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+---- Thread: [RFC][SI][Multi-Xover]Being You is Suffering (/showthread.php?tid=8440)
- Black Aeronaut - 04-12-2014
Quote:Bluemage wrote:Ahhhhhhh. Now this is the sort of commentary I've been sorely itching for. Getting the tips about spelling and grammar errors are great, but even better is the in-depth commentary about the story itself, even if it's only a long winded way of saying "I like it."
Ouch. Dangerous situation you're in, there. I'm just waiting for somebody to wander into the whole situation, catch wind of what little Yuki is doing, and go "Dude, WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" I do like the way you're writing her- agitating for something that she doesn't entirely understand. It's got the (rather loud) ring of truth to it.
Anyhow... Yeah, it's kinda the situation that I wanted to convey - I want the reader to honestly feel squeamish on Garrick's behalf. It also helps that I've known a couple of girls like her. The whole thing with an underage girl crushing on me was no joke. She was a wonderful kid - gauran-damn-teed to get a laugh out of you with her utterly outrageous sense of humor and Broadway Diva Schtick - but she was also insanely mature for her age. She'd often look at other kids with this 'You just don't get it, do you?' expression. She was every bit as frustrated as Yuki in that she wanted it to be more than just some infatuation, but was constantly being fended off.
What she didn't have was an alien space princess her 'age' promising her that if she waits a bit she can have it all and then some.
Quote:Bluemage wrote:Part of the solution for this is that he'll pair her off with Sasami and Ayeka when he can't be around. Granted, they are trouble magnets (Ayeka especially for getting kidnapped and held hostage no less than three times in the manga), but they're also able to recognize when they would be in too deep and pull Yuki back going "Ohhhh-no-no-no-no-no-nuuuuuh. He is not on your encounter table!"
Also, training the girl up? Doubly dangerous. On the one hand,
she'll eventually be able to take care of herself. On the other, you're
going to be dealing with bouts of 'I'm good enough for this!', the
more-scrupulous enemies out there will class her as a fighter (instead
of the potential hostage/noncombatant she was), and you're exposing her
(heh) to more muscle and sweat time. Not the best way to drive her off,
or keep her at arm's length, that last one.
As for the last bit? Garrick's simply resigned himself to his fate. He knows he's in Tenchi-verse, where lead-male characters tend to spontaneously develop harems... And Garrick's situation is far too serious for the universe to slap him with the comic relief/sidekick label. So far, he's got the Honest Girl and the Lolita.
You guys are gonna freak out when you see who I set him up with later on down the line. Roles to fill will be (in no particular order) The Tsundere, The Carefree, The Abomination, The Scrapper, The Soulmate, The Princess, The Wyrd, The Soldier, The Twins, and The Effin' Scary One. List is subject to change.
- Rod.H - 04-12-2014
Why am I thinking most of those positions can be filled in just two universe hops, first: Hellsing, second: Black Lagoon.
- classicdrogn - 04-12-2014
Well, A) I don't seem to have anything useful to say here, and B) I was pretty desperately playing Champions Online every free moment, trying to get the extra-large Foxbat event inventory bag for seven characters across four accounts before it ended. I succeeded, but with only a few hours to spare.
--
"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 - 04-13-2014
Quote:Rod H wrote:Hah! (Un)Fortunately, our story won't be that short. :p
Why am I thinking most of those positions can be filled in just two universe hops, first: Hellsing, second: Black Lagoon.
Quote:ClassicDrogn wrote:Ah yes, MMOs. Sucking away free time for all us peons ever since the Internet went mainstream.
Well, A) I don't seem to have anything useful to say here, and B) I was
pretty desperately playing Champions Online every free moment, trying to
get the extra-large Foxbat event inventory bag for seven characters
across four accounts before it ended. I succeeded, but with only a few
hours to spare.
- Black Aeronaut - 04-14-2014
And now it is time for more punishment... with special guest Drill Instructor, Sasami Masaki-Jyurai!
Minagi continued
her family unit thing when it came time for bed. I acquiesced
readily, provided we were all wearing pajamas.
It was an
interesting experience.
I was tired enough
to fall asleep with no trouble, even though I found myself sharing a
bed with two girls, one of whom was underage. However, I did wake up
a few times over the course of the night as Yuki adjusted. Once to
her clinging to me. And again to find that she had switched over to
Minagi. I found it amusing that she had once again buried her face
in Minagi's bust. I began to wonder if she had other bisexual
tendencies or this was just a holdover from her early childhood.
Although, if she actually was bisexual, then it would help to know
before it took us all by surprise and provoke misunderstandings.
Particularly so if she didn't realize it herself.
We woke up the next
morning and it was a repeat of yesterday, save for one small detail.
“Take your time
with it and let yourself figure it out. It's not easy to do on your
own when you're just learning.”
Yuki was fussing
with the ace bandage, trying to bind her own chest today.
“This is so
hard,” she grumbled. “Why do I have to do this?”
“Because your
chest is starting to develop and it's best if you learn how to don
and wear support clothing as early as possible.”
“Can't you help
me?”
“Not this time.
This is part of your training. Besides, you should learn this as
soon as possible so I don't need to help you later on. It's already
an improper situation, even if you have every intention of marrying
me.”
“You could just
have Minagi do this.”
“I won't wake her
for this. She's already helping me enough with your training.
Besides, you are my responsibility. Not hers.”
“But sister-wives
are supposed to help each other, aren't they?”
“They are,” I
allowed. “But, far more importantly, you have gone and made
yourself into my responsibility. You decided that I am the
one to be your husband in the future. I have finally accepted this.
And then you stowed away in my truck after I told you not to come. I
can do nothing about that, except to do everything in my power to
ensure that you are not only safe, but also that you can take care of
yourself.
I sighed at this.
“Really... I can't even say that this was a mistake on your part.
That will ultimately be up to you to decide on. But know this, my
tiny love: you have made an extremely adult decision – one that has
extremely adult consequences. Your childhood, such as it was, is
over now. It is time for you to learn to not only fight for yourself
as an adult, but also behave as one. This means learning to not rely
on others as much as you used to, and accepting responsibility for
your decisions.”
As I spoke, Yuki
looked down as she bit her lip, her fumbling movements slowing to a
halt. I know I'm being hard on her, but that's what you do with
someone you love when they do something as monumental as this. I
love her and I honestly wish she hadn't come... I wouldn't have to
make her sad if she hadn't.
I only hoped that
she would grow into a stronger, better person for this.
I sighed and went
to Yuki, taking the bandage from her hands and mildly surprising her
as she looked up at me with wide brown eyes.
“Here,” I said,
as I put the end of the bandage to the middle of her trunk. “You
start at the very bottom of your chest – where you feel the end of
your sternum, your breast bone. Feel it?”
“Yes,” said
Yuki meekly, her cheeks going red.
“Good. Now hold
it with your weak hand... good. Now, take the bandage in your strong
hand here,” I said, offering it to Yuki. She shyly took the
bandage in her left hand. “Now, wrap it around twice in the same
spot – firm, but not tight just yet.”
Yuki nodded and I
spotted her as she went through the process clumsily, but she managed
alright.
“Good. Now,
while still holding the bit that's poking out here at the bottom,
pull the rest tight. Just don't make it too tight – you want to be
able to take deep breaths without any effort.”
She nodded again
and pulled the slack that remained out of the binding.
“Good. Now you
should be able to let go with your right hand and start binding the
rest of your chest. Make three good wraps spiraling up, then three
going down. Keep repeating that until you run out of bandage.”
Yuki went to work
right away. As I thought, getting the binding started was the
hardest part, but once she did everything else came easily.
In minutes, Yuki
was fastening the bandage clips and eying her handiwork in the
mirror.
“I look like a
boy,” she said glumly.
“Gender does not
matter when we are training. Even though there are times when
special consideration must be given to women on the training floor,
we are otherwise all men. Understood?”
Yuki frowned, but
nodded anyhow.
We began our
training once more – Yuki carrying three more kilograms of weights
than she did yesterday. I felt that it was a modest enough increase,
though after the first week or so I may have to cut back on how much
I add. It all depends on Yuki herself and how quickly she is able to
get stronger. With Washu's recovery shakes, who knew for certain?
One thing was for
sure, Yuki was already feeling the burn as I made her go through her
routine. However, there seemed to be a certain glow to her now. I
recognized it – this was the same that she would exhibit during
training with Yosho. She was hitting her stride and even though she
was pushing herself, she was relishing it.
The weights may
not be an issue after all, I thought to myself.
I suddenly realized
that I would have to be careful about her. Yuki, it seemed, was a
girl that liked to push boundaries wherever they may be, and
especially if they stood between her and something she wanted.
I was ambivalent
about this revelation. I found it desirable because she was
obviously a woman that wasn't going to let something stand in her way
when things needed to get done. However, she has already shown that
she'll throw caution into the wind if she wants something badly
enough. Like me for example.
This could be
dangerous.
Someone once said
that there is no such thing as good girls gone bad, just bad girls
found out. I didn't really think Yuki was a bad girl, but with that
sort of mindset a young woman could quickly turn amoral in the blink
of an eye. I would have to find a way to keep her in check –
discipline through physical exertion was obviously not doing it.
(Least of all when they don't have the lingering effects, but
unfortunately I needed her to become strong ASAP.)
Yuki and I slipped
into the cool-down phase and soon she was sipping at her recovery
shake.
And then Sasami
arrived. What was interesting was that she was not wearing any of
her usual at-home or even her traveling clothes. What she had on
more resembled her night clothes, only made of sturdier fabrics.
These appeared to be easy to move in, and tough enough to get tumbled
and rolled around in without ripping or wearing down too easily.
“SASAMI-CHAN!”
cried out Yuki happily as she went charging for her best friend.
I saw it coming
just before it happened. She looked at Yuki with an expression that
combined sorrow with wrath. I inwardly winced. Oh man, this is
gonna be bad!
Crack! Sasami
remained posed in the follow through for a moment while Yuki was left
with her head turned by the force the the slap, a stunned expression
on her face as a reddening mark appeared on her cheek.
“sasami...
chan...” Yuki murmured in shock, completely BSOD'd by the
unexpected act of violence on her person by her best friend and
confidant.
“You lied to me,”
Sasami said quietly.
OH. FUCK.
It took all my restraint not to say that out loud.
“You said you would stay at home,” she said, tears beginning to
stream from her eyes despite the angry expression on her face. “You
promised it so I wouldn't warn Nii-san. But now I see you only made
that promise so I wouldn't say anything.”
“Bu-But Sasami-”
“No!” snapped Sasami angrily, tears still streaming from her
face. “You broke a promise to me! You embarrassed me, you
embarrassed Nii-san, and you've even embarrassed your family! All
because you wanted to be with him.”
“Sasami-chan, I'm so sorry, I didn't think you really meant it this
much. But I understand now-”
“You don't,” Sasami said sadly. “You honestly don't. And you
won't until you finally see what real danger looks like. But that is
why Nii-san asked me to come here. He wants me to teach you how to
protect yourself. Yuki-chan... I am sorry, but you are going to hate
me for what I am going to put you through.”
And then, to my surprise, Sasami pulled out both of her pig tails,
letting her long cerulean hair out into a single, beautiful blue fall
that went clear to her ankles. The two hair ties suddenly
metamorphosed in her hands into long staffs – the spherical
ornaments becoming nobs on the end of each one. She handed one to
Yuki.
“You will use one of mine until Washu makes one for you.”
Yuki accepted the staff. “I won't hate you. I never could. I am
sorry I broke my promise, Sasami-chan. What can I do to make up for
it?”
“Start by surviving,” Sasami said, her voice cold and her eyes
sad.
I thought Minagi had been tough on Yuki. I was dead wrong.
Sasami was brutal. Relentless. Cold. She demanded absolute
perfection of Yuki's technique. Nothing else mattered. If Yuki
moved too fast, Sasami struck. If Yuki moved with too much power
then Sasami would strike. If Yuki was just a hair out of place,
Sasami would land a painful blow.
The movements Sasami was teaching were not complicated. They were
very basic and similar to the sort of movements ballet dancers would
learn. But time was not an ally. Yuki didn't have years to perfect
her technique. She had weeks, if even that. Therefore, Sasami
focused on pure perfection of the technique.
I could see it in her eyes that it hurt Sasami tremendously to do
this to her friend. Every strike, every sharp word, every glare had
those sad eyes. It was something I could sympathize with and I
resolved to spend some time consoling her later on.
However, I saw a strange transformation overcome Yuki. She would not
complain. She would wince at the strikes, and right away she would
try again. There was fire in her eyes, no mistake about that.
Yuki was growing up, and she was going to become an absolutely
breathtaking woman. The Jyuraians would not know what hit them by
the time we got done with her.
Minagi
took over after Sasami pronounced the lesson to be over. While I
went with Sasami to the Mimisaka
to talk with her and help prepare the evening meal, Minagi would give
Yuki her swordsmanship lessons and start on her evening callisthenics
routine.
“How do you think she's doing,” I asked Sasami as we cut
vegetables together.
“She has potential to be great,” Sasami replied. “But I'll
need at least a few weeks with her before she gets real good.
Otherwise, she'll need someone to watch after her.”
I nodded my head at that. “How are you doing?”
Sasami paused for a moment, but then continued cutting. For a long
moment, she said nothing.
“I don't know what to say, Nii-san. I love her like a sister. But
she made a promise and broke it, and I'm so angry at her, but I still
love her. And worse is that she's not even getting angry at me for
hitting her during training! It's like she wants this!”
I sighed. “I know. I know. Sasami-chan, this is tough, but these
feelings are natural when you have someone that you love make a big
mistake and the only way to fix things is to make it real hard on
them for a while. And you're angry and you want them to hurt, but it
just hurts you instead and it's confusing as all hell. Believe me, I
know.”
“But... what about her?” she asked.
I sighed once again. “I've seen her type before, Sasami-chan...
Yuki... doesn't want to be a child anymore. She's done with it. She
will do everything she can so she can be taken seriously as an adult,
because that is all she wants. What's worse is that she probably
understands what that means. She is taking the express lane on the
road to adulthood, and she is not looking back.
“You saw it in her eyes, didn't you? The fire she had in them.”
Sasami nodded. “It was scary and sad... Nii-san... will she be
okay?”
“She probably will. She's just going to be annoyed that her body
won't grow up as quickly as her mind is. Which reminds me...”
“What is it, Nii-san?” asked Sasami nervously as I leveled a
glare at her.
“No more of you and Yuki sneaking Uncle Noboyuki's doujinshi when
we get back home!”
Sasami bowed her head in defeat and Ryoko called out “BUS~TIIIIIID!”
from across the kitchen. Poor Ayeka was completely flabbergasted by
the sudden revelation.
Mihoshi giggled. “Oooh! Sasami-chan's been a naughty girl!”
Washu just smiled and shook her head, muttering, “Kids...”
Ryo-ohki was too busy munching on a carrot to notice.
I came back to the Hinase bearing two bento boxes packed full of food
that Sasami had cooked. Minagi was already finishing Yuki's
cool-down for her second calisthenics routine of the day.
Yuki was bone-tired, but seemed happy about what she was doing.
She was like those few and rare recruits you get in boot camp... the
ones that will eat up every little bit of punishment you throw their
way because honestly, in their heart-of-hearts, they want to be there
and they want to succeed and do not care how far they have to push
themselves to get there.
Even though I remained largely silent about it, it would not cease to
amaze me. Yuki was certainly not afraid of hard work. An
interesting thing coming from a girl that got whatever she wanted.
Or perhaps I was reading this the wrong way? Yuki had been held at
gun-point before, albeit briefly. That kind of thing does tend to
have repercussions on a child's psychology. Was Yuki's desire to no
longer be weak born out of a fear of being helpless? It certainly
was not an unreasonable thing. And if we really weren't taking her
desire to be stronger seriously enough, then I could see how it would
push her to this point.
But the only person that could tell us for sure would be Yuki
herself. And right now was not the time for pop-psychobabble. Her
training came first and foremost.
Coming up next... Landing on the mining world of Yatsuka! We'll see how Garrick livens up the party...
- robkelk - 04-14-2014
blackaeronaut Wrote:... I began to wonder if she had other bisexual tendencies or this was just a holdover from her early childhood. Although, if she actually was bisexual, then it would help to know before it took us all by surprise and provoke misunderstandings. Particularly so if she didn't realize it herself. ...At her age, she probably doesn't know what her sexual preferences are. She might not even have sexual preferences yet. (It would explain her actions that night - her subconscious might be trying to find out what feels good for her).
--
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
- classicdrogn - 04-14-2014
... after this adventure is done or a major incident where Yuki just barely gets through mostly intact thanks to the skills she's picking up now, I can see Sasami forgiving her amid a waterfall of tears, saying how much she hated being so mean about it, but now Yuki's seen why everyone was so upset.
Freezing up in fear a time or two, not necessarily even at the first or biggest moments of danger, would also be in character for Yuki as a first timer in dangerous situations. Fortunately, she's got a good set of team mates to pull her through in those rough patches - and the will and fire to make real contributions herself with that bit of tempering.
--
"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 - 04-15-2014
Quote:robkelk wrote:Yeah, prettyQuote:blackaeronaut wrote:At her age, she probably doesn't know what her
...
I began to wonder if she had other bisexual tendencies or this was
just a holdover from her early childhood. Although, if she actually was
bisexual, then it would help to know before it took us all by surprise
and provoke misunderstandings. Particularly so if she didn't realize it
herself. ...
sexual preferences are. She might not even have sexual preferences yet.
(It would explain her actions that night - her subconscious might be
trying to find out what feels good for her).
much the entire reason for Garrick's line of thought there. At this
stage, he's pretty sure she's at least heterosexual - she didn't even
flinch when he picked her up after what she saw, which means she has no
qualms about physical contact with men. The upshot is that she saw that
Minagi was definitely enjoying herself, so at least there won't be any
thorny issues about being afraid of that sort of thing. So, this only
leaves Garrick with two lingering questions: will she be physically
attracted to girls as well? And if so, can we catch it quickly enough
to guide her through her bi-curious phase without any nasty psychological scars?
Quote:ClassicDrogn wrote:Yeah, pretty much this. I got a pretty good idea of how to make it happen. the basic premise on why things were permitted to go as far as they do (that is, Yuki being in a potentially dangerous situation) is simple: Garrick realizes that they can't keep her locked up. Not only would it be wrong, but she also needs that WHAM moment to force a paradigm shift on her. It's a little Gendo-ish on Garrick's part, but by the time Yuki realizes what he did she'll probably be mature enough to understand why he did it... and ask forgiveness for being such a spoiled brat. Hindsight can be a bitch.
...
after this adventure is done or a major incident where Yuki just barely
gets through mostly intact thanks to the skills she's picking up now, I
can see Sasami forgiving her amid a waterfall of tears, saying how much
she hated being so mean about it, but now Yuki's seen why everyone was
so upset.
Freezing up in fear a time or two, not necessarily even at the first or
biggest moments of danger, would also be in character for Yuki as a
first timer in dangerous situations. Fortunately, she's got a good set
of team mates to pull her through in those rough patches - and the will
and fire to make real contributions herself with that bit of tempering.
- robkelk - 04-15-2014
blackaeronaut Wrote:That depends on Minagi's preferences (which aren't mentioned in the manga). I think she's mature enough at this point to be able to help Yuki through that phase of life (assuming it is a phase) without either of them being hurt.Quote:robkelk wrote:Yeah, pretty much the entire reason for Garrick's line of thought there. At this stage, he's pretty sure she's at least heterosexual - she didn't even flinch when he picked her up after what she saw, which means she has no qualms about physical contact with men. The upshot is that she saw that Minagi was definitely enjoying herself, so at least there won't be any thorny issues about being afraid of that sort of thing. So, this only leaves Garrick with two lingering questions: will she be physically attracted to girls as well? And if so, can we catch it quickly enough to guide her through her bi-curious phase without any nasty psychological scars?Quote:blackaeronaut wrote:... I began to wonder if she had other bisexual tendencies or this was just a holdover from her early childhood. Although, if she actually was bisexual, then it would help to know before it took us all by surprise and provoke misunderstandings. Particularly so if she didn't realize it herself. ...At her age, she probably doesn't know what her sexual preferences are. She might not even have sexual preferences yet. (It would explain her actions that night - her subconscious might be trying to find out what feels good for her).
On a related note, I'm assuming Minagi's similarity to Ryoko is only cosmetic, and Minagi doesn't share Ryoko's tastes. For why this is a concern, consider episode #2 of the first OAV series...
--
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 - 04-16-2014
Quote:robkelk wrote:Eh? *Goes back, reviews episode two* Oh, you mean the whole S&M thing? Well, even most identical twins will have differing tastes. As for the differences between the two... I don't think there really is all that much. After all, Washu was able to use tissue donated by Ryoko (willingly, no less!) to help Minagi recover from a truly brutal fight later on in the story arc.
On a related note, I'm assuming Minagi's similarity to Ryoko is only cosmetic, and Minagi doesn't share Ryoko's tastes. For why this is a concern, consider episode #2 of the first OAV series...
Ryoko may have a greater degree of capability than Minagi, but this is mostly because Ryoko has one of Washu's Gems.
- Black Aeronaut - 04-16-2014
Should I or shouldn't I....
Feh, why not! You guys are eating it up anyhow.
A week goes by and I did not make things any easier on Yuki. I added
mental disciplines to her routine... but at the very least I made
them fun. I began with puzzle games like Bejewled and Hexic as well
as a real brain-squeezer in the form of Brain Age. I also had copies
of her homework transmitted from Earth so she wouldn't fall behind on
her classes.
Physcially, she was starting to progress at a phenomenal rate.
During calisthenics Yuki would grind away with over fifty kilograms
hanging off her petite frame. For her swordsmanship and staff
lessons, the weights came off so she wouldn't be thrown off by their
absence if she got into trouble.
Minagi was impressed as was Sasami. It still hurt Sasami to do what
she was doing to Yuki, but she bore it well – much like a person
with an infected wound and is resigned to cleaning the wound daily.
By the end of that week, though, Mimisaka was forced to land
on Yatsuka. A planet rich in mineral wealth, it was located halfway
between Earth and Ryuten, and therefore well within the confines of
the Empire of Jyurai.
I had my own ideas about how to handle the situation.
“So,” said Seto with a cat-that-ate-the-canary smile, “in order
to maximize the evidence we'll have against Lord Ohsa, you'll have
Minagi make recordings of everything that happens, as well as steal a
copy of his hidden ledger. Meanwhile, Tenchi and his group will
distract him by playing as a group of unwitting travelers, and you,
my devious little grandson, will go raise merry hell performing
hit-and-run raids against his guards.
“As much as I love this plot of yours, Grandson, I do wonder why go
through so much trouble for just a little more evidence.”
“Because, Grandmother, as an American by birth, I find tyrants to
be utterly disgusting and reprehensible worms that aren't even worth
target practice. They should all be bled out like pigs at the
slaughter.”
Seto gave me an approving smile. “Well spoken my darling grandson.
You will indeed make an excellent addition to the family.” Seto's
smiled took on a slightly more devious edge. “Just be careful or
else you may earn the title 'Devil Spawn of Jyurai'.”
I grinned back at her – here was a woman after my own heart. “No
offense, Grandmother, but I will always be a man of Earth. Devil
Spawn of Terra has a better ring to it, I think.”
Seto laughed. “Indeed! By the way, I heard from my little
Sasami-chan that you have a bit of an issue with the name of Yuki
Mihara. Is she available by perchance?”
I nodded. “Yuki, you may come over now.”
Yuki stepped into the field of the communication's visual pick up.
“Oh my!” Seto said with a gentle smile. “Why, you remind me of
Funaho... only so much younger than when Asuza brought her home. My
granddaughter tells me that you're in trouble, little one. Now, I've
heard the story from her side, but I would like to hear it from you
now. What did you do, little Yuki-chan?”
“I... I sneaked onto Minagi's ship. And I broke my promise with
Sasami-chan. I know that both things were very wrong. I really do.
But... I don't want to be treated like a child anymore, Seto-sama. I
want to be strong like everyone else is. I don't want people telling
me what to do... except maybe Gar-kun... because... I really do love
him.”
Seto nodded. “And tell me... why exactly did you do what you did?”
“I... I wanted to prove that I can be strong... and I wanted to be
with Gar-kun.”
“Hmm... Grandson, what are your thoughts on the matter?”
“She has potential, Grandmother, but physically, Yuki-chan is still
a child, no matter how quickly she desires to be grown up. She may
earn as much respect as she wants, but it will take time to
cultivate, especially considering her betrayal of Sasami-chan. She's
quite impatient in that regard. However, I must add that she is a
remarkably hard worker. Once she sets her sights on a goal, she does
not give up and she gives it everything she has.
“Also, I must admit that I've grown fond of her. She's a very
sweet and loving girl despite her stubborn determination. She wants
to be best friends with Minagi and already thinks of her as a
sister.”
Seto chuckled. “That is something else we'll need to discuss.
You, my Grandson, are a shameless thief, stealing the hearts of all
these women.”
I rolled my eyes. “I wouldn't say shameless.”
Seto laughed again. “As for you, Yuki-chan... Garrick, when all
this business is over with, I would like to interview Yuki-chan and
Minagi-chan in person. Please have Ayeka bring them and yourself to
Jyurai. I feel that we will soon be able to resolve your adoption
and it will be best if you are here for it.”
“Of course, Grandmother. I look forward to my first time on
Jyurai. Just don't sic too many nubile young bachelorettes on me.”
Seto laughed uproariously at that before she cut the channel with a
wink and a smile.
“Would... would she really do that?” asked Yuki nervously.
“In a heartbeat,” I answered. “But don't worry, Yuki-chan.
They'll never know what hit them. Because I am Garrick Grimm.”
Touchdown was uneventful. I unpacked all of the weaponry from
Scooby, knowing that we wouldn't need them right away. I went only
with a Calico-replica of the M300 chambered for Forty-Caliber S&W
Magnums with solid steel penetrators. The cartridge itself may not
be the best man-stopper out there, but fifty rounds of semi-auto
armor piercing firepower is hard to argue against.
With Scooby emptied, I deployed the bed seats, activated the camper
shell's AC unit,and had everyone load up. Of course, Washu and Asahi
stayed behind to make repairs, and Minagi went to scout ahead, so
there was plenty of room for everyone.
“It's beautiful out here,” I said at one point where we stopped
at the edge of a bluff that overlooked the valley.
“There's nothing out here, Dear Brother!” said Ayeka in shock.
“How can you say it is beautiful?”
I looked to my sister and smiled. “It's a desolate sort of beauty.
Empty, yet serene. Look out there, My Sister. The wind blows
across this dusty land, slowly shaping it over time. If you were to
come back here near the end of your life, it will have changed
completely as the wind has etched new formations into the sandy
stone. And the night sky here would be beautiful. With no light
pollution and very little moisture in the air, the stars would shine
here like as though you were standing on the hull of a starship. It
is utterly breathtaking.
“It's a good place to find your inner peace.”
I turned to look at the others and found them all looking at me in
awe.
I smiled and then tapped my C-pod, bringing it up to my face.
“Minagi, how far are we from that trail you found?”
“It's about three kilometers to the south of you,” came Minagi's
voice over the link. “Once you reach it, bear east and that should
bring you to the village.”
Scooby had traction control that rivaled the finest four-wheel drives
out there, thanks in no small part to the traction control computers
in each of the four direct-drive wheel motors. Calculating the exact
amount of torque needed for the acceleration that was demanded on the
terrain at hand every hundredth of a second, Scooby would move
quickly and quietly over the rugged land, not one erg of energy
wasted on needless wheel spin.
With this, I negotiated the terrain readily and found the trail
easily. From there, I was able to take the diesel-electric truck up
to something like highway speeds and we reached the village in
minutes as opposed to hours.
And as I had expected, the village was like a ghost town.
Once we had set to calling around, a man did appear – a large and
broadly built, handsome man with black hair and skin just a shade
darker than Mihoshi's.
“Who are you people? Where did you come from?”
“We're just some travelers passing through,” I said peaceably.
“Our ship broke down and while our friends make repairs we came to
see if we can restock our provisions. We have plenty of money if you
trade on the Royal Credit, or we can even barter if you like.”
“Provisions?” creaked an ancient sounding voice from one of the
hollows. An equally ancient woman emerged. Her skin was as dark as
the man's, and her hair was white as snow. She was small statured –
something that wasn't helped by her slightly stooped posture.
Mihoshi cried out thinking she was seeing a ghoul at first. I knew
better, though. I could see, deep inside the weathered face, that
this had been a beautiful woman once.
“You folks're too late fer t'day. Market's only open in tha
mornings during shift change a'tha mines. Not th'there's many people
left to actually buy anything. Well, c'mon in. You folks might as
well git comfortable. Git's colder an'a witch's back side out 'ere
at night.”
“But mother! One of them's armed!” cried out the man.
“Now don'tchu start tha malarky there, boy!” snapped the elder
woman. “Would you go out into tha wilderness out there withou'a
weapon? Boy's got a good head on them shoulders o'his fer packin'
heat. Give 'im an edge ifin' 'ee ever run inter trouble 'round
here!”
“If it makes the man of the house more amenable, I'll gladly
disarm,” I said.
“Y'see?” creaked the old woman. “Well mannered, too, knowing
it ain't polite goin' inta 'nuther person's home wi'a loaded gun.
Could learn sumthin frum the whippersnapper. C'mon in, y'all. Ye
can jus' leave tha gun on thar table. Jus' ma son-in-law and mah
girl inside.”
“Hot damn,” I said with a grin as I removed the magazine from my
Calico and made sure the chamber was clear. “Feels almost like
home here.”
“You mean there's people like her where you come from?” asked
Yuki.
I grinned down at the girl as I set the weapon and magazine on the
table. “Yep. She's what we call the mother of the household.
Even though she's not really in charge of things anymore, she'll make
damn sure people do as they're told and behave like proper men and
women. Can't be tarnishing the family name with any poor manners.
And they will especially pick on the son- or daughter-in-law because
they'd be the most likely ones to screw up some form of family
etiquette. Not too different from what you have in Japan, but with a
flavor I'm more familiar with.”
“I think,” said a lovely little soprano voice, though stressed
and strained, “it's time.”
All of us looked and there, leaning in one of the doorways was a
woman. She would be petite and dainty if not for the burgeoning
pregnancy that was resting in her pelvis. Otherwise she would have
been the perfect picture of a Svartelf. But more importantly was the
fluid between her legs, staining her clothes.
Before I knew it, I was across the room and had one of her arm over
my shoulder and her husband was on the other side.
“This way,” said the elder woman guiding us to a bedroom where we
gently laid the belabored woman down.
“Who are you?” she asked.
“We're travelers,” I answered. “Fortunately, I know how to
handle this sort of situation. Oldest of seven children. May I ask
a personal favor, though?”
“What?”
“The two youngest girls... they're coming up on marriageable age
and they need to know what the pain of a mother is. Would any of you
mind if they watched?”
The mother to be smiled and shook her head. “I was no older when I
saw my cousin's birth. It would honor me.”
“You have my gratitude,” I said as I bowed. I then turned to the
elder. “I'll go make sure my family is making themselves useful.”
As I turned and left the bedroom, I heard the crone muttering, “Smart
whippersnapper.”
“Sasami! Yuki!”
“Yes Nii-san?”
“Yes Gar-kun?”
“You two go inside the bedroom there and do exactly as Grandmother
tells you.”
“Yes Nii-san/Gar-kun,” came the synchronized reply, and the two
girls took off at a barely restrained gallop.
I then looked to Tenchi. “Brother, we'll need a fire going for hot
water.”
“Got it!” Tenchi replied and made a beeline for the hearth.
“Ryoko, Ayeka, Mihoshi? We'll need every clean blanket and towel
in this home. Bring them to the bedroom, quietly, and place them
wherever the Grandmother wants them to be.”
“Got it!”
“Right!”
“As you wish!”
Once everyone else was busy, I went to get the water. A few minutes
of searching led me to find a suitable pot and a water cistern. Pot
filled, I went to set it by the hearth and began to help Tenchi with
the fire. Before long we had one roaring inside the oven with enough
logs to settle into a proper cooking fire.
“You knew about this?” asked Tenchi.
“Yeah,” I replied.
“Anything else I need to know about?”
“Guardsmen are gonna show up eventually. They'll be looking for
the off-worlders that breached their pathetically non-existent
planetary shields – damn thing is only good enough to keep smaller
space rocks out.
“I'll go on the run to distract the guards, but you need to
surrender nice and quiet like. Tell Ayeka to take care of Yuki for
me – she'll be safer with her than with you or me.”
“What about you?” Tenchi asked.
I smiled. “I can take care of myself. Besides, Minagi's scouted
the terrain and she's been uploading maps and intel reports to my
C-Pod. I'll be fine. You just make sure that Ryoko doesn't do
anything too rash, and maintain the charade we got going.
“Aside from this moment, this is where you should be taking charge,
my Brother.”
Tenchi sighed. “Of course.”
In what must have been record time for a new mother, the infant was
born with both mother and child happy and healthy. While the others
all enjoyed drinks together and Sasami gently played with the
newborn, Yuki watched quietly from the sidelines.
“Penny for your thoughts,” I asked her.
“That was scary looking.”
“It is,” I agreed. “But then, when you decide the have a child
you would be on the opposite end, so it's not like you'd have to
watch.”
Yuki watched Sasami play with the infant. “The mother looks
happy.”
I nodded. “She's fortunate. First time child births are usually
difficult things. She knows this. But most of all, she's happy
about finally having a child.”
“That's the part I like,” she said. “After all that hard
work... getting to hold the baby...”
“It's more than that, though,” I told her. “Over there at the
table is the man she loves. She loves him enough that she offered up
her womb for him to plant his seed in. From that seed, she nurtured
a new life within her for however many months it took. She felt the
child's first movements within her, felt it grow, getting stronger
every day... until today. And with great effort, she brought the
child out into this world. Her child. And his child. A new life
with a little bit of them both mixed together.”
We were silent for a moment and I went on, “You're not ready for it
yet... but you want it someday, right?”
Yuki nodded next to me. “Some day...”
“Good,” I said as I gently scruffled her hair, earning a
raspberry from her. I smiled back at her. “Stay with Ayeka. And
don't forget... being strong isn't just the ability to defeat an
enemy... it is also the ability to endure any hardship, just like
that woman did over there.”
“I won't forget.” I smiled as I got up and made my way outside.
I was not disappointed.
“Halt in the name of Lord Ohsa!” cried out the leader of the
guardsman with the high-collared shirts. They all had staffs.
I didn't stop walking. In fact, I grinned as I walked right into the
leader's range of attack without slowing down or hesitating.
He, on the other had, did, and it cost him dearly. With a deft grab
and squeeze of his hand I relieved him of his staff, taking it in my
own hands. He went down quickly as I brought it down over his head.
I then tossed the weapon aside.
You see, the funny thing about staffs... you get someone that really
knows how to apply leverage – someone like me – and suddenly your
fight becomes a thousand times more difficult because the only way to
really hurt your opponent is to keep them at the extreme boundary of
your attacking range. And those strikes can be easily avoided.
Especially by a traceur like myself.
The second guardsman I mowed down like he wasn't even there. I just
ducked his first swing, pushed his staff aside, dragged him down by
his collar (which was actually some kind of plate armor, go figure)
and punched his lights out.
The other four guards were now looking at me with terrified
expressions. I simply walked by them, totally unchallenged, got into
Scooby and drove off.
“Minagi,” I called after activating the comm link. “They
should be rounding up Tenchi's group now. How are you?”
“I got a good overwatch position. That was incredible, by the
way.”
“Simple psychological warfare. Take down the leader and make it
look easy, the others will be cowed. They'll be happy with Tenchi
and the others not putting up a fight.”
“Aaaaannnnd... Yup, you're right. No trouble at all.”
“Great! I'll fire up my storming field then head back to Hinase
and arm up, then start raiding the guard posts. Wish me luck.”
“Happy hunting, Gar-kun!” I then grinned as right before the
line was closed completely, I heard Minagi cry out, “EEEEEEEEE!
HE'S SO COOOL!!!”
Coming up next, Garrick plays merry hell with the Guardsmen... And just how much he likes to cheat is revealed!
- robkelk - 04-16-2014
Quote:And just how much he likes to cheat is revealed!If you're fighting fair, you're doing something wrong.
--
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
- classicdrogn - 04-16-2014
Well, a fair fight is one you have an even chance of losing. There are some circumstances when that isn't bad or winning would be worse in the long run, but most of the time it's nothing you want to take a chance on, and fairs are for rubes.
--
"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
- Bob Schroeck - 04-16-2014
As the great Thibor Sawchyk says, "Fair is where you ride pony."
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
- deadpan29 - 04-17-2014
Probably not all that relevant to the story, but my head-canon on the second-episode is as follows:
Ryoko doesn't have a sense of taste because she doesn't need to eat. Having been designed by the "greatest genius in the universe", it seems likely that she also doesn't feel pain from anything that can't actually injure her, and it takes a lot to injure her. For that matter, from her reactions it seemed that getting her hand cut off by the Tenchi-ken in the first episode was inconvinient rather than painful.
From this, I think the interigation scene wasn't Ryoko getting stimulated by pain but not feeling pain at all, just stimulation. That and a fair amount of messing with Ayeka's head.
----------
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 - 04-17-2014
Oh, Ryoko's got a sense of taste alright. We see it whenever she reacts to something horrible she just ate. Besides, she'd need a sense of smell, and smell and taste go hand-in-hand. That, and I don't think Washu would be so evil as to not allow her daughter to genuinely enjoy culinary delights.
As for the pain thing? Not so sure about that. I think it's one of two things: 1) She has the ability to turn her pain receptors off. (I think Ben Hutchins put it best when he said that he wished that the human body had a Master Alarm Acknowledged button.) That, or 2) She just has a ridiculously high pain threshold.
As for why the Tenchi-ken affects her so despite either items 1 or 2? Easy. The discharge from the Tenchi-ken scrambles her systems.
- Black Aeronaut - 04-18-2014
I wanted to post a larger segment than this one, but the one to follow is one huge scene that spans over five pages! (12-point Time New Roman on 8.5x11 with default margins) So, in the interests of keeping my buffer, you guys will have to do with just this for now. Next post will be a bit bigger, though.
Late the next morning.
The sun was already high in the sky and I was laying prone on a dusty
outcropping. By this time, Tenchi and Ryoko will have been working
in the mines for a few hours, and that cancer, Lord Ohsa, will have
started his all-day private party with the rest of the girls. Which
meant it was time to do my job:
Making these fuckers bleed.
I noted that the change of the guard was commencing. That was my
cue. I got up, went to Scooby, and got one of my favorite toys out.
It resembled your average Mosberg 500 only with a much larger bore
and a magazine in front of the trigger.
My favorite weapon system in the Navy, right after the Mk45 5”/54
Calibers Light Weight Gun Mount was the Mk19 40mm Machine Gun. It
was only because it puts a whole lot of high-explosives downrange in
an almighty hurry, and in a fashion that any enemy will find
difficult to deal with.
My new toy didn't deliver the hurt quite as fast. It still used the
40mm cartridge we all know and love, but it was magazine fed rather
than belt fed. Also, it was semi-auto instead of full auto. But the
advantage was that it could be carried and fired by one man.
In my head I like to call it, quite poetically, The End of the Quiet
Day.
I shouldered the weapon, took aim, and began to empty the magazine.
The weapon was quiet enough that it didn't need a silencer. So once
the rounds began landing they had no idea where they were coming
from.
Under fire, no warning, no sign of an enemy. Was it cowardly?
Perhaps. But I knew these men were scum. They were all loyal to
Lord Ohsa, otherwise they would be the ones working in the mine. As
far as I was concerned, they deserved neither mercy nor respect.
I only went through two magazines and that was it. The guardsmen
were in shambles. Some weren't moving, others would not be moving
for long. Their screams reached up to me clearly and I still felt no
remorse.
The End of the Quiet Day. It lives up to its name.
Satisfied, I went to Scooby, got in, and drove to the next raid
point. I had a busy day ahead of me, and it was going to be tiresome
to keep them off my back, even with the portable storming field.
Later that afternoon, I had hit a total of five check points – two
of them twice. I could tell by their demeanor that the guardsmen
were nervous. There numbers were also starting to look a bit scarce.
Just out of curiosity, I pinged Minagi with my C-Pod.
To my pleasant surprised, she answered back.
“Everything okay, Gar-kun?” she asked, a hint of concern in her
voice.
“Peachy-keen, my dearest Minagi-chan. How are things on the
inside?”
I could hear the smile in Minagi's voice. “Whatever you're doing,
keep it up. These guys have no idea what's been hitting them and
it's freaking them out. Best of all, it's just as you suspected –
Lord Ohsa does not wish to be disturbed for anything while he's in
his little play room.”
“Good. Is Yuki doing alright?”
“She is, but... Ohsa has been giving her funny looks. I don't like
it. He's got her made up like one of those maiko girls, only without
the face paint.”
I frowned at that. “Ayeka may have to move sooner than we
originally planned for Yuki's safety. Stay on top of it, okay?”
“We got it, Gar-kun. You just keep yourself in one piece. We'll
send the signal once we're ready.”
By the time they sent me the signal early the following morning, I
had already completed eight more raids. Ohsa's guard was now
virtually non-existant. I could only imagine the look on his face
when he finally realized what was happening – that the short, brief
assaults on his guard posts were really whittling away his manpower
at an alarming rate and that he was honestly under a genuine assault.
(Actually, I didn't have to imagine for long. Minagi showed me
pictures. The look on his face will remain one of my treasured
memories forever.)
When the signal came, I triggered a series of claymores I had planted
on the other side of the palace complex – the one opposite of where
Ayeka and her group would meet me. The alarms went up and the
guardsmen began streaming to the sight.
I only had two guardsmen to take care of at the main gate. Soon
enough, the girls had shown up.
“Ladies!” I called out. “Your chariot awaits!”
“Yay!” called out Mihoshi. “Nii-san saves the day!”
“Yeah, Gar-nii is so cool!” replied Sasami.
“Eh. I just cut down on their numbers. It was no big deal. They
were so incompetent – they didn't even bother sending trackers out
to find me.”
“I don't think they ever really needed any, Dear Brother,” said
Ayeka as I helped her up into Scooby's cab. “With this
environment... they don't even need walls.”
Last one in was Yuki. Of course, the moment I turned to her she
jumped up and grabbed me. Oddly enough, she was still wearing the
outfit that Ohsa made her wear.
“Hey there. Did you loose your other clothes?”
Yuki shook her head. “I didn't like that he made me wear this in
front of him... But I like it... I want to wear it for you.”
I blinked at her, then put her in the small seat between Ayeka's and
mine, then got in.
“Yuki-chan?” I asked once we got under way.
“Yes?”
“You do know what that clothing represents, right?”
“Unh. These are the clothes of the dancer girl. She is supposed
to be pretty and entertain guests. But the only person I want to
entertain is Gar-kun.”
I frowned. This was a new twist. “Yuki-chan, that is not how I
see you.”
“I know. I will learn to do all kinds of things. I'll learn how
to fight, I'll learn math and science... someday, I want to be a
botanist. I think it will be pretty interesting to learn about all
the different plants in the Galaxy and what they do. But someday...
I want to entertain my husband. Because that's what a wife should
do.”
The feminists would have a field day with this one. Honestly, I
didn't think it was a bad thing for a woman to want to please her
husband in the bedroom, but it boggled my mind that Yuki was thinking
ahead like that.
“There will be plenty of time for you to learn those kinds of
things later.”
“Ah, Dear Brother,” said Ayeka, using Old High Jyuraian. “How
long has she been like this?”
I replied in kind. “Since the first day, Dear Sister, although not
as intense. Lately, though... She has been getting worse. She
caught Minagi and I making pictures of spring unaware of her
presence.”
“Oh my...” replied Ayeka as she turned positively florid. “And
now she... has become frustrated?”
“Indeed.”
“In that case... is it really wise for you to spend so much time
with her?”
I shrugged. “I have no idea what else to do. She must be trained
to protect herself. And I cannot in good conscience foist her off
onto someone else, except where I know she'll be in grave danger at
my side. She came for me, has sworn and declared to devote herself
to me... So I am responsible for her. No one else.”
“Are you certain that our younger sister had nothing to do with the
matter?”
“She at least made her promise not to follow us. That promise was
broken.”
“Ah. That is why our Dear Little Sister has been in something of a
snit. Particularly towards her friend.”
“She never said anything?”
“Nary a word, Dear Brother. I cannot say that I blame her. It is
a most embarrassing situation.”
“That is what she said to her friend. I hope that they work this
out. Perhaps once she shows she has become proficient in self
defense?”
“Perhaps.”
“What language is that?” asked Yuki. “I've heard you and Ayeka
use it before, but I have no idea what you are saying. It's very
different from English and Japanese. It doesn't even sound like
Korean or Mandarin.”
I smiled and patted Yuki on the head. “It is Old High Jyuraian –
the ancient version of the language the Nobility use exclusively
amongst themselves. Originally, though, it was a code-language. You
see, Ayeka's ancestors were originally pirates, so they had a secret
language that was very hard to decipher. Eventually, though, after
the First Emperor discovered Tsunami and was given the First of the
First Generation Trees, the language simplified a bit and was used
only by the Royal Family. Everyone else spoke Galactic Standard.”
“Can I learn to speak Old High Jyuraian?”
“Only after we are married, Yuki-chan. Not a moment before because
only members of the Royal Family may know it. I'm the only exception
because I know secrets that no one else should know. This way, if I
had to tell them something important but didn't want anyone else to
know, I would have a way to do so. Besides, I'm being adopted by
Lady Funaho anyhow.”
“What kind of secrets?” asked Yuki. “I know that you...
somehow saw the future...”
I sighed and put an arm around Yuki. “I know that you were only
ever supposed to be a normal little girl. You were never supposed to
meet me. In fact, I shouldn't even exist here. It was Mihoshi-chan
that was supposed to save you. And you were never supposed to know
about the secrets of the Masaki family.”
I felt Yuki shudder and bury her head in my side. “Will you ever
disappear?” she asked.
“I hope not,” I replied with genuine worry.
Yuki was quiet for a moment. “Will I ever forget you?”
Not wanting to take my eyes off the road, I switched hands on the
steering wheel, grabbed one of Yuki's, brought it up to my face and
gave it a heartfelt kiss.
“I hope not.”
I felt a hand on my shoulder. Looking over briefly, I saw that it
was Ayeka trying to comfort me... and probably herself as well, since
she wore a deeply worried and pensive expression. There was only one
reason for this.
Love.
Ayeka loved me. There was no doubt in my mind about it. I was her
brother in all but name and blood, and she would gladly go down in
flames defending that claim. It's a sobering thought that a princess
as powerful as her would go that far for your sake.
It was also an empowering one – and not something I was ever going
to take for granted, because I had come to love Ayeka dearly as well.
Of course, she was so beautiful and refined – Ayeka was a fine
specimen of a woman that way. But there was also the gentle way she
would speak with me, even while teasing me over something like Yuki's
affections. And there were also the times she would come to while
away her free time with me in my garden, alternating between her and
I enjoying a pot of tea over light topics, or helping me with my
garden.
We had bonded and, without really realizing it, come to love each
other as siblings.
I don't know why I hadn't realized it sooner, even though we used the
titles, even though I told Funaho flat-out that I would die for these
people...
Ayeka has such a soft heart... softer even than Sasami's...
If I were to die, I realized, it would devastate her as surely as if
something terrible were to happen to Tenchi.
New plan:
Don't die.
Never.
Instead, be the stubborn little cuss that you are, the one that will
always get back up again and beat his enemies with pure stubborn
desire to outlive them. But most importantly, try not to wind up in
those situations in the first place.
I reached up and gave the hand on my shoulder a squeeze. I never
want to see you cry, my beloved sister. At the very least, not for
me.
- robkelk - 04-18-2014
Quote:The feminists would have a field day with this one.Roughly half of the feminists that I know would say "as long as it's her choice and not his, it's fine," but they'd say that about an adult, not a young-teenager.
--
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
- classicdrogn - 04-19-2014
I think it depends on the flavor of feminist involved - the ones who think that to be empowered they have to eliminate everything "girly" seem to be on the decline, and as far as looking attractive for your SO is concerned... well, if I thought it would actually work I'd be happy to do a dance for a lovely lady myself, so I wouldn't call it too exclusively girly to begin with. Alas for genetics and lifestyle habits...
--
"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 - 04-19-2014
Quote:robkelk wrote:Quote:The feminists would have a field day with this one.Roughly half of the feminists that I know would say "as long as it's her choice and not his, it's fine," but they'd say that about an adult, not a young-teenager.
- Black Aeronaut - 04-21-2014
Alright, Let's Do This! LEEEEEROOOOOOOYYY! JHHEEEENNNKKHINNNNSSSS!!!!
We arrived at the mines and I laid waste to the token guardsmen at
the gates with my typical efficiency.
“Gracious,” said Ayeka, taken by surprise by my brutal use of
superior firepower. “Dear Brother, isn't that a little unfair?”
“I don't believe in playing fair when it comes to war. Besides,
these men are loyal to that swine of a man.”
Ayeka's features darkened for a moment. “Point taken, Dear
Brother. Let's continue.” Before I did continue, I placed The End
of the Quiet Day back into Scooby and got out a long, simple looking,
unadorned box from the truck.
“What's that?” asked Sasami while the others looked on curiously.
“A gift for Tenchi. Let's go.”
I don't know how Lord Ohsa beat us there. Maybe he used an air-car?
It was no matter, though. I let Ayeka handle the theatrics while I
skirted around the edges and made my way to Tenchi.
“Brother, here,” I said, handing him the sheathed blade I had
been carrying. “A gift from your Grandfather – only a sword
wielded is truly a sword.” Tenchi took the proffered weapon and
smiled knowing exactly whose sentiment that had been.
“Thank you for thinking ahead,” he said as he tucked the weapon
into his belt and readied himself to fight.
“Not a problem.” I then drew my own sword. It was not the
bokuto that Yosho had given me. What I drew was live steel.
I named it First Cut – the first sword I ever made to gain Yakage's
approval.
He had allowed me a great deal of free reign to create my first
sword. In its own way that was a test to see if I would create
something ridiculous or something useful.
I began with researching alloys, paying particular attention to those
with a high tungsten content. I eventually settled on T1 High Speed
Steel – commonly used for drill bits used to mill out things like
gears for transmissions. It had excellent wear resistance and would
even stand up to high temperatures quite admirably. It was strong
enough that even Ryoko would have to expend an effort (albeit a small
on) to break it. Especially after I got done with it.
Forging this steel was a pain. Literally. I had to wear special
equipment just to handle the ambient heat of the metal as I worked it
over again and again.
In then end, I had created a long sword based closely on Gandalf's
Glamdring in Lord of the Rings. Like Glamdring, it was a beautiful
piece of workmanship – simple, practical, yet utterly breathtaking.
That had definitely been one of Yakage's favorite points.
Apparently, I had a certain flair.
However, unlike Glamdring, First Cut had none of the frills. There
was no inscription. There were no jewels. I had engineered the
weapon with nothing but functionality in mind, and only then did I
add the decorative flourishes – much like the engineers and
architects of the Art Deco movement where the machine or structure
itself was the art and not its adornments.
Best of all was the balance. I had used tungsten carbide for the
pommel to help counterbalance the weapon, and it worked out quite
well, giving me a weapon that I can swing easily despite its weight.
While Tenchi's blade glowed a crimson light, my blade caught the
brilliant desert sun and shone like a phosphorous flare. The
guardsmen all faltered at the sight of the blades.
I grinned at their fear. “Well!?” I challenged. “WHO WANTS TO
LIVE FOREVER!? RAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUGGGHH!!!”
And that was the straw that broke the camel's back.
This group more than likely represented the last of Ohsa's loyal
guardsmen. Over the last twenty-four hours I had maimed and killed
all but this handful of men before us. They had already been
thoroughly demoralized, and were being ordered to go up against two
swordsmen armed with very intimidating blades and who moved like they
knew how to use them.
They all ran screaming for their lives.
Lord Ohsa looked around nervously. None of his guardsmen remained
and he was now surrounded by vengeful looking miners. But more
importantly...
“That glow!” he cried out nervously pointing to Tenchi's blade.
“That sword is made of Hielzen-S... It only glows red when held by
a member of the Royal Family! Then you must be...” Ohsa suddenly
threw his staff down, crying out, “I surrender!”
And here I was hoping he'd fight. Then I would have had the chance
to kill that disgusting excuse of a man. Instead, I sheathed my
sword – so much for getting it blooded – and tapped a brief
sequence on my C-Pod.
“Lady Seto, Grimm. It's done, Grandmother.”
The wrap-up was almost anticlimactic. Seto's Mikagami arrived
and the security forces dispersed to recover Lord Ohsa's guardsmen
and his own personal bodyguard from the palace. Ohsa himself was
taken directly into custody by Seto.
Just as I was wondering where Minaho was (she usually wasn't very far
when Seto was around) I heard a voice behind me.
“Are you Garrick Grimm?”
I turned and there stood a dark haired beauty. Her short bangs
framed her pale, fine-as-porcelain face and the seemingly bottomless
indigo eyes stared at me like the abyss. Whoah, spooky.
“I am he,” I confirmed. “You must be Minaho.”
She stared at me, unnervingly quiet for a moment. “You told
Seto-sama you thought I was cute.” The statement was nearly
accusatory in tone.
Hoo boy. “I believe I did,” I admitted. Her expression
darkened, so I sighed and said, “Look, are you honestly going to
get angry at me because I paid you a complement to the face of your
boss-slash-Great-Grandmother? I know she can be a bit much to deal
with sometimes, but you just gotta know when to bend with the wind.”
Minaho's dark looked shifted into an outright glare. “I do not
need advice from a man that hasn't even lived a quarter of the life I
have.”
That seriously hacked me off. If she thought that just living longer
imparted some Jedi-like greater wisdom then I was going to show her
just how mistaken she was.
“Oh, aren't we putting on airs now! Tell me little princess, do
you even pay attention to what Seto says about me? Because knowing
her she's already given you several earfuls.”
Minaho turned her nose up at me... it was not adorable like when Yuki
does it.
“All I need to know is that you're yet another suitor that Seto is
trying to set me up with.”
“Uh-huh!” I declared. “And that's all you need to know?”
“Of course!” Minaho snapped.
“Very well then. As lovely as you are when you're angry, you
bother me. And I have enough bothers as it is. Go away, little
girl.”
I could see a vein throbbing on her forehead. Now that was a
fascinating thing to see, let me tell you.
“You...” she hissed out, seething. “You dare to
belittle me!?” In a flash her battle armor appeared as well as an
energy sword in her hands. “Draw your inferior weapon, boy!”
I smiled. I was certain it was not one of my nicer ones, given the
way Tenchi and the others blanched. Seto, of course, was smiling
too, unbeknownst to Minaho.
“You really don't know me, do you?” I said as I knelt down to
casually scoop a handful of the dusty earth that filled the mine
site. I looked at it carefully, studying the way is shifted, the
fineness and shape of its grains, and the way the light caught them.
“What does it matter?” growled Minaho.
“If you know the
enemy and you know yourself, you need not fear the results of a
hundred battles. If you know yourself, but not the enemy, for every
victory gained, you will also suffer defeat. If you know neither the
enemy, nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” God I love
Sun Tzu. Thank you VNV Nation for making me see how awesome this
ancient general truly was.
And I had already
won. It was time for me to seek my battle.
“You dare to presume you know tactics!?” snarled Minaho. “You
are nothing in comparison to me! You are just a child!” I had to
admit she had fire in her... Jyuraian women were wonderful in that
way. But fire is not always enough. I was glad that Yuki was
watching. This will be a beautiful object lesson for her.
“Rule number one: don't piss me off.”
“RAAAGH!” screamed Minaho as she launched herself at me. In a
flash my hand flung out, casting the dry silt into her face. Minaho
yelped in pain as it got in her eyes and began chocking on the dust.
I gave her no chance to recover, quickly drawing First Cut, batting
away the handle of her energy blade in one strike, and then opening a
shallow cut under the ribs on her left side, causing her to yelp in
pain once more.
My weapon had finally tasted blood.
When she was able to open her eyes once more, it was to the sight of
me holding the tip of First Cut to her neck.
“Rule number two: I fight to win, and if that means I must cheat,
then I will do it with a smile on my face.
“Rule number three: I don't generally believe in taking
prisoners... but I definitely believe in sending a message. Lady
Seto?” I called out, not taking my eyes off Minaho.
“Yes, my dearest Grandson?” Seto replied sounding quite pleased.
“I would like Minaho to keep the scar I just gave her. It can be a
neat and faint line – no need for it to be ugly – I know how
fastidious a woman is about her skin. Just a simple reminder... she
should never underestimate anyone.”
“WHAT!?” screeched Minaho in horror.
“My Grandson makes a very fine point, Minaho. You were quite
reckless in engaging him. You not only disrespected him based only
on his heritage (your Grandmother will be ashamed of you, by the
way), but you also failed to pay attention to everything I said about
him. If you had, you would have known exactly how dangerous my
darling Grandson could be.”
“But... You can't do this to me!” cried out Minaho.
“It is only a scar,” Seto replied evenly. “Would you like for
me to give you a matching one on the other side?”
Mianho's eyes went wide at that, and she quickly fell silent. Her
head then fell low as she meekly acquiesced.
“Good. Now, go up to Mikagame and have that treated as we
discussed.”
“I shall do as you command, Lady Seto.” I withdrew First Cut and
cleaned the blood off with a cloth before sheathing the weapon.
Without another word, but eying me warily, Minaho got up, carefully
staunching the minor wound, and began to make her way to Mikagame.
Seto sighed as she approached. “I apologize, Garrick. That is not
at all how I hoped your first meeting would go. I'd hoped that
Minaho would have paid more attention to me and learned something
about you that she might find attractive.”
“She'll come around,” I said, sighing. “It is a shame. She
really is quite lovely.”
Seto gave me a puzzled look. “You regret giving her a scar?” she
said curiously.
I smiled back wryly. “I regret that she is a spoiled child. Scars
are different – they give a person, especially women, a certain
character. Some time I'll have to show you some of the safer
animations in my collection. Galaxy Express Three-Nine was still
considered pretty good stuff when I got zapped, and it was as old as
me at the time. A real classic. You'd love Queen Emeraldas. She's
your kind of bad ass. She has a huge facial scar that doesn't do
much to hide her beauty. Makes her intimidating as all hell,
though.”
Seto smiled. “That sounds like a good way to spend a rainy day.
Would you send me the files?”
“Sure. I'll even ask Washu-chan convert them into something
compatible.” I sighed heavily. “Shameful first impression. Did
you really have to push her that much, Grandmother?”
Seto actually blushed a bit. “Well... I might have overdone it. Just a little
bit.”
I sighed and shook my head. “Ah well. There's always Tennyo. At
least she's got a sense of humor... and nowhere nearly one as
demented as her mother's.”
“You do know that was because the poor woman was going senile.”
“Oh damn, sorry... On second thought, not quite. I bet Kiyone was
absolute hell on wheels when she was a kid, wasn't she?”
Seto rolled her eyes. “You have no idea.”
I grinned. “Oh I can imagine. I wasn't much different when I was
a kid... I was just a little more...”
“Energetic?” hazarded Seto.
“Willing to do grievous harm,” I said succinctly.
Seto blinked. “I love you, Garrick, but I am not babysitting for
you.”
I could only laugh at that. It's not every day you get one over the
Devil Princess of Jyurai.
Suddenly, we were approached by a wizened looking old native of this
world.
“Excuse me, young man... But the Crown Prince claims that you are
his brother.”
“Though we are not related by blood,” I confirmed, “we do
regard each other as such. He is the Right Hand and I am the Left.”
“You don't mean that you're not in favor, do you?” asked the
elder.
“Not at all,” I replied with a genial smile. “It means that I
am the one that will gladly take the dirty work for the sake of my
new-found family.”
“I see then... that blade you carry. May I see it?”
I nodded and unsheathed First Cut once more, offering it, handle
first, to the elder. He appraised the weapon with a keen and knowing
eye, making thoughtful, positive sounds deep in his throat.
“This is good workmanship. Who forged this?”
“I did. It is my first sword, and so I have named it First Cut.”
The old man gave me a surprised look. “This weapon is at least
journeyman-level! And a seasoned one at that! For it to be your
first blade...” He then paused and gave me a hard look. “Who
was your teacher, son?”
“My teacher was Yakage of Jyurai,” I replied solemnly. “He
passed away the night after I crafted that sword.”
A distant and sorrowful look crossed the elders face. “As though
he had seen that his student was strong enough to stand on his
own...” His eyes suddenly fastened onto mine with a great
intensity. “Yes. You are definitely worthy of this, son. My
sword!” he called out.
A large man stepped forward – he was the one whose home we had
first visited, the one who we helped when his child was born. He
wore a smile on his face as he carried a carefully wrapped weapon,
and he passed it over to the elder.
“This sword,” said the old man, “is the sibling blade to the
one your brother wields. Long ago a swordsman from another world met
my predecessor, a renowned swordsmith. The two had forged a bond of
friendship and from that friendship a formidable sword discipline was
born... the very same one that you and your brother practice.
“Also, there was what you said to your brother before the fight was
to commence. You said, 'Only a sword wielded is truly a sword.'
Those were the words of the swordsman from long ago.
“With all this known, there could be no other person to wield this
weapon... Young man, this sword rightfully belongs to you. Please,
treasure it always.”
Touched at my very core, I bowed my head as I held my hands out and
accepted the gift. The ceremony complete, I carefully tucked it into
my belt next to First Cut.
“There is one other thing I must ask of you, son,” said the old
man. “We have heard of your exploits here on our world. Now that
my Grandson is one day old, he must be named. Tell us yours so he
may bear it for himself.”
I smiled. “Bring him here. I know what I must do now.” The
father nodded and waived his wife over with their son. “He is your
son,” I said with a heavy, but positive tone. “You made him
together. You will raise him together. So it is only proper that
for me to lay this burden upon him, you help him carry it together.”
In my home time-line, this sort of blessing was done within our
church by the Elders of the Priesthood, and with the child's head
anointed with consecrated olive oil for the laying of hands. This place was not home... but my intent was similar. I only hoped
that it would be smiled upon.
Knowing Tsunami, it would be.
With the mother and father carefully cradling their son between them,
I stood at his head.
“What is the name of your family?” I asked.
“Kurotsuchi,” said the father proudly.
I nodded, gently laid my hands on the infant's head, wishing him
nothing but love and blessings.
I closed my eyes and began to pray. “Humbly, I invoke your name,
Tsunami-sama, and ask that you smile upon us this day and lend your
power to me so I may grant this child a blessing...”
And then I felt her presence and I knew I had her ear.
“Garrick Kurotsuchi... I grant you my own name so you may have my
strength for all your days. Take pride in your name, child. It's
meaning is 'He that leads with a spear' – a name for a warrior
king. Though it is foreign, it is an ancient name that evokes a
sense of nobility and strength from a time when both were in short
supply. Little Garrick, my blessing to you is to be the rock that
others can hang on to for support when the skies go dark and the
flood waters rise and the tempest rages. Where there is sorrow, you
can bring joy. Where there is anger, you can bring peace. Where
there is chaos, you can bring order. Where there is ignorance, you
can bring enlightenment. Where there is fear, you can bring comfort.
“And do not be afraid yourself, child. For while you do all these
things, your people will in turn give you their strength and their
support. Let them carry you and you will never feel the weight of
your burdens. Do this and there will be joy and prosperity, even in
the most difficult times.
“Amen.”
I have always wanted to have a moment in my life where my enemies are gathered before me... and then run screaming in terror. Does this make me a bad person?
- Bluemage - 04-21-2014
First, I have to say I like the 'fight' with Minaho. The best way to win a fight is through dirty tricks and tactics, and Garrick has them both.
Second, if she was enough to get him that riled up, I dearly hope he never actually reaches Court. I get the feeling that she'd just be one of many there.
Third, I was wondering how you'd get yourself a blade capable of surviving an actual fight in the 'verse. Well handled.
Quote:I have always wanted to have a moment in my life where my enemies areFourth, no. Not wanting that, anyway. Depending on how you go about earning it, having that happen could make you a bad person, but just wanting it is safe.
gathered before me... and then run screaming in terror. Does this make
me a bad person?
Be like Garrick, not Vlad the Impaler.
My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.
I've been writing a bit.
- robkelk - 04-21-2014
Bluemage Wrote:Second, if she was enough to get him that riled up, I dearly hope he never actually reaches Court. I get the feeling that she'd just be one of many there.Maybe. maybe not. There's a big difference between "annoying person in the room" and "annoying person in a serious relationship," and I think Garrick knows that.
--
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 - 04-21-2014
Well, the impression I'm given is that when people in court find each other annoying enough a formal duel can be held to settle the matter. Nasty stuff Garrick can do would be limited... But then, I've always been the one to see the loopholes in any set of rules, be it for good or ill. :p
Also, I'm glad that you like the fight with Minaho. From what I gathered from watching GXP, she strikes me as the sort of character that was criminally easy to rub the wrong way and only because, despite loving Seto, she's tired of her shenanigans and she can only take so much of that...
Oh, and you guys aren't gonna believe this... But I figured out a believable way to include ACHIKA in the story!
Simply put, I'm gonna wing it so Yosho had THREE daughters, not just two, and Achika would be the youngest one of them all. That said, Achika is out there somewhere doing her service, not in the Galaxy Police - that was far too tame for her liking - but in the Galaxy Army.
Thing is, material available on her is kinda limited, so I'm kinda trying to figure out what she should be like.
Thus far, I think she should be very young by Jyurain standards - say about forty or fifty years old. I'm also thinking she should be something of a free spirit. She has heard all about the obligations that the Royal Court tried to force on Yosho and she doesn't really want part in that. I would like that she has a veneer of being a proper noble woman of Jyurai, with the truth being that she has a borderline-masochistic desire for challenge, which is why she's in Galaxy Army and not the GP. (You can tell that Ayeka and Seto probably took turns with her here.)
What I'm going for between her and Garrick is ambivalence. She'll get called in by Seto by whatever means and then more or less foist them onto each other. (Like throwing rocks in a pond...) She'll absolutely love Garrick's take-no-prisoners approach, but it will kinda put her off that he's being Seto willing pawn. She knows that if she gets involved with Garrick then she'll get sucked into the politics, but on the other hand he seems to share her views on the matter. Decisions, decisions...
Minagi will be okay with her - she's kinda the passive one anyhow. The real fireworks would be where Yuki is concerned.
"Hey, what up with the shrimp here?"
"WHAT!? I'm not a shrimp! I'm normal for my age, and I guarantee mine will be bigger than yours when I finish growing!"
"Oh really? They look kinda small to me."
"THEY JUST STARTED GROWING!!!"
Yeah. It'll be like Ayeka and Ryoko all over again. Garrick is gonna have to invest in some forks.
For Garrick's part he'll be kinda torn up on the matter. He likes her attitude, finds her attractive (Oh dear Tsunami it's a PONYTAIL! Please don't hit me with loose socks, too, or I will be powerless!), but worries that she'd be too abrasive and carefree.
Thoughts?
- ordnance11 - 04-22-2014
Quote:I grinned at their fear. “Well!?” I challenged. “WHO WANTS TOI would had gone with what Conan the Barbarian would had said "WHO DIES FIRST!?
LIVE FOREVER!? RAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUGGGHH!!!”
__________________
Into terror!, Into valour!
Charge ahead! No! Never turn
Yes, it's into the fire we fly
And the devil will burn!
- Scarlett Pimpernell