower) later, and we leave with a few addresses and sets of floor plans, a few phone numbers and a list of security codes.

    Lisa is looking at me like I'm a puzzle box that she's considering just taking a sledgehammer to.

    Regent starts to yell something about protection before he starts choking on another fly.

    …

    I'm     really going to regret this cover story, aren't I?
     
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    • Jack Stargazer said:
    Well, you'll be happy to know I am planning to set fire to the Stations of The Canon, shoot the resulting flaming wreckage out of a mass driver, and plunge it into the sun.

    The metaknowledge of how people act is much more important here than the knowledge of what will happen at a given time, with few exceptions.

    And the SI will be worried about the Simurgh, and with pre-cogs as a whole. That's called 'not being retarded'. Reliable knowledge from the future can become an instant global victory condition if used right, though the fact that in Worm precognition is really just outrageously effective (on the level of Artilect) predictive software is helpful.

    With that, the Tinker power, and the meta-knowledge, I've been brainstorming ways for the SI to avoid it.

    I've thought of four. One will protect from the Simurgh and PtV, but not necessarily all other precognition, one will definitely protect from the Simurgh, and it should protect from all other precognition as well, but I'm not sure about PtV, one if it works will protect from every single type of precognition including PtV and the Simurgh, and the last would definitely protect from PtV, probably the Simurgh, and likely many other types of precognition.
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    as a stop gap i he should also make a mind altering device that workes based on news reports on zion.
     
    I don't quite know what he is doing. Printing out E88's data?

    Anyway, the entire time he has been inside the loft, I could only think about why didn't he go straight for a shower, much less messing with a laptop.

    Hopefully this will get more updates, I'm really liking it.
     
    Sneak peak of the next chapter:

    Edit: removed catgirls.

    As we walked down the street, I could feel the weight of Lisa's vision on my back. Finally, after about 5 minutes, she stops and I turn to face her.

    "Alright, look. It almost hurts to admit this, but I have no idea what's going on here. We're far enough away that any bugs Coil put in the base aren't in play, and we should be out of Taylor's range. I ditched my phone and the tracking device he had in it at the lair, so we should be safe to talk. The first thing I need you to do is promise you won't lie to me."

    I nod, seriously.

    "Good. Now tell me where we're going, why we are going there, and what we're going to do when we get there."

    I wish I had a camera.

    I smirk. She frowns.

    I'm going to hell for this, but I can't resist.

    "We're going to break into a Medhall research facility, so that I can use their equipment to tinker up a few things I desperately need to get started and so that we don't all die horrible, horrible deaths very very soon. We are going there because its the only expendable place with an electron microscope and biological research equipment in the city, and because Medhall is a front for the E88, so it won't be as much of a problem when we blow the place up to cover our tracks as we leave, pinning it on the ABB by using a Tinker explosive I'll also be cooking up there."

    Lisa's jaw actually drops.

    "What. Alright. Pause. We need to talk."
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    I agree w/ NorthSouthGorem, too anime. Genre/character breaking.
     
    The chapter is already anime. Smug Chessmaster with 0 consequences pulling robberies and detonations out of his ass? Anime.

    This is of course probably the whole point of the story, having a protagonist like that, so i'm only slightly peeved, go on crazy diamond, roar your canon defiance and your cool guy personality.
    Better than the alternative of another iteration of watching Taylor have a harem or obsess about her boobs.
     
    SCO said:
    The chapter is already anime. Smug Chessmaster with 0 consequences pulling robberies and detonations out of his ass? Anime.

    This is of course probably the whole point of the story, having a protagonist like that, so i'm only slightly peeved, go on crazy diamond, roar your canon defiance and your cool guy personality.
    Better than the alternative of another iteration of watching Taylor have a harem or obsess about her boobs.
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    Did.. did you miss the mental breakdown in chapter 1? The fact that he almost fucked everything up in the last chapter by referring to Regent as Canadian?

    The fact that he just ran a Tinker-based hacking script on an internet that includes and is monitored by Dragon?

    I've mentioned that this is Worm, right? I thought I had.

    Just because you haven't seen consequences in the under three hours which has been narrated so far, doesn't mean they don't exist.

    You must be really fun at the movies. Do you leave during the scenes where they are decorating for the prom because the monster doesn't come out until act two?
     
    You must think that post is a criticism. At most its a slightly passive-cynical observation about the protagonist, which is a common archetype on interventionist SIs that attempt to reveal 'but not too much', which is the kind of mentality that meshes in fiction with Xanatos Gambits (i'm skeptical of it in reality obviously).

    So it's a standard thing, that i'm not exactly enthusiastic about, but i can't say i'm surprised. Hero of his own story and all that baggage.

    Oh btw, the 'consequences' i'm talking about besides the weirdness of people like Brian not caring about extra-dimensional knowledge of their lives or civilization events, is actually the consequences of the setup. If he didn't get Lisa to agree to go with him to steal stuff then the later part of the chapter wouldn't exist.
    Unless you're planning a massive anti-climax on the next chapter where Lisa rightfully says 'fuck you', which is something i don't see many writers do for obvious reasons.
     
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    SCO said:
    You must think that post is a criticism. At most its a slightly passive-cynical observation about the protagonist, which is a common archetype on interventionist SIs that attempt to reveal 'but not too much', which is the kind of mentality that meshes in fiction with Xanatos Gambits (i'm skeptical of it in reality obviously).

    So it's a standard thing.
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    This is a world where not only do people like Tattletale exist, but at least two of them are members of a globe-spanning conspiracy which is near omniscient, and so far above the law it can't see it for the clouds.

    I'd be more skeptical of a world in which an SI reveals any information about the future without plot-based protection from precognition, Masters, or Thinkers, and doesn't end up reenacting a scene from I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream or dead within a week.

    That's not even getting to the literally apocalyptic consequences of failure.
     
    "We're going to break into a Medhall research facility so that I can use their equipment to tinker up a few things I desperately need to get started and so that we don't all die horrible, horrible deaths very very soon."

    This part is good.


    We are going there because its the only expendable place with an electron microscope and biological research equipment in the city,
    This sort could be reworded. "I doubt even Coil could get me an electron microscope and the kind of equipment a Big Pharma has access to, not in the short term."


    and because Medhall is a front for the E88, so it won't be as much of a problem when we blow the place up to cover our tracks as we leave, pinning it on the ABB by using a Tinker explosive I'll also be cooking up there."

    This part should be cut out.
     
    Ah, that does make a bit more sense.

    Oh btw, the 'consequences' i'm talking about besides the weirdness of people like Brian not caring about extra-dimensional knowledge of their lives or civilization events, is actually the consequences of the setup. If he didn't get Lisa to agree to go with him to steal stuff then the later part of the chapter wouldn't exist.
    Unless you're planning a massive anti-climax on the next chapter where Lisa says 'fuck you', which is something i don't see many writers do for obvious reasons.
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    I could write an Undersiders interlude, but the WoG on Brian is that he doesn't necessarily believe the thing about the extradimensional transfer, and thinks it's much more likely that Jack has been Strangered or Mastered or has some kind of delusion. He knows Tattletale has been wrong before, and especially with her actions here isn't fully trusting her accuracy.

    He just doesn't care because he's worried about the ABB fight tomorrow, and really wants tinker support. For all he knows, he could be going up against Lung with no backup aside from Kaizer, who he trusts exactly as far as a black man should trust super-hitler.

    Regent legitimately doesn't care, Bitch didn't even bother to listen, Taylor doesn't want to rock the boat, and also had a chat with Lisa.

    Also, as far as everyone who isn't Tattletale is concerned, Jack knows nothing more about them then an average person with a newspaper does (they robbed the bank a few days ago, their relative anonymity is gone).

    And Lisa mostly followed because
    a) she cannot ever leave a mystery alone, even when it is in her best interests to do so, and
    b) her power stated that Jack can tell her how to kill Coil, which is her raison d'etre at this point in the story.

    They are actually going to have words next chapter. That's when the real disclosure will happen.
     
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    I'm really liking this fic so far. Does anyone else want to see Regent eat more flies? I'm trying to think of where I saw what he thinks his Tinker!Spec is from...drawing a blank though. Irritating since it seems really familiar.
     
    Jack Stargazer said:
    I'm really going to regret this cover story, aren't I?
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    The "cover" story is rather immature, sounds like something a teen would thoughtlessly come up with.
    Regent's teasing aside, if you actually intend to keep it as a cover story that's going to get really awkward (and not in the fun to read way).
    This thought made me give a cursory look though and I couldn't find out how old SI is supposed to be. Teenager, same as Taylor? Early or late twenties?
    Jack Stargazer said:
    Sneak peak of the next chapter:

    "We're going to break into a Medhall research facility, so that I can use their equipment to tinker up a few things I desperately need to get started and so that we don't all die horrible, horrible deaths very very soon. We are going there because its the only expendable place with an electron microscope and biological research equipment in the city, and because Medhall is a front for the E88, so it won't be as much of a problem when we blow the place up to cover our tracks as we leave, pinning it on the ABB by using a Tinker explosive I'll also be cooking up there."
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    "Won't be as much of a problem"... uh-huh. Its almost like you want to throw the city into as much chaos as possible. Reveal that E88 is behind a big company and ignite a bloody gang war involving nazis, a dragon and a mad bomber. That's surely going to end well. There won't even be any coordination to focus on the ABB if the E88 start things off.
     
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