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classicdrogn · 04-22-2014, 03:37 AM

I don't know enough about her to say much either way - I did spot a little gremlin chewing on your phrasing, though.

Quote:expend an effort (albeit a small on) to

My suggestion to replace it would be "some" or "a bit of effort (however small)"

At the very least, you need to add the silent "e" to "one."
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

Black Aeronaut · 04-22-2014, 12:58 PM

Quote:ordnance11 wrote:
Quote:I grinned at their fear. “Well!?” I challenged. “WHO WANTS TO
LIVE FOREVER!? RAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUGGGHH!!!”
I would had gone with what Conan the Barbarian would had said "WHO DIES FIRST!?

Nah. Brian Blessed as Vultan was far better. Not much in this world scarier than a winged, flying viking with a giant mace and is literally happy to use it. Wink

Quote:ClassicDrogn wrote:
I don't know enough about her to say much either way

I guess that just means her character is wide open for interpretation, but all the same I'll try and do more research.
In other news, future updates will be hampered by a busy-as-all-hell schedule. Three words for you: consecutive closing shifts. This is in the middle of the biggest party of the year in what is starting to turn into a serious party city. :p

Black Aeronaut · 04-25-2014, 03:46 PM

And now it is time for Garrick to deal with a bit of fallout...

Soon enough we were away once more. While I had been occupied, Seto
had a brief conversation with Minagi and Yuki. The over all
impression I got from Seto afterwards was that she was quite pleased
with the two.

Right then, Minagi was helping Yuki get out of the elaborate Maiko
girl robes. I was just dozing in the bed, recovering after a
hard-fought twenty-four hours.

I wasn't surprised when Yuki thudded into the mattress, crawled over,
and snuggled into my chest.

What did surprise me was how she began crying.

“Yuki-chan?” I asked, probably sounding a bit sleepier than I
wanted to. “What's wrong my tiny little love?”

“sasami-chan... she was right.”

I carefully sat up, pulling the tiny girl into my lap and cradling
her while Minagi came up from the other side and leaned against me,
giving me her support while she gently soothed Yuki.

“Tell me what happened, love.”

Slowly, haltingly, she did with some help from Minagi. It had begun
with her being made to dance. She didn't really know any, so he made
Ayeka show her how. And afterwards he made her serve him wine. And
then the touching began and that was when she knew without a doubt
what kind of peril she was in.

When Ohsa finally felt up Yuki, Ayeka, my beautiful guardian angel of
a sister, came down on that animal with all the fury of an enraged
noble woman endowed with the power of Jyurai.

That... could have been nothing less than glorious... especially
since it was discovered that Ohsa had been struck into a stupor that
he did not come out of for hours. Minagi's roofie, it had seemed,
was no longer needed. Ayeka herself was even surprised that she had
managed to pull that off. But I knew why.

My Beloved Sister had reserves of strength even she did not know
about, and it would only come to the fore when someone she genuinely
cared for was in real danger.

In the aftermath, Sasami and Yuki had made up. Now that Yuki fully
understood what sort of dangers she could find herself in,
particularly as girl, she swore to never take our warnings for
granted.

While I was glad that Yuki had grown as a person, and had made up
with Sasami... I just wish that it hadn't come at the cost of this
part of her innocence.

After that, Minagi could only sit there, together, comforting little
Yuki.

Almost without thinking about it, I began to hum softly. The tune
was deep-toned and somber. It was Misty Mountains Cold, the
Dwarven hymn from Tolkien's Middle Earth books. The deep tones ran
smoothly and soothingly from my throat and buzzed within my head. I
soon laid down and let Yuki lay on my chest, her little head nestled
under my chin. Surely my voice was buzzing softly through her head
as well. I don't know of anything that could have a more calming
affect.

Soon Yuki's sobbing subsided. Her tears stopped coming. Her breath
would still hitch, even after I knew her eyes had closed long ago and
began to draw long, slow breaths.

We all fell asleep together like that. At some point I was stirred
to wakefulness by Yuki shifting from me to Minagi.

And I couldn't go back to sleep.

There was a sliver in my mind. Something was bothering me. An odd
sensation, I'd almost call it a compulsion.

I went to the hold where Scooby was tied down, opened the tail gate
and pull out the sword that I had been gifted with. In the dim
light, I began to pull the blade from the sheath.

Earlier, before I had given Tenchi his sword, I had seen the steel in
the daylight. It was silvery-gray just like First Cut.

And now... it was red.

“Hinase?”

“How may I help you Garrick?”

“Turn off all the lights here in the cargo hold.”

“Ah... sure, if that's what you want.”

The lights then faded into darkness... and the blade before me glowed
with a dull red color – the same you would see on a heating element
just as it was starting to warm up.

“Hinase, contact Washu on the Mimisaka and ask that she
comes over right away. Pass on the phrase 'Code Murphy.' And make
sure Mimisaka knows that Washu is the only one to be bothered.
I need her to see this and it needs to be kept a secret... for now.”

Code Murphy.

One of several phrases Washu and I concocted as a sort of series of
safe words. In the case of Code Murphy, it was a direct opposite of
Pondstrider. Murphy meant that something fundamental had radically
changed and required immediate attention.

That said, it took Washu no more than thirty seconds to arrive by
teleportation wearing a worried expression.

“Garrick, what's going on?”

“This,” I said. “Hinase, kill the lights again.” The lights
went down and I unsheathed my blade, revealing its dull crimson glow.

“Oh... oh wow. This is unprecedented. Are you certain that you
had no genetic ties to Japan in your homeworld?”

I nodded as I sheathed the sword and the lights came back on. “The
closest I can get is my Native American ancestry, and that, at best,
makes the two lineages distant cousins. It's not genetic. Try
scanning for exotic energy and use a very low detection threshold.”

“Sounds like you have a hypothesis,” Washu chirped as she opened
a small portal to who knows where and stuck her arm through it,
rummaging around through who knew what. “Care to share?”

I nodded. “Hielzen-S doesn't react to genetics. It reacts to
energy signatures. Any blood-relation of the Royal Family can emit
this signature. In particularly, Tenchi-kun. His is so strong that
you have no idea how he's generating it. Pondstrider: Tsunami is
searching for a being of even greater power than her own. To that
end, she has nurtured the people of Jyurai because she saw the
potential in the First Emperor.”

Washu gave me a startled look. “So, she's looking for the same
thing I am... Ah! Here it is!”

She pulled out a device and activated it, causing the probe at the
head of the device to extend a set of wings with blinking lights.

“Is that a Spengler Flux meter?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.

Washu giggled. “Kind of. It's actually kinda scary how close that
movie was to the truth of these things.”

“Yeah, you're looking at the reason for that 'scary' right now.”

Washu snorted. “The scientific community is gonna have a field day
with you once I publish my paper on transfictionality...” She
trailed off as she took the reading of the meter and her face fell.
“There's no way.”

“What is it?” I asked.

“Your energy signature... it's similar to Tenchi's! Nowhere nearly
as powerful like you thought, but it's there... different, like
you're some long-lost branch of the family line, but still close
enough that if you had enough power you could generate a Lighthawk
Wing yourself!”

I nodded. “I think I know why, Washu-chan...”

“Well don't keep me waiting here!”

I gave her my most level look. “I am a son of Elohim. As one of
his seed, I have the potential to someday become as he is.”

“Are you saying you're a god, buster!?” Washu accused.

“Not yet. It'll probably take a couple thousand years. Think of
me as a larva – utterly weak and helpless. But with time and
care...”

“Caterpillars turn into butterflies...” Washu replied
thoughtfully. “But you don't live long enough to get to that
point. How is it supposed to happen?”

I shrugged. “Heaven. A safe place for our souls to return to
after death. Judgment. God looks on the past deeds of our Earthly
life and determines how far we should progress. Resurrection. A
process to get our bodies back after death, only perfected and
immortal.”

“But that still doesn't explain how you're supposed to become a
god.”

I thought about that for a moment. “Children that do not get
enough of the proper nutrition become stunted.”

“Wait, you mean they feed you their energy?” Washu replied,
catching on right away.

“Is it so strange? Mothers breastfeed their children. And by this
perspective I am certainly an infant still.”

“But how does that explain you getting stronger?”

I blinked at Washu. “What do you mean?”

“When you first got here you could barely even make the needle on
this thing budge. Now... It's still a pretty small reading, but one
that's closer to what most Jyuraians put out. You're not quite at
the level of the main-line Royal Family, more like one of the distant
cousins – like Kiriko and her family.”

I'd actually met Kiriko Masaki a couple of times. Mostly when she
was taking care of Seina. I had managed to impress the hell out of
her when I had managed to avoid not just one or two, but three
incidences of Seina's bad luck. Kiriko was so astonished that she
pulled me aside and demanded to know all the details about me,
because no normal Earthman could avoid Seina's bad luck so
effectively. It was the most fun spilling the beans I've ever had.

I thought about what Washu had said and voiced them as I went along.
“The only way that could be would be is if someone was feeding me
energy. The only one that I could imagine doing that would be
Tsunami, but I don't quite... wait... KATHERINE!”

Washu blinked as the relays connected. “OF COURSE! It makes so
much sense! Katherine doesn't have to be bonded to you to feed you a
small supply of energy! And best of all it's all disguised as
political subterfuge! Not that I don't think Tsunami hasn't taken a
liking to you regardless,” she added with a wink and a nudge.

“Oh ha ha,” I replied, rolling my eyes. “C'mon, let's go and
see if we're right,” I said as I pulled up my C-Space app on my
C-pod.

When I arrived with Washu inside my garden, Katherine greeted us both
cheerfully with her beams of radiant rainbow light.

“I'm glad to see you too, Katherine,” I said as I began to
methodically check the small sapling for parasites. I knew that
there wouldn't be any – not in there – but it was the thought
that counted. “Katherine, sweet heart? I need to ask you an
important question.”

“What is it,
Garrick?” the tree replied,
her telepathic voice sounding like a happy and innocent five-year-old
girl.

“Have you been giving me a share of your energy?”

“Yes! I
have!” the tree cried out
joyously. “Grandmother Tsunami was so worried about you!
She thought that you would starve without it, but instead you're
getting stronger! Once she saw that, she asked me to keep on feeding
you so you can be really strong some day like Tenchi!”

“Woof!” cried out Washu. “That's no small order – Tenchi is
at least as strong as a First-Generation Tree!”

“Silly! It is
very possible! As long as they lead long lives, Tenchi and Garrick
will both become a lot stronger. Some day, Grandmother Tsunami wants
them to stand above her... Uh, I don't think I should have said
that...”

And right then Tsunami appeared as a phantom-like apparition,
standing above us with the sort of look a mother has when she catches
her children with their hands in the cookie jar.

“KYAA!”
cried out Katherine. “I'm, so sorry Grandmother! But
you said I should be nice to Garrick, and he's been so nice to me,
too, that I don't wanna hide anything from him! Please forgive me!”

Tsunami
sighed. “Don't fret, child. While this was not what I
wanted, it was inevitable with people as clever as these.”

“So,” I said. “Is now the time you spoke of, Tsunami-sama?”

Tsunami gave me a measuring look. “Yes, Garrick, I believe it
is.

“To begin
with, I know not from where you came from. You suddenly appeared in
our universe, frightened, confused, and utterly alone. A waif in the
truest sense of the word and with a sorrow so despairing that it was
palpable in the very air around you.

“Imagine my
surprise when I took a closer look at you, and saw in you a power
distantly related to my own, only immature and undeveloped. As
little Katherine said, you were so weak that I worried that you were
starving, so I asked Funaho to make a seed for you.”

“That was me!” cried out Katherine happily. “I am so
happy that Mama made me because I get to be with you, Garrick! And
because you have taken such good care of me, I promise I'm gonna take
good care of you! I'll make sure that you live long enough that you
can stand without help!”

I smiled down at the sapling and stroked her leaves gently, eliciting
a telepathic giggle from Katherine.

It was a bit of a moral quandary for me. We really aren't supposed
to gain such power until we have been deemed responsible enough to
wield them. And even then, it's not so much we were granted power by
God – more like we ask of him something and if he see that we and
the request are worthy then he will provide the way.

No, what was going on was that I was gaining my own power to use as I
saw fit... kinda scary when you thought of it. But I knew that I was
a long ways from home. God wouldn't be able to protect me, so it was
in my best interest to gain power and learn how to wield it.

In a ways, I was in a similar situation to Yuki, only this was not of
my own doing.

“Someone out there does not have my best interests in mind,” I
said at last. “Tsunami-sama, I am grateful to you for taking me
under your wing.”

“Great!” said Washu impatiently. “Now what about this business
of looking for a being of higher power?”

“You and I
simply have different methodologies, Washu. You seek to create one.
I have been attempting to nurture one. However... it seems someone
has thrown evidence of their existence right before us.”

“Oh?”

Tsunami turned to me. “Garrick. How powerful would you say
your Father is?”

I sighed at that. “All that we had on the matter are religious
texts whose original publication went back thousands of years before
the printing press was even invented on our world. What's worse is
that the details are quite vague on the matter. It is said he
created everything and made worlds without number. All blessings and
miracles are attributed to him. I can go on and on, but
unfortunately without him here to confirm any of it for us, all
evidence is circumstantial at best.”

“We have you, though, Garrick,” said Washu with a knowing smile.
“And time is on our side. I've lived for twenty-thousand years,
and I can live for many more thousands. Plenty of time for you to
grow into your own power, right Tsunami-sama?”

Tsunami nodded. “Indeed. I will continue giving you an
allotment of energy through Katherine. Washu may record your growth
and development with her help. In fact, as soon as you arrive at
Jyurai I will make sure that you are called forth for the bonding
ceremony. You will live a very long and fruitful life, Garrick, and
through it all Katherine will be at your side.”

I was shocked. So soon? Being bonded to Katherine? But then again,
Seto did say that things would be resolved as soon as I got to
Jyurai.

“I... I don't know what to say... Heh... I told Lady Funaho...
'What I wouldn't do with centuries'... now I get thousands!”

“It is that much more time that we get to have you with us,
Garrick,” Tsunami said with a gentle smile. “And more if
you become what I hope you are.”

“That reminds me,” I said. “This needs to be a secret between
us.”

“Oh?” said Washu curiously. “Do you really think it will
affect opinion of the others?”

“Probably not, but I would feel better if this was a confidential
matter. There's no need for them to know for the time being
regardless. And once I am bonded to Katherine an increase in my own
capabilities and my life span is expected anyhow.”

Tsunami looked to Washu and shrugged. “He does make a good
point. Sasami and I were terrified of being rejected until Ayeka
reminded Sasami of how much she loves her, no matter the
circumstances. Garrick just needs that affirmation himself, and he
won't get it until it happens.”

“Alright,” said Washu. “He can have his confidentiality. It
is his right, after all.”

“Thank you,” I said, and suddenly yawned. “Uugghhh... Dunno
about you two but I need to get back to sleep. Got a busy day ahead
of me tomorrow.”

“That's a sound idea,” Washu agreed, stretching out her tiny
body.

“Indeed,” said Tsunami. “Sasami rests much better
when I'm not actively manifesting myself.”

With a sigh I dropped back into bed. Minagi didn't move an inch –
weird that she was such a deep sleeper, but then again its probably
because she trusts me that much.

Same with Yuki for that matter, because once I settled in she
immediately sat up while still asleep and fell onto me, latching on
tightly. With a smile I put an arm around her and kissed her head.

And then, to my mild surprise, Minagi teleported to the other side of
the bed and snuggled up to me.

“I missed you,” she softly murmured without opening her eyes.
“Yuki helped keep me warm, but you're much better. Do you feel
better now?”

“Yes,” I replied, contemplating the answer and finding that I did
indeed feel better. “Yes I do.”

“Good,” she replied and then leaned in to kiss me.

There was passion, but no real fire. Just a heartfelt desire to
reconnect and be together. A moment after our lips parted, Minagi
opened her eyes and looked intensely into my own.

“I want to make a child with you, Garrick.”

I looked back into Minagi's lovely golden eyes. “That is a major
decision. Are you sure that you're up for it?”

Minagi nodded her head. “After this last week, I know that you'd
be a perfect father. You won't abandon your child. You'll be firm
with your child... but they won't have any doubt in their mind that
you love them. And with you... I know that your child will be
special.”

“Ahhh. But, what about...” I looked down at Yuki and Minagi
sighed.

“As much as I have come to love her over the last week, she will
have to wait her turn.” Minagi's voice then turned coy. “After
all, I saw you first, Garrick.”

“So, we'll find some time apart from Yuki?”

“Probably while we are on Jyurai. Sasami-chan will have things to
show her anyhow. I just worry about Seto.”

“Don't. I'll ask her if she'll give us some space before sicking
the nubile young bachelorettes on me. She did mention that the First
Wife will probably be a member of the Royal Family, right?”

Minagi nodded. “Don't care. As long as I have you, it won't
matter. Especially if she is someone like Ayeka.”

She kissed me once more, then we all snuggled into the covers and
went to sleep.

Well, that's it for now. My buffer is pretty much gone, so it's going to be a while before we see more here.

Bluemage · 04-25-2014, 05:29 PM

...I'm sure I should be making some sort of theological argument here. Something about how, according to that religious framework, humanity wasn't even designed to know basic things like the difference between good and evil, so why would we have the potential to get anywhere close to the Creator in power or wisdom?
But it's early, so the full argument isn't coming to me. I'm still in the zombie phase of my morning. I do like the implication that the Abrahamic God (if Garrick's faith is accurate to his home 'verse) is of the same family as the three goddesses of the Tenchiverse- it gives me so many interesting ideas.
I also like Katherine. Cute treekid is cute. ^^
Also, sorry for the late reply, but continuous closing shifts suck. The only thing worse is closing one day, and opening the next, especially repeatedly.

My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.

I've been writing a bit.

classicdrogn · 04-25-2014, 06:46 PM

I pretty much just hang a giant "meh" on RL religious elements in fiction and move on to the more concrete action. I've seen no evidence for such things existing, though I'd like to.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

**robkelk** · 05-02-2014, 12:52 AM

An aside: I marathoned War on Geminar this week. Don't worry, BA - the timing is wrong to add it to your story.
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

Black Aeronaut · 05-05-2014, 06:52 PM

Quote:Bluemage wrote:
...I'm
sure I should be making some sort of theological argument here.
Something about how, according to that religious framework, humanity
wasn't even designed to know basic things like the difference between
good and evil, so why would we have the potential to get anywhere close
to the Creator in power or wisdom?

Theological discussion spoilered out so as to spare the rest of you guys. :p

Spoiler

Quote:Bluemage wrote:
I do like the implication that the
Abrahamic God (if Garrick's faith is accurate to his home 'verse) is of
the same family as the three goddesses of the Tenchiverse- it gives me
so many interesting ideas.

That's pretty much what I had in
mind - that when you got down to it most humanoid deities would pretty
much all be part of the same family, no matter how separated they are.
Of course, there will be others that are not part of the family - eldritch horrors and the like.

Quote:Bluemage wrote:
I also like Katherine. Cute treekid is cute. ^^

Yeah,
got the idea from when we get to hear Kiriko's tree when she greets the
rest of the crew for the first time... And then latches on to one of
the other girls, repeating her name again and again like a three year
old that just found their new favorite big person. Also, I'm a sucker
for cute kids. Wink

Quote:ClassicDrogn wrote:
I
pretty much just hang a giant "meh" on RL religious elements in fiction
and move on to the more concrete action. I've seen no evidence for such
things existing, though I'd like to.

No worries. All it is there for is to set the stage for what will come later - the most we'll hear about it after he starts jumping around is something along the lines of, "Okay, I'm the offspring of an all-powerful reality warping being of phenomenal cosmic powers... let's see what I can do." Oh, and a few other gods are gonna get boatmurdered. Reason: Garrick winds up in Forgotten Realms some point midway through his journey... He becomes very judgmental over other deities afterwards. This will go double for anyone pretending to be a god.

Quote:robkelk wrote:
An aside: I marathoned War on Geminar this week. Don't worry, BA - the timing is wrong to add it to your story.

Oh? How so?
Further note: I certainly haven't lost interest. I'm just working on other parts of the story until I can get into the proper mindset for writing the next sequential bit. The upshot is that I'll have a nice sized buffer ready to go once I make the connection to the stuff I'm writing now.

Bluemage · 05-05-2014, 08:50 PM

Yeah, I have to admit that that's the most positive form of Judeo-Christian afterlife I'm familiar with. If I'd had to have been raised with any of them, that bit I like most of all.
Also, buffer is a very good thing... assuming you actually use it. I keep forgetting that part.
You don't have that problem, thankfully. ^^

My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.

I've been writing a bit.

***Bob Schroeck*** · 05-05-2014, 11:04 PM

Quote:blackaeronaut wrote:
Quote:robkelk wrote:
An aside: I marathoned War on Geminar this week. Don't worry, BA - the timing is wrong to add it to your story.
Oh? How so?

I've just started watching it myself, so I'm not sure if Rob knows something I don't, but from what I've seen so far, it's pretty clear that it takes place at least sixteen years or so after the events of the original Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki OVAs (including the new eps from a couple years ago) -- in other words, the middle 2000s to early 2010s. Whereas I believe Garrick is around in the mid- to late-1990s.

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

**robkelk** · 05-06-2014, 01:07 AM

Bob Schroeck Wrote:
Quote:blackaeronaut wrote:
Quote:robkelk wrote:An aside: I marathoned War on Geminar this week. Don't worry, BA - the timing is wrong to add it to your story.
Oh? How so?
I've just started watching it myself, so I'm not sure if Rob knows something I don't, but from what I've seen so far, it's pretty clear that it takes place at least sixteen years or so after the events of the original Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki OVAs (including the new eps from a couple years ago) -- in other words, the middle 2000s to early 2010s. Whereas I believe Garrick is around in the mid- to late-1990s.

There are a couple of clues further in.

Spoiler

--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

Black Aeronaut · 05-06-2014, 09:40 AM

Quote:robkelk wrote:
Quote:Bob Schroeck wrote:
Quote:blackaeronaut wrote:

Oh? How so?
I've just started watching it myself, so I'm not sure if Rob knows something I don't, but from what I've seen so far, it's pretty clear that it takes place at least sixteen years or so after the events of the original Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki OVAs (including the new eps from a couple years ago) -- in other words, the middle 2000s to early 2010s. Whereas I believe Garrick is around in the mid- to late-1990s.
There are a couple of clues further in.Spoiler [+]
Recall in OAV series 3, Noboyuki had moved out of the house to re-marry and raise a new family. The protagonist of WoG is the first of those children, aged 15±1.

.... Yes, that did happen... but only at the very very end of the OVA. Noboyuki's absences up until then had been him going to work. Reia herself hinted that Noboyuki had been pretty much living in his office because the commute (after Ryoko and Ayeka relocated their house) was absolutely murderous. (Not to mention expensive - all highways in Japan are toll roads. And with good reason, too: they are meticulously maintained.) In all reality, this is probably what allowed Reia and Noboyuki to seal the deal in the first place - that is, time alone and away from the kids and the madness.
Further evidence: Tokimi is present at the wedding. She only reveals herself to the others once all the timey-wimey shenanigans has run its course and is resolved. (First, a reboot to let things progress without Z's interference since Tokimi had sent him back to live a life without her interference, and then Noike popping back to make sure that Mihoshi's 'edited' letter gets to her brother to ensure that the Chobimaru incident takes place, thus ensuring that she and Tenchi get to meet.)
EDIT: When I find it floating around online, I'll post a link to one of Kajishima-sensei's background filler mangas that details Kenshi's youth at the Masaki Estate. Give you guys a hint: training from hell - they knew EXACTLY what they were gonna do to that kid.

deadpan29 · 05-06-2014, 08:01 PM

Filler Mangas:
Kenshi's childhood here.
A possible future of the Masaki family here.
----------
No, I don't believe the world has gone mad. In order for it to go mad it would need to have been sane at some point.

Black Aeronaut · 05-07-2014, 07:02 AM

Yeah, I've seen a scanslated version of the first one somewhere. Trouble is that it was a site well known for pornographic doujins. Fortunately they give the option to download stuff, so I can probably find another place to host it.

Black Aeronaut · 06-14-2014, 10:50 AM

Okay, it's been too long since I've posted anything. Here's a nice sized snippet of what I got in the works so far. Sorry there's no real action here, just a bit more introspection and character development. It's what I do best. :p

The next morning Yuki and I woke up together.

As we prepared for the morning's exercises, though, I heard Yuki
pause as she was binding her chest.

“I shouldn't be here,” she said.

I gave her a searching look. “Agreed,” I said mildly.

“Why didn't you take me back?” she said suddenly, turning to face
me with a hard look. “You could have done it. We have two ships
here. Three if you count Ryo-Ohki.”

“We could,” I agreed in that mild tone once again as I went to
Yuki, took the ace bandage from her hands, and began to finish
binding her chest for her. “But the problem is that we're being
followed. If we don't employ stealth measures they'll catch up to us
in a heartbeat. That is part of why this trip to Ryuten is taking as
long as it is. And for one of us to race back to Earth and race back
would be like running with a lit flare.

“Besides, at that point in time I knew that you would no longer be
easily dissuaded. If not now, then at some other time you would have
tagged along on another, potential more dangerous mission. No, my
tiny love. I have decided that it is for the best that you touch the
fire you find so fascinating... and learn for yourself just how badly
it burns.”

“You're so cruel,” she whispered sorrowfully as I secured the
binding. “Letting me experience something like that.”

I turned Yuki around and forced her to look me in the eyes. “You
are the cruel one,” I told her flat out. “You forced me to make
my sweet little Yuki-chan, who I love so much, cry her beautiful eyes
out.”

Once again, I saw her eyes begin to tear up. “Why are you so mean
to me?”

“Because I love you, Yuki. If I didn't care then would I help you
become stronger?”

She knew the answer. We'd had this conversation before.

Yuki bowed her head. “No, you wouldn't.”

I sighed and pulled the little girl into a hug and, to my mild
surprise, she bounced up and wrapped herself around me. I could only
smile at the sudden affection and just held her for a moment.

After a while, though... “Yuki-chan? We need to get back to work.
Sasami-chan will be here soon and I know you don't want to disappoint
her.”

Yuki nodded and I set her down so she could finish getting ready. It
was going to be another long day of grinding, but different now that
Sasami and Yuki had made up. I couldn't wait to see how they would
work together now.

Soon enough, Yuki had worked through her Calisthenics routine.
Sasami arrived about halfway through and watched curiously. As soon
as Yuki was finished, though, Sasami had all but pounced on Yuki
while bearing a bento packed full of food for all of us. Lo and
behold, Minagi arrived, seemingly half asleep as she levitated across
the floor and as though being led by something that was grasping her
by the nose.

We ate. We talked. We laughed. And I soon came to the realization
that this was something that I had missed over the last few days. I
had, without realizing it, been punishing myself as well as Yuki...
though, I suppose I did deserve it, considering I let things get as
far as they had.

It was too late to do anything about it, though. The damage was
done. I loved Yuki, she loved me. The only thing for us to do was
to wait and make sure Yuki herself was ready for what would come.

After the meal, Minagi proclaimed that I had been disregarding my own
training and that while Yuki and Sasami were training, Minagi and I
would do the same elsewhere.

Little did I know at the time, however, that Minagi's 'training'
involved her bed and a total lack of apparel.

Minagi and I were big on physical intimacy.

It wasn't the defining characteristic of our relationship. We had
our common interests, chief amongst them being swordsmanship. Most
of all it was how we saw each other in ourselves. The both of us had
such gentle natures in spite of an immense capability of brutality.
And this despite the different paths in our lives. Minagi, being
honed to perfection by a harsh, yet loving father figure. Me, being
bullied, pushed, and ground down in adversity, and yet coming out of
it better than most could have hoped for.

Another thing I appreciated about Minagi was that while she did
indeed pity me, she actually did something about it.

I couldn't blame her for her pity, really. Even though I had my new
family and their unconditional love and support, I still had the
scars of everything that I had been through. My family's love was a
good balm for that scar tissue in my soul, but it would be there for
a long, long time. It would probably never go away, in fact. At any
given moment, I might be caught staring off into nothing as my mind
had been captured by some small reminder and thrown back into the
past.

Whenever she caught me like that she never said anything about it.
When I came out of those trances she would be there waiting with a
smile on her face, and then give me a hug and a kiss to remind me she
was there for me. And that was Minagi for you: sweet, gentle,
quiet... and straightforward.

Hence why I found myself in bed with her, basking in the afterglow –
regardless of the reason, Minagi would not tolerate me being troubled
over something. Say what you will, but nothing helps a couple
decompress like a good bedwork session – and Minagi and I had been
long overdue.

“So, miss me much?” I teased her.

Minagi scoffed at the comment. “It couldn't be helped,” she said
wryly. “You were right to devote so much time to Yuki-chan. In a
way, she needed you more than I did.”

“You really think so?” I asked, curious.

“Hmm,” Minagi said in an agreeable tone. “I'm a big girl. I
know that you're not going to abandon me. Yuki, though... she's
young still. She doesn't have my confidence... At least, not yet.
And she was definitely worried that you were going to cast her to the
side. Though I don't think she's worried about that anymore.”

“Indeed,” I sighed, rolling my eyes. “Really, though, how do
you feel about her?”

“I approve of her,” Minagi replied easily. “She has a strong
spirit. She doesn't give up. She works hard and she plays hard...
though it may seem strange, for her there is no real difference
between work and play. All that really matters to her is the
challenge, and I really like that about her.

“That said, she'll be good for us because, come what may, she'll be
the one that will pick us up when we're at our lowest.”

I sighed in relief. “I'm glad you feel that way. I was honestly
worried that you two would find yourselves at loggerheads.”

Minagi shrugged. “I was a bit worried myself, but she opened up to
me so quickly that it became a non-issue.”

“Ah, good. By the way, I don't mean to pry but... how are you
about relations with other women?”

“Relations?” said Minagi a little confusedly, but then she
realized what I was getting at. “Oh! That!” She then smiled
and went on, “Gender doesn't really matter to me. I know I may not
have that much experience in physical intimacy, but I do know that
love is love and no one can do anything to change that. What about
you?”

I shrugged. “Heterosexual. I mean, I'm okay with the preferences
of others – I don't hate on anyone for their preference or anything
like that – but for my personal preference... the idea of even
having another guy around while I'm in the act kinda squicks me.”

Minagi chuckled. “Rooster of the hen house, huh?”

“Guilty,” I singsonged.

“Hah!” Minagi crowed. “Well, I think I'll be just fine with
you as the only father of my children.” And with that she leaned
over and pecked me affectionately on the lips. “As for other
women... Well, I'm open to it, so the rest is up to them. Why do you
ask anyhow?”

“I'm a little concerned about Yuki.”

“Oh? You mean when she...” Minagi then giggled. “Yeah. That
was a surprise the first time I saw it. I swear she was about ready
to start sucking on them.” I spluttered at that and Minagi gave me
an amused look.

“Sorry,” I apologized, a bit sheepishly. “Anyhow... if she
shows anymore interest do you think you can handle her gently
enough?”

“It shouldn't be a problem,” Minagi replied with a serene smile.

I sighed once again. “Thank the Goddess, one less thing for me to
worry about.” I then looked to Minagi. “Loathe as I am to say
it, love, but we need to get going. Sasami-chan won't be much longer
with Yuki-chan.”

Minagi sighed dramatically. “Soooo tempting to just tie you to the
bed...”

I blinked at that. “And you are now starting to become a somewhat
frightening woman.”

Minagi only chuckled as she levitated off the bed, casting me a
playful look as she made for the bathroom.

While Minagi instructed Yuki, I went with Sasami back to the Mimisaka
to visit with the rest of my family.

At some point, though, I felt the desire to wander around some. That
wasn't too hard – my family was more than amenable to leaving me to
my own devices. However, it wasn't long until I found a distraction.

I suppose that's just in my nature, though.

It was a sound – a muted sort of hammering noise. I honestly had
trouble placing it, but I knew that somehow it involved a hammer.
Something so esoteric on a starship just perplexed me to the point of
maddening, and so I just had to resolve the mystery.

I followed the sound until I reached its source – a rustic looking
wood shop tucked inside a highly advanced starship! The very idea of
it absolutely tickled me. And there was Asahi, the Woodcarver
Princess, carving a bust of Goghei.

“So, is this where you while away your time, little carpenter bee?”
I asked teasingly.

Asahi eeped cutely and tried to hide what she was doing. “What are
you doing here!?” she cried out in surprise.

“Just visiting,” I said with a smile as I began to peruse her
shop. Asahi was on edge, though, so I decided to make a bit of small
talk to help put her at ease. “You know, my step-father used to do
wood craft himself.”

“Your... step-father?” said Asahi in surprise. She was
immediately disarmed and started to warm to the topic. “Wood
crafting?”

I nodded. “It was... an aspiration of his... To make his own
furniture, all from raw wood. He would have done it, too, if not for
the tools he needed being so expensive.”

“Oh, that's so sad,” Asahi sighed plaintively. “I don't know
what I would have done if my father hadn't been able to give me all
these wonderful tools to work with.”

“I know what you mean.” Asahi gave me a perplexed look, so I
went on. “My preferred medium is metal.” At that, I patted the
pommel of First Cut where the handle and hilt jutted out from my
belt. “But even so, my situation would have been similar to my
step-father's if not for the help my family gave me.”

Asahi blinked in confusion. “You sound like you're talking about
two different families. The others have mentioned something about
you losing your family... and adopting you... but I'm afraid I don't
understand what happened. They said that only you should really tell
me – that it's really only your story to tell.”

I sighed thoughtfully. “My story, huh? Well... the thing is that
I've been displaced across time and space through such a high-level
dimension that even Washu is having trouble figuring it out. But the
basic gist of it is that... everything I ever had was taken from me.
There's no way that we know of to send me back home... not like there
was much to go back to. My mother passed away in an accident couple
of months before it happened and it tore my family apart.”

“Oh my gosh!” Asahi said as she covered her open-mouthed shock.
“I'm so sorry!”

I nodded. “It's alright. I've started a new life here. Washu was
the first to help me out. She was really kind to me and I'll never
forget that. But it was Sasami-chan that saw how badly I was
hurting. She was the one that got me started on the long path of
healing my heart.

“You see, there's just no words to describe it, Asahi – that kind
of loss: My family, my home, and even my faith to some extent. At
first, the sorrow was so great that I might have died of a broken
heart. It happens, you know... when some poor wretch out there truly
has no one to turn to for any sort of warmth or love... they simply
stop living, and no one can find a scientific reason for their
passing.

“That was what Sasami-chan saw in me... and right away, she saved
my life by naming me her beloved elder brother... not just a simple
affection, but the real thing, because she knew that her love alone
was not going to be enough. She talked to her Grandmother, Seto, and
her mother and aunt, Misaki and Funaho. She even talked to her
father, Emperor Azusa. And she told each of them the same thing:
that she wanted me to be part of the family.

“I couldn't believe it was happening. My own family had never
reached out like that for me. Apathy was what I was used to. To
suddenly find myself so loved and so wanted... it was absolutely
painful. And sweet goddess I cried on some nights because it hurt so
much. Why did I have to lose everything to gain everything? But
once the tears went away I came to realize that it's the only way we
truly become strong – by surviving the very worst that life
presents us with. So I let their love buoy me anyhow, because I knew
the only other option was... to be lost, forever.”

I then reached down and pulled First Cut and showed it to Asahi.

“I suppose this is why I enjoy working with metal. Can you guess
from looking at this how many times I folded over this steel before I
gave it this final shape?”

“Fifty?” guessed Asahi. “A hundred?”

I shook my head. “I never kept count. My teacher himself lost
count, but he assured me it was certainly thousands of folds. And
this is a special tool-steel, meant to be used in only the most
demanding of conditions like carving out bits of machinery from metal
that is nearly as strong. The alloy is eighteen percent Tungsten.
It is very heat resistant. I worked on this until my hands
and arms blistered from the withering heat. Washu-chan healed my
hands, of course... but then I shocked my teacher by going right back
into the smithy because I wasn't finished yet.

“This steel... is very much like me... strong only because it has
gone through the most adverse conditions, and even then only because
it was tough enough to make it through in the first place. It is
very much like a piece of my heart and soul, especially since I've
put a bit of both into it.”

“Is it good for you to have your heart be so hard?” asked Asahi.

I sighed. “You're a sweet young lady, Asahi... The thing is, there
are times we must harden our hearts in order to do the things that
must be done. Like punishing someone we love. Like the situation
between Yuki and myself. For sure, I could decide to be easy
on her and just let her have fun with everyone else... but the thing
is we could wind up in grave danger – something we all know and
understand, especially you.

“So, since Yuki is my responsibility, it falls to me to make her
understand the consequences of her choice. I don't like doing it.
It's hard on me because I honestly have come to love her. But, it's
either that or I allow her to take more and more liberties until
finally... bad ending.”

Asahi shuddered at the thought. “I see what you mean,” she said
soberly. She looked down at First Cut once more. “I don't really
know much about metal... except that I know a good tool when I see
one.” Asahi then gave me a very serious look. “The only other
thing I can compare this to is my father's tools.”

I nodded as I sheathed my sword once more. “Tell me, little
carpenter bee, will you one day succeed your own father?”

“If... he wishes me to...”

“Then on that day, little carpenter bee, I shall forge you a set of
tools that will make your ancestors weep with envy.”

Asahi blinked at me in surprise. “You... You can do that!?”

I smiled at her. “First Cut is my very first project beyond simply
practicing my skills in the forge. It was the test to see if I was
really ready to stand on my own – to make a weapon that could be of
true use in this dangerous galaxy. And a weapon is just another tool
under a different category. Though many swordsmiths out there are
too prideful for it, I wouldn't give a second thought over making a
set of wood carving tools, save for how I'd go about it.”

“But... We've hardly even talked! You don't even know me!”

I gave Asahi a gentle smile. “I do know you, Asahi. I have seen
this adventure that we are on right now. I've seen how it ends. And
I have seen how you comported yourself. You were magnificent, Asahi,
and worthy of my friendship and trust. The only difference is that
Yuki and myself were not here.”

Asahi gave me a frightened look. “Who are you?”

“Are you familiar with the concept of infinite monkeys on infinite
typewriters?”

“Why?”

“Just answer the question.”

“Fine. I've heard about it. Now, why?”

“Washu-chan is still working on it, but you can apply that to the
multi-verse in what she's calling Transfictional Theory. The basic
idea being that with the Multiverse being infinitely vast and with
infinite possibilities, it's entirely probable that everything we
have experienced is a fictional story somewhere else.”

“What? You're lying!”

“Then how did I know about Goghei when you woke up on Earth?”

“That was just a lucky guess!”

“Alright then. If you won't believe me, then go ask Sasami-chan.
She knows pretty much everything there is to know about me... and she
loves me to tears.”

And then, as though on cue, the deck underneath our feet suddenly
lurched. It reminded me a little bit of being back on a US Navy
Destroyer while out in the Sea of Japan. Asahi nearly lost her
balance and I steadied her.

“What's going on!?” she cried out.

“It's most likely Mushima, one of those three strange men that are
with Tatetsuki He's locked his ship onto yours.”

“Mimisaka!?”

“He's right, my lady! My poor outer hull has been scratched!”

“A scratch!? YEEEEEEK!”

I had to admit, that girl could run when she really wanted to.

But I let her go regardless. There were things that needed to
transpire, and as much as I wanted to go and beat the ever-loving
life out of Mushima, I had to let things take their course.

Where I would interfere, however, would come afterwards. I found
Goghei in the middle of shaving his head, ridding himself of the hair
that grew in suddenly during his transformation. It made me kinda
envious in that he could get long hair so quickly and easily.

“Hey, Gar-kun!” called out Sasami as she ran up to me. Washu
followed behind her at a more sedate pace with a smile. “Why
didn't you do something about Mushima? I mean, you could have at
least warned us, right?”

I smiled down at my little sister. “Sometimes, Sasami-chan, I need
to let things be. After all, Tenchi needs to become his own man.
Haven't you noticed that I tend to outshine Tenchi?”

Sasami thought about it for a moment. “Yeah, you have kinda taken
charge a lot.”

I nodded. “Well, the Japanese people tend to be very modest, even
despite their immense sense of pride. But in America, we're taught
to stand tall, stand out, be ambitious, and not to settle for
smaller things when better things are available. Now, I'm not saying
that our way is better – in fact I think a lot of my countrymen can
learn to be a little more humble. But for some, like me, shining so
brightly as to overwhelm those that surround us comes as naturally as
breathing. And for that reason, I must set aside myself as a whole
to allow Tenchi his chance to bloom. After all, a flower does well
in the light, but it takes a very hardy plant to blossom under an
unrelenting light.”

Sasami nodded solemnly at that. “But Gar-kun... it would be nice
if you could learn to not shine so bright.”

I smiled again. “I know, Sasami. Believe me, I know. It's kinda
hard to be something I'm not, though. I know people like me better
when I am quiet and mild... but it really isn't me.”

Sasami then reached over and hugged me, leaving a kiss on my cheek.
“People like that do not want to know the real Garrick.” She
then sighed. “I guess it can't be helped.”

“Guess not,” I agreed. I then looked over to Washu. “Nothing
to add?” I asked impishly.

Washu gave me a mildly annoyed look. “Why do you think I always
meddle in things?”

“Because you have a tendency to do so,” I shot back at her with a
grin.

Washu sniffed with mock-disdain. “Well, I know when I'm not
wanted!” She then gave me a sidelong look. “Although, I do
sense there was something else you wanted.”

I nodded. “Gotta talk to Goghei. Preferably alone if you guys
don't mind.”

Washu smiled knowingly. “Sure thing. C'mon, Sasami. We should
probably get started on dinner anyhow.”

“Okay. See you later, Gar-kun!” called back Sasami as she waved
goodbye.

I waved back and then went to distract Mihoshi. Easy enough – I
simply told her Sasami needed help with dinner. Task accomplished, I
then sat down with Goghei, who gave me a curious look.

“I apologize for dismissing your help so suddenly, Goghei. If it
will make up for it, I'll go ahead and take Mihoshi's place.”

Goghei nodded amiably. “I must say, I have been curious about
meeting you. Things were kind of hectic before and you were rather
busy.”

I nodded in turn. “Sasami-chan is right. I do need to do a better
job of keeping my head down. Even when I play in the background I
tend to steal the show.”

“Is it really that important for you to not be yourself?”

“It is important that Tenchi learn to stand up with pride even amid
adversity. Make no mistake about it, Goghei – he will, in time,
have a crown that will rest heavily on his troubled brow. But while
he may be able to put that off for thousands of years, he will, in
the meantime, intend to stay on Earth. However, with all these women
after his heart, children will eventually come. And when they do,
the eyes of everyone in his home town will focus on him, and the
people will whisper amongst themselves. While people will not say it
to his face, they will ridicule and bully those closest to him –
his children.”

Goghei blinked hard at that revelation. “I see what you mean. In
that case, it really is imperative that he become more assertive.”

I nodded once more. “That aside... introductions. My name is
Garrick Grimm, adoptive son of Lady Funaho of House Masaki of
Jyurai.”

“My name is Goghei. I am but a humble monk on pilgrimage.”

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Goghei.”

“As it is for me, Mr. Grimm. What brings you to me, if I may ask?”

“Of course... Goghei, please take no offense at my brusk wording...
but you must realize that Lady Asahi is not stupid.”

“Eh?” replied Goghei, nonplussed.

“She knows that you're a Gagutian,” I said. When his clueless
expression persisted, I clarified even further: “As such, she also
knows about the Gagutian beast-man state.”

You could almost hear a gong ringing somewhere as Goghei's eyes shot
wide open in shock, horror, and mortal embarrassment. But then, the
gears in his head began to turn.

“But... she's not scared of me... in fact, she's never shown any
fear of me at all... not even when I saved her from that bear so long
ago... even though her father told her those horrible things about
men turning into monsters...”

I nodded, a small smile on my face. “Indeed, Goghei. She has
absolutely no fear of you at all. So, you should not hold any fear
in your heart of her reaction towards you. Now, go ahead and finish
shaving. I'll take care of the clippings.”

I picked up the vacuum cleaner, a simple canister model, and marveled
at how mundane it was. With all the incredible technology that
surrounded us you would think that they would have come up with some
interesting ways to innovate the vacuum cleaner. Instead, it was no
different from vacuum cleaners on Earth. It wasn't even cordless.
It seemed to have pretty decent suction, though.

“Why would you tell me this?” said Goghei all the sudden.

I sighed. So much for being inscrutable. “Because, Goghei, maybe
I'd just like there to be somewhat fewer misunderstandings between a
man and a woman. So much pain in life could be avoided if men and
women would simply confront each other rationally instead of trying
to dance on eggshells around issues that seem to be made of
explodium.”

Goghei nodded sagely. “Indeed. It is wise to confront an issue
directly before it grows too large to be avoided. But what if a
woman you desire takes exception to such a confrontation?” I
shrugged as I pushed the floor-tool of the vacuum around, pulling up
the loose hair.

“A little bit of it depends on how you present the issue. Can't be
a boore about it, but sometimes there's just no sugar coating a bad
situation. But even so, if a woman takes it with a generally poor
attitude... then I hate to say it, but such a woman may not be
suitable relationship material. Particularly if the issue centers on
her and she has no intention of compromising or changing her ways.
No matter how much you may care for her, the best thing to do is to
just cut your loses. I've seen it happen to more than one
acquaintance of mine.”

“I see,” said Goghei. “Have you had many such problems
yourself?”

I shrugged again. “Sort of. One in particular right now is a very
young girl named Yuki Mihara. She wants to be my wife, but the
reality is that she's far too young. Not so much the age difference,
but literally she is too young! And she will not be dissuaded from
pursuing me. Thus far, I've managed to convince her to wait until
she is at least of a proper marriageable age. However, so great is
her desire to be with me that she stowed away on this trip of ours
despite warnings of it being too dangerous for her. So, I forced
another compromise on her.”

“That being?”

“Hellacious training. Every day, she trains under body-breaking
strain and hones her skills for several hours at once, and then
drinks a nano-machine infused restorative to heal and replenish her
body so she may begin again. With any luck, by the time we reach the
end of this journey she will be, at the very least, my own equal in
swordsmanship.”

“At least she is willing to accept compromise.”

I nodded. “At least... for now. But she honestly worries me that
one day she will demand too much, too soon. And I hate breaking a
girl's heart.” No more was said on the matter as we finished our
respective tasks.

And that's all for now. Part of the problem is that I've been stuck at a certain bit for a while now, trying to figure out how I would really handle the confrontation on Ryuten. Finally, it suddenly hit me when I was writing a plot-and-plan session called by Washu... Asahi suddenly calls Garrick out, saying: "If you know so much and you want things to go so well, then why don't
you tell us what's going on!?”
And so, he does, and completely derails the timeline. Though, hopefully in a way he hopes will let things settle in a desirable manner.
Even with this breakthrough I've been having a lot of trouble just sitting down to write. Work has been driving me fairly hard lately, what with the NBA Playoffs (GO SPURS GO!) and people in San Antonio getting half-off their orders when the Spurs play. So I've been getting left with very little mental bandwidth to think on the story and how things will unfold. *sigh*

Bluemage · 06-15-2014, 01:38 AM

IT'S ALIVE!
-Snippet is up to your usual standards of quality;-Snippet is up to your usual standards of awesome; and-I remember thinking that Garrick got an unreasonably positive reception early on, but now he's doing a pretty good job earning it.
As for the AN at the end, I know the feeling. I generally figure that, if I can't justify something well enough to write a serviceable version of it, it probably shouldn't happen the way I'm writing it.
Writing an SI with plot knowledge is an incredible cheat for this; if writing a particular issue isn't working out, you can easily justify preemptively defusing it, removing yourself from it, taking an X+1th option, or cleaning up after it.
Good luck- I hope things get less exhausting soon!

My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.

I've been writing a bit.

Black Aeronaut · 06-15-2014, 08:26 AM

Glad your happy. This makes me happy. ^_^

Although I don't really feel like what I'm doing is awesome... I mean, I think it's cool, sure, but if I were to compare it to something like Greg Highlander's stuff... I guess I've been kinda desensitized. *_*

But really... I have ideas for much later on down the line that I hope are going to be Crowning Moments of Epic Awesome.

As for that whole positive reception... yeah. The thing is, if people meet me when I'm on a high swing they're usually repulsed by my cheer - I've gone far beyond Ray-of-Effin'-Sunshine; I have become the sun itself. I'm loud, I'm weird, and I can be utterly overpowering. However, if you meet me at a particularly low point, like the one I would be in at the beginning of this story... Well, if you're the least bit protective, you'd wonder who the hell shot my dog, point blank, between the eyes, in front of my face, and where you could find said person so you could return the favor in spades. I'm no cry baby, but I put out that vibe that screams 'Damaged Goods - Handle With Care' when I'm down. (But what can I say? I tend to wear my heart on my sleeve.)

The Masaki Household has had the excellent opportunity to get to know Garrick at his lowest, and then gradually work his way up to the high-swing, building up slowly so by the time he took it up a notch they were already somewhat desensitized. For example...
HAVE AN OMAKE!!!

"Ah, it seems Dear Brother is in a particularly good mood today," said Ayeka as she folded laundry with Ryoko.

"Was he singing that flagpole-sitter song again?" asked the space pirate with an amused grin.

"Oh no - even better," said Ayeka, coming close to tittering. "He was singing that delightfully twisted song about the AI that was still alive."

At that point, Sasami poked her head out of the kitchen and waved the two over, saying, "Big Sister, you may want to come out and see this...."

Ryoko and Ayeka both looked at each other, and all but telported to the doorway to see what Garrick was doing this time. And see they did: Garrick with a huge grin on his face and an absolutely manic gleam in his eyes. He had Sasami's favorite set of kitchen knives, the steel flashing and gleaming as he quickly chopped, cut, and sliced vegetables, producing a racket that would have turned some green at the sound (no doubt imaging things he could do to people with those blades), and pirouetting sharply, snapping his ponytail around like a black streamer behind him, as he delivered the results unerringly into waiting dishes and bubbling pots. And all the while, he was singing...
//www.youtube.com/v/iisYw0epV_Q?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0
As Garrick finshed out the song with a flourish, he looked straight at the three and cackled wildly, getting out only one word:"PRICELESS!!!" and then going back to work, this time starting off with the Bohemian Rhapsody.
Ryoko and Ayeka were stunned while Sasami grinned happily as she shut off the camcorder she'd been using to film the ongoings.
"Well, that's new," Ryoko managed at last.
"Is... he safe?" wondered Ayeka, somewhere between fear and horror.
"Unh!" replied Sasami. "Garrick is just really happy right now. I can't wait to send this to Grandma Seto!"

Yeah.
This wouldn't fit in any particular spot in the story (though it would probably be right before Minagi shows up), but it's the perfect example of exactly what sort of weirdness and presence I am on one of my high-swings, and how that would fit into the Masaki Household. Really, I wouldn't stick out any worse than the rest of those crazies - square peg, meet square hole. Wink

classicdrogn · 06-15-2014, 11:00 AM

I always liked Flanders and Swann's "Happy Song," which starts shortly after 2:20 in this:
Alas, yuku still refuses to embed properly so I couldn't specify a start time.
Manic-Garrick would probably also like their songs "The Armadillo" and "The Elephant," probably "Transport of Delight" and "The Song of Reproduction" as well (and I bet Yuki would love "The Seahorse.")

My most common response when a scene refuses to work the way I think it should, or would be a tiresome rehash of canon, is to write it either from a different character's point of view, or something else happening at the same time so the viewpoint character can quickly review what the others planned to do (and find out later what went off plan) or can see and comment on glimpses of it in between what's happening immediately. Of course, that's a bit trickier in the situation as you outlined it, but at least it sounds like you found a path forward once more.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

Black Aeronaut · 06-15-2014, 11:51 AM

Cute, but not really Garrick's speed. It's kinda hard for me to quantify the sort of music that I prefer when I'm particularly silly. As hinted in the above omake, I love singing Flagpole Sitta by Harvey Danger when I'm in that happy-middle, Still Alive is great for when I have that slightly more crazed bent in mind, and Twisted by Joni Mitchell is my go-to for I-am-nucking-futz-and-you-can't-stop-me.

For a more mellow kind of kooky I like Timothy Leary by The Moody Blues. In the hardcore vein I love Inner Logic by Bad Religion (the cadence combined with the lyrics = epicness). Oh, and Radiohead is just my kind of twitchy-sound sometimes... Songs like My Iron Lung and Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box. Of course, I also have selections of their music for super-mellow moods or darker tones.

I suppose I should sum it up by saying that when I get silly, it's rarely pure-silly. More often than not, it's like shades of gray, with very few and rare instances of black and white.

As for how the scene in question goes... I think you guys will like it. It has a bit of that, "Oh, well that was anticlimaaaooooh-SHIT!" element you guys seem to love.

***Bob Schroeck*** · 06-16-2014, 04:00 AM

Quote:(Joni Mitchell - Twisted)

Wow. Never heard that version before -- I'm far more familiar with the original:

Quote:I always liked Flanders and Swann's "Happy Song,"

For this kind of song, I'm rather partial to what might be the Ur-example of the type:

-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Black Aeronaut · 06-17-2014, 10:54 AM

Wanted to get some folks thoughts on this tidbit here. It's a blurb about a weapon Garrick is about to put to use in a later snippet.

Laser weaponry in the galaxy by and large was what revolver pistols
were to the American Frontier – readily available and the great
equalizer. The science behind them was considered elementary, and
many shops of varying degrees of workmanship made them. There were
even quite a few one-offs out there, some of which were considered
highly valuable and were watched for eagerly in collection shows and
exhibitions.

Raiden's Toothpick might be one of them, someday.

It resembled a long-rifle. The reason for this was two-fold. For
one, it acted as a visual aid to help aim the weapon – it was
certainly powerful enough to be considered a sniper rifle. For
another, it was potent enough for you to want to make damn sure there
was nothing obstructing the beam so close to you. The flashback
would be fatal for me at such distances as I'd wind up being
flash-cooked. With the 'safe distance' provided by the barrel, an
accident like that would only severely maim me.

Indeed, lesson one of handling Raiden's Toothpick was making damn
sure that my firing line was clear.

Directly behind the barrel was, of course, the emitter assembly...
which was enshrouded by a bank of capacitors. Having them so close
to the emitter was for the best. The circuits for that connection
had to be made of some seriously dense metal, and it was heavy enough
with just the components. Best to keep the circuit path as short as
possible, regardless.

The power cell itself was mounted in the butt stock to make it easier
to handle, and had enough power for about sixty discharges.

Each pull of the trigger discharged one of the seven capacitors. It
took five seconds for a capacitor to charge, and that time grew with
the number of capacitors charging. If I discharged all seven in
rapid succession then the entire bank would take about forty seconds
to recharge.

In a fire fight, forty seconds is almost an eternity. This was
definitely not a weapon you would use lightly, but then the power
rating should have been indication enough if you know what a one
terawatt laser can do. The kicker was the length of the pulses.
Most high-power pulse lasers back on Earth only fire for a few
picoseconds.

Raiden's Toothpick fired for a full tenth of a second with every
pulse.

I figure 1/10th second terawatt laser pulses would get just about anyone's attention (in the same way a Hellfire Missile does).

Bluemage · 06-17-2014, 03:37 PM

Yes. Yes, they would.
I do have one question, though. Let me just illustrate it with my thoughts as I read.

Quote:Each pull of the trigger discharged one of the seven capacitors. It
took five seconds for a capacitor to charge,

Seven capacitors, times five seconds, equals thirty-five seconds. Quite a while in combat.

Quote:and that time grew with
the number of capacitors charging.

So more than 35 seconds? Harsh. This definitely isn't a weapon for spraying or praying.

Quote:If I discharged all seven in
rapid succession then the entire bank would take about thirty seconds
to recharge.

What. THIS DOES NOT MATH.
Aside from that, I like, and I want.

My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.

I've been writing a bit.

Black Aeronaut · 06-17-2014, 04:40 PM

Sorry about the math. Written while a little low of the REMs. Editing to bump it up to forty seconds.

**robkelk** · 06-18-2014, 12:27 AM

Bluemage Wrote:Yes. Yes, they would.

I do have one question, though. Let me just illustrate it with my thoughts as I read.

Quote:Each pull of the trigger discharged one of the seven capacitors. It
took five seconds for a capacitor to charge,
Seven capacitors, times five seconds, equals thirty-five seconds. Quite a while in combat.

If you fire off all seven at once, maybe. Fire one, let it start charging while you fire another, repeat. The first six seconds of recharge time go to the second through seventh shots - by which time the first capacitor is recharged, so you have an eighth shot if you need it.

Bluemage Wrote:
Quote:and that time grew with
the number of capacitors charging.
So more than 35 seconds? Harsh. This definitely isn't a weapon for spraying or praying.

Sniper rifles rarely are. You wouldn't take this to a gunfight any more than you'd take a grenade.
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

Bluemage · 06-18-2014, 12:41 AM

...the whole point of that post was to illustrate the ambiguity in Sleepy!BA's math. I'm fully aware of what sort of weapon it is, and what it's to be used for, and I approve of that. It's got enough weaknesses to have an interesting narrative function, and enough positives to generate Awesome.
If Garrick is in a situation where .7 seconds of terawatt laser, spaced out over- how long does it take to pull a trigger seven times?- doesn't take down his enemy, then he's up against the wrong enemy. If he misses eight times in under six seconds, he should be using a different gun.

My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.

I've been writing a bit.

**robkelk** · 06-18-2014, 03:29 AM

Bluemage Wrote:... If he misses eight times in under six seconds, he should be using a different gun.

If he misses eight times in under six seconds with a sniper rifle, he should switch to a grenade launcher, because he's no sniper.
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

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