Remove ads

Whirlwind Productions (Cyclone's snippets & update announcements)

Reader mode
I have to agree, this one requires either another part or 2, or at least a half dozen paragraphs of author's notes to make sense. Otherwise, I... Guess it's okay?
 
I'm guessing the G1 means that the wards / youth heroes and villains are in this the older more established capes? And rather than Allfather passing leadership to Kaiser it was Kaiser to Hookwolf?
 
Remove ads
(Worm) Worm G1: Issue #2
  • Threadmarks
    • (Issue #1 | Issue #2 | Issue #3)

    Worm G1
    Issue #2​

    "How do you feel?" Laserdream asked.

    "I'm okay," my instinctive answer as I sat up. "I'm... okay," I repeated after a moment. And I was. I reached up to the front of my costume where I'd been shot. A deformed lump of metal fell into my hand. "My costume, it's bulletproof." Thankfully. This wasn't exactly how I wanted to test that part, but...

    "Very nice," she said, her eyes flicking back into the alley. "Could you maybe call off your bugs now? I think they've had enough."

    "Huh?" I blinked. "Oh, right." I dispersed my swarm, getting the bugs out of sight. I still kept them close at hand, though; I'm not stupid.

    Laserdream offered me a hand up, and I gratefully accepted it. My costume may have stopped the bullet, but it still hurt. I looked over at the three skinheads and winced. Good thing I had kept their attacks limited; this could have gotten... messy.

    "First night out?" Laserdream asked.

    I nodded wordlessly.

    "Don't worry about it," she said, giving me a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Sure, you went a bit far, but not by that much, and Panacea's on her way. You'll learn."

    I looked at her quizzically, and she nodded. "Yeah, we don't like to advertise it -- keeps her from being targeted -- but the Brigade does know Panacea."

    "Right," I muttered. Of course they did. Why wouldn't they? Panacea was kind of enigmatic, showing up at various hospitals in town at seemingly random times to offer healing, but Laserdream's Brigade was Brockton Bay's very own superhero team, after all, and it was well known that they had a good working relationship with Aegis.

    It wasn't long before Panacea arrived. Or rather, before Glory Girl arrived, carrying Panacea in her arms, bridal style. Huh. Was there something going on between them? Most of the local cape rumors centered around Laserdream and Shielder, but I guess you never really knew who was under the masks.

    Glory Girl took a moment to survey the scene as Panacea moved to tend to the three gangbangers and their erstwhile victims. She cocked an eyebrow. "The rookie did this, Laser?" she asked.

    Laserdream nodded.

    "Daaamn," Glory Girl said, shaking her head. "Remind me not to get on your bad side, rookie."

    I didn't know what to say to that, so I kept silent.

    "Say," Laserdream said, breaking the brief moment of silence, "have you decided on a name yet? We can't exactly keep calling you 'rookie.'"

    Damn it, I still hadn't really come up with a name yet.

    "I, um, uh," I stammered. "I'm Spider-Girl."

    Oh, God. I didn't just say that, did I?

    "Spider-Girl, huh?"

    I did. I did just say that. Oh, God.

    I am so getting sued.

    Glory Girl made a show of giving me a once-over, and I couldn't help but shrink back. I knew I didn't have much of a figure, but- "Going for more of a Venom look, then?" she asked, interrupting my train of thought.

    "I... kind of didn't realize how edgy my costume was until I was almost done," I admitted. "It's made of spider silk."

    "It probably saved your life," Laserdream interjected. "You could make a killing selling that stuff. Hell, I want one." She paused, then added, "Actually, no, I want, like, eight. Two for each of us, right, Glory? And two for Panacea."

    "Better make it ten," Glory Girl added. "Wouldn't want Aegis to feel left out."

    "I, uh, I could probably do that," I blurted out. "I mean, I'd need your measurements, and it'd take some time, and it's kind of hard finding dyes that really work properly, but I could do it. I-I think."

    I was babbling.

    Panacea came to my rescue as she approached us again. "They'll wake up in a few hours; the victims already called nine-one-one, so we should probably get moving."

    Laserdream nodded and gave me a pointed look. "I can carry you, if you like."

    "Uh, sure," I stammered, "I guess."

    It was a little awkward at first, but we managed. Eventually, we landed on a rooftop several blocks away.

    "So, uh," I said, "what was that about?"

    Laserdream shrugged. "The SWAT captain's been looking to crack down on vigilantism for the past few months."

    I frowned. "Aren't we all on the same side here?"

    Laserdream opened her mouth to respond, but Glory Girl interrupted with a snort. "It's politics. SWAT used to get a lot of funding with all the villains running around, but when we showed up and started doing their jobs for them, their budget's been getting scaled back. Calvert just wants to keep SWAT relevant."

    "He also wants to replace Commissioner Renick when he retires," Panacea added. "If he brings in a 'dangerous vigilante,' he can spin that into some pretty strong support with the city council."

    "You probably don't want to hear about politics, Spidey," Laserdream said. She reached into a pouch on her belt and pulled out a flip phone, offering it to me. "Here, take my phone."

    "Um, what?" I blinked. "I don't have anyone I need to call right now..."

    Dad had no idea I was out this late. He didn't even know I had powers.

    "It's prepaid," she said, shaking her head. "Untraceable. It has everyone's numbers already programmed into it. Well, except mine, obviously. I'll call you on it once I get a new one. That way, we can all keep in touch. Strength in numbers, you know?"

    "Oh, um, thanks." Hesitantly, I accepted the phone, then tucked it into a utility pouch on my thigh. Once I had the pouch closed again, I looked back up and took an involuntary step back at the intense look Laserdream was giving me.

    "Listen," she said, "if- if there's anything you need to talk about, anything you need help with, just call, let one of us know, all right? We'll be there for you, okay?"

    I... had a feeling she wasn't just talking about hero stuff. I squirmed a little, uncomfortable at the implications. Did- did she know somehow? How could she know?

    I almost said something, right then and there. Almost.

    "O-okay," I said instead, giving her a quick nod. "I will."

    She almost seemed... disappointed, but nodded nevertheless.

    (Issue #1 | Issue #2 | Issue #3)​
     
    Last edited:
  • Threadmarks
    • So, Worm, but with the comic book tropes played straight rather than abused for maximum grimdark deconstructed? Me like.
     
    Just to clarify, Laserdream is talking about trigger trauma. Taylor is thinking about the bullying in general.

    EDIT: Remember, Taylor didn't know about trigger events in canon on a world with thirty years of cape history, where the nature of powers has been studied to the point that there are college classes on it. Just how likely is it that she knows more about trigger events in this particular AU?
     
    Last edited:
    Hmm... I'm not sure if this one will continue to hold my interest. I guess I'll make my decision on it when it gets a thread, should that ever happen.
     
    Cyclone said:
    Just to clarify, Laserdream is talking about trigger trauma.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Ok.

    My issue with that particular part is that the conversation, at that point, is about the phone she just handed over, the last things Taylor said was part of a discussion on politics, then that she didn't have anyone to call, before continuing to be her awkward self. There's not a lot that screams out "hey, you should probably try and ask me about my incredibly traumatic life changing event" to me, so I'm just not sure why Laserdream would be phishing for details or hinting about something like that.

    Have I understood something wrong? Don't take this the wrong way, I'm honestly enjoying this approach to changing things, I just don't get the leap Laserdream has made that's made her pursue this line of discussion.
     
    Franklymydear said:
    Ok.

    My issue with that particular part is that the conversation, at that point, is about the phone she just handed over, the last things Taylor said was part of a discussion on politics, then that she didn't have anyone to call, before continuing to be her awkward self. There's not a lot that screams out "hey, you should probably try and ask me about my incredibly traumatic life changing event" to me, so I'm just not sure why Laserdream would be phishing for details or hinting about something like that.

    Have I understood something wrong? Don't take this the wrong way, I'm honestly enjoying this approach to changing things, I just don't get the leap Laserdream has made that's made her pursue this line of discussion.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    .

    Or maybe Lasrdream thinks that offering to listen to someone that has no one to call is a good thing. She didn't try and pry into anything. All Laserdream said is that Taylor can call and talk to her about anything if she wants. Laserdream also gave her the phone so if Taylor gets in trouble doing cape things she can call some backup. Which would be nice if she runs into someone like Lung. All good things to do when running into a new hero.
     
    argent said:
    Or maybe Lasrdream thinks that offering to listen to someone that has no one to call is a good thing.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Fair enough, except that's not what Taylor said at all. She said she didn't have anyone she needed to call right now, not that she doesn't have anyone to call at all.

    argent said:
    She didn't try and pry into anything.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    She did, but she did it in a perfectly decent way considering they'd only just met. I've got no problem with how she did it, it just seems to come out of nowhere to me.

    argent said:
    Laserdream also gave her the phone so if Taylor gets in trouble doing cape things she can call some backup. Which would be nice if she runs into someone like Lung.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    That's her reason, or at least her first reason, for handing the phone to Taylor, and it's only after Taylor accepts the phone that Laserdream, for whatever reason, decides to ask if anything is wrong.
     
    Laserdream's thought process: "New hero, should give us a way to stay in touch but probably shouldn't lurk around together in the open like this. Give her my burner. No one to call? At this hour? At her age? That, coupled with powers, says bad things about her home life. Probably shouldn't push, but make sure she knows we're willing to help or at least listen."
     
    Cyclone said:
    No one to call? At this hour? At her age? That, coupled with powers, says bad things about her home life.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Considering the changes you're making, shouldn't everyone be expecting everyone else to be hiding cape secrets from their parents?

    Look, don't worry about it. It seems odd to me, but I'm obviously the only person having an issue with it if no one else is mentioning it. Maybe I've just had to deal with too many people that I'm reading it like I would others.
     
    What? You think people are going to be reasonable about the conclusions they jump to?
     
    Cyclone said:
    Just to clarify, Laserdream is talking about trigger trauma. Taylor is thinking about the bullying in general.

    EDIT: Remember, Taylor didn't know about trigger events in canon on a world with thirty years of cape history, where the nature of powers has been studied to the point that there are college classes on it. Just how likely is it that she knows more about trigger events in this particular AU?
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    I always thought that was because, aside from Unreliable Narrator, Taylor was also an Audience Avatar. She was the vessel to which information was presented to us, even stuff she as a "cape gerk" would already know.
     
    Xero Key said:
    I always thought that was because, aside from Unreliable Narrator, Taylor was also an Audience Avatar. She was the vessel to which information was presented to us, even stuff she as a "cape gerk" would already know.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    That's the Doylist reason for why she didn't know about trigger events in canon. But whatever the reason -- Doylist or Watsonian -- the fact remains that, no, she didn't know about trigger events in canon.
     
    VolantRedX said:
    She knew of them, just not what they really mean.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    That, as I recall, was something Wildbow said was his intent and may end up being the case in the rewrite, if it ever happens... but that's not the case in the current canon.

    Shell 4.3 said:
    Alec, surprisingly, was the one to break the nerve-wracking silence. "Let me put it this way. When you got your powers, were you having a good day?"

    I didn't have to think long. "No."

    "Would I be really off the mark if I guessed you were having the worst day of your life, when you got your powers?"

    "Second worst," I replied quietly, "It's like that for everyone?"

    "Just about. The only ones who get off easy are the second generation capes. The kids of people who have powers."

    Lisa leaned forward, putting her elbows on the table, "So if you needed another reason to think Glory Girl is a privileged bitch, look no further."

    "Why?" I asked, "Why do we go through that?"

    "It's called the trigger event," Lisa answered me, "Researchers theorize that for every person with powers out there, there's one to five people with the potential for powers, who haven't met the conditions necessary for a trigger event. You need to be pushed to the edge. Fight or flight responses pushed to their limits, further than the limits, even. Then your powers start to emerge."

    "Basically," Alec said, "For your powers to manifest, you're going to have to have something really shitty happen to you."

    "Which may help to explain why the villains outnumber the heroes two to one," Lisa pointed out, "Or why third world countries have the highest densities of people with powers. Not capes, but a lot of people with powers."

    "But people who have parents with powers?"

    "They don't need nearly as intense an event to make their powers show up. Glory Girl got her powers by getting fouled while playing basketball in gym class. She mentioned it in a few interviews she gave."

    "So you basically asked us to share the details on the worst moments of our lives," Alec said, before taking another bite of his burger.

    "Sorry," I replied.

    "It's okay," Brian reassured me, "It's one of those things you only really hear about from other capes, and you only know us. Maybe you'd hear more about trigger events if you took a university class in parahuman studies, but I doubt you'd get the full picture there. Kind of have to go through it yourself."
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
     
    Cyclone said:
    That, as I recall, was something Wildbow said was his intent and may end up being the case in the rewrite, if it ever happens... but that's not the case in the current canon.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Huh, I could have sworn she mentioned hearing about them. Also, did Lisa really think that Glory Girl got off easy, is it just her bias against her making her think GG is privileged, or was she trying to manipulate Taylor more?
     
    Reader mode
    You must login or register to reply here.
    Remove ads
    Back
    Top