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Who originally made Asimov? I kind of want to know how he came to work for Paradox Interactive...
Moka and Dak are on Malum's side. That's not good...
Is the "Levakians don't actually speak Hawaiian retcon" still a thing? Also, do the Partogans speak Maori? I thought they did...
Did Paradox Interactive have a Countermeasures Committee before the events of The Great Lie, or is it new?
Marisol's past actually helped her. Let's hope it doesn't cause her to freeze up in key moments...
Akira and the rest of Team Malum are trying to get me to replace Blake? Really? What's their plan for when I inevitably refuse? Probably psionic mind control, knowing Akira. On that note, why don't they try to track me down? They've been on the forum. They know I'm in Arizona...
Where did Akira and Whetu escape to?
My Father's War was taken off the Inkwell because... it's the WW3 book featuring Blake's avatar? If the avatar's the problem, why remove that one and not The Stormbreakers? Does it have anything to do with the fact that My Father's War also had a gimmick where the characters responded to comments from the readAARs?
Actually, doesn't that gimmick mean that Varian (and Himawari) should have already known about the Fourth Wall? That applied to Faith in Chaos...
@HistoryDude, of course you can tune up @Macavity116's scribblings. Are you not the most prolific author this side of @Bullfilter and @Nikolai? Do you not like happy endings? Just have Akira replace Bullock/Ryan in a RomCom, and harmony will return to the forum. Instead of killing Mac, you can put him on a hamster wheel until his unhappy creations return to their place on the other side of the portal. Thanks
I laughed just writing it. I really wanna watch Rogue One again. Also, I pulled the pre-Battle of Archer's Canyon version of Whetu specifically for this joke. I do intend to throw a scene into a future chapter where Whetu dons the red tube-top she wears in the fanart.
Well... Erin Bowie (the missing person Blake is looking for in this chapter) is from My Father's War. In fact, she's the only character from that book to appear in this story. As for Winter Star... that story has never been on the PDX forums and it's an Ao3 exclusive. I just kinda fudged the Inkwell for narrative simplicity, as adding a whole other website to the mix is needlessly complex. My Father's War and Winter Star are the last two of my previous works to have characters or elements drawn into the real world by Malum.
That was myself/Blake. (Asimov pictured below) As mentioned in a previous chapter, Cali has partially rebuilt and reprogrammed Asimov at some point between the events of The Great Lie and The Broken Gates. He is infused with several thousand of Cali's nanobots, meaning she has much greater control over Asimov than Blake.
Hah! You caught that. I've been using the "Babelfish Anomaly" story element to sidestep this issue. Back when I first started making up the Stormbreaker Universe in '05-'06, I would regularly have real-world languages stand-in as the fictional ones. I knew this would create narrative issues here in the Broken Gates so I'm using the Babelfish Anomaly to make the issue go away. (at least until the time I can come up with a damned good explanation for it )
Due to my lazy worldbuilding habits, some languages in my fictional worlds are interchangeable with each other due to their real-world counterparts being related to one another as well.
Akira and the rest of Team Malum are trying to get me to replace Blake? Really? What's their plan for when I inevitably refuse? Probably psionic mind control, knowing Akira. On that note, why don't they try to track me down? They've been on the forum. They know I'm in Arizona...
Their backup plan is to recruit FamilyTreeEnthusiast, a reader/commenter who has become your equal and counterpart on my YouTube and Ao3 pages. If FTE also proves to be a hard target, Chosenpai/Marisol is shaping up to be Plan C.
*My Father's War contains an in-character response gimmick, similar to the one found in Faith in Chaos.
However, the one found in MFW was in-universe with a blurring of the Fourth Wall. Faith in Chaos was breaking the Fourth Wall outright with direct communication between the characters and the audience.
MFW was slightly indirect and had a layer of fictionalization overtop of it, so Varian, Himawari, Chihiro, and Blake weren't able to fully break the Fourth Wall.
Aisling slowly regained her senses. She had transformed into a small mouse and was hiding under a mass of bodies. Above her, she could hear voices and footfalls. The battle was over, but some kind of chaos was still taking place.
She pushed herself forward, emerging from the shadows, and looked around.
The northern wall of Ulster Castle looked as though a giant had grabbed it and carried it away. The earth was gouged and smoke rose from the blackened crater. Dozens, possibly hundreds of blue-and-gold warriors were milling around the area, picking through the wreckage and bodies.
Several of the blue-skinned people wore strange boxes on their arms. These boxes made loud whistling sounds and glowed with a purple light. For some reason, Aisling found these devices very unnerving. She scrambled away from the scene.
Nearly all of the Irish defenders, including Dermot and his Regency Council, had fled the scene. Aisling could see a flurry of activity through the narrow windows of the Keep, suggesting that Dermot and his people had barricaded themselves inside.
Seven Irish soldiers remained on the scene, having fallen to their knees in desperate prayer, pleading for God to show mercy. One of the flying metal monsters had landed inside the castle grounds, and dozens of additional blue-skinned warriors emerged from its gaping mouth.
As she tried to flee, several of the blue-and-gold warriors pointed their purple lights at her. Aisling felt her blood run cold. These strange people seemed to know about her.
Aisling started trying to escape again, and this time, two of the blue-skinned people lunged, trying to seize her. Aisling quickly transformed into a sparrow and took flight, zipping across the castle grounds and into the Keep.
Inside, the few Irish soldiers that remained had barricaded themselves behind a layer of siege defenses. Aisling fluttered past a wall of spears and pikes before reaching a serious roadblock.
The doorway to the Great Hall had been barricaded from the inside. Only a few people were in the corridor, clutching at religious icons and praying for salvation. The terrified castle defenders were so wrapped up in their prayer that none of them noticed Aisling land and turn into a Human. She wrapped her knuckles on the large door.
“Dermot?” She asked.
“Who goes there!?” An Irish voice shouted through the door. “Are you friend or foe?”
“I’m a friend of Duke Dermot. My name is Aisling!” She called back through the door.
There was a scrambling sound, and a moment later, the door opened, just wide enough for Aisling to see a person’s eye through it. Dermot’s voice issued through it.
“Aisling!” Dermot hissed. “I beg of you, please help us!”
“How?” She asked. “There’s a hundred of those blue people outside.”
“My cousin’s husband, Duke Caradog, is on his way here with an army to save us.” Dermot said through the door. “If you can get away without being caught by those blue creatures, then go southwest to the Earldom of Mayo. Find Duke Caradog and tell him all of what’s happened here. Beg him to come with all possible speed, please! I don’t know how long we can hold out against these enemies.”
“I am a stranger to Duke Caradog.” Aisling replied. “How will I make him believe me?”
“Go to my bedchambers.” Dermot whispered to her through the door. “I keep my treasures in a box underneath the window. Take one of them and carry it with you. The Duke Caradog knows about them all, as his wife is my cousin, and we’ve known each other since I was very small. Give him one of those treasures and say it is my token.”
Aisling promised to deliver Dermot’s message. She considered this to be her way of repaying Dermot for his offer of protection these past few days.
Scrambling up the stairs, Aisling could hear the blue-and-gold warriors outside. They were yelling to one another. Were they going to storm the Keep? Aisling realized she was starting to feel fear, not just for Dermot, but for herself as well.
The blue people had spotted her while she was shaped like an animal. They had tried to grab her. For the first time, Aisling wondered if the blue-skinned people were related to the Milesius. She was not old enough to have seen them herself, but Aisling had heard plenty about the invaders who drove her own people into hiding.
Aisling ran up the nearest flight of stairs, retracing the path to Dermot’s bedchamber as best she could. She thought back to when Dermot had given her a tour just one short month ago. After straining her mind, Aisling remembered the way and found the lord’s bedchamber.
Aisling looked around Dermot’s room for a moment, then spotted a well-decorated chest underneath a window that overlooked the Irish Sea.
Fumbling with the latches, she opened the chest and looked inside. She found three of Dermot’s personal treasures.
Aisling blinked, trying to sweep away the feeling of Déjà vu.
Fumbling with the latches, she opened the chest and looked inside. She found four of Dermot’s personal treasures.
Aisling examined each item in turn: terracotta toy fowl, a guidebook for religious pilgrims, a tiny wooden stature of a warrior... and a perfectly round shimmering silver sphere.
The glimmering orb captured Aisling’s attention. It seemed to be impossible, made of liquid, yet somehow keeping its perfectly round shape. Aisling could see herself reflected in the orb as though it was a mirror. It was a small thing, about the size of her own clenched fist.
Aisling decided to grab it. She had no doubt a beautiful sphere like this would be easily recognized. She reached out and grabbed the sphere. To her surprise, Aisling’s fingers sank through the sphere’s outer membrane. It felt as though she had dipped her hand into cold water.
For a fraction of a moment, Aisling was aware of her fingertip slipping through the inner membrane and touching the innermost core of the silver sphere.
Oh, yes. If you're at that chapter, then you're at the precipice of some really weird and wild stuff. Lucky for you, real-life has caused new chapters to slow down a bit, so you've got time to catch up.
By the way everyone! You're almost out of time to vote in the
Announcement! As requested by a small number of readers/viewers, the first video version of The Broken Gates is now live. Video counterparts will be slowly added to previous chapters. Posting of new chapters will noticeably slow down while the video side of things plays catchup.
The Broken Gates
Episode Ten: This may sound weird, but I've always been certain this would happen. Akira Robinson
Creation
Wayne County, Michigan
Meanwhile, something was happening in Belle Isle Park, an island in the Detroit River mere feet away from the US/Canada border. While city officials combed the conservatory and aquarium for survivors of the recent flood, a Vortex Portal opened up and deposited two women in front of the Dossin Great Lakes Museum.
Akira Robinson turned around to watch as her companion regained her footing. This new person was a young woman slightly taller than Akira. She had messy blue hair and wore an ankle-length red dress. As she stepped out of the Vortex Portal, the woman peered around the island, her face full of wonder and awe.
This was Emily, and she had just been pulled out of a very obscure story by Macavity116. She spotted the Detroit city skyline, fully illuminated in the darkness of night, and stood transfixed.
“Incredible.” Emily breathed. “I’ve lived my whole life in Pelican Town, but I’ve dreamed about seeing a big city like this.”
Emily stepped clear of the Vortex Portal, but it did not close. Someone on the other side was holding it open.
“It’s just as I said.” Akira replied. “This is the world of the gods, and home of the god who created you and your world.”
“And I can just go see him?” Emily asked. “It’s really okay?”
“I insist.” Akira replied. “In fact, I encourage you to see him. Look there, across the river. Do you see that building the firefighters are next to? The one with the word “scientology” painted on the sign. Walk to that building and turn right at the intersection. Stay on the right side of the road and go past the big square with the fountains and statues. On the other side of the park, you’ll see a brick building called Whiskey in the jAAR. Knock on the door and ask for Blake.”
Emily froze. The color went out of her face.
“Wait a minute…” Emily said, her breathing shallow and rapid. “Blake… as in… Blake Robinson? The Blake I know?”
“Yes.” Akira replied, a smile creeping across her face. “That Blake. One and the same.”
Emily looked back to her destination. She whispered, more to herself than to Akira:
“This may sound weird, but I've always been certain this would happen.”
“It’s what you’ve dreamed about… isn’t it?” Akira said. “Don’t waste this opportunity I’ve given you. Go. Find him. Find the man who is your lover and creator all in one.”
Akira stepped backwards through the Vortex Portal and it closed, leaving Emily shivering and alone on Belle Isle.
…
Meanwhile, the consequences for Akira’s unilateral action came quickly. As soon as she rematerialized inside the ring section of the Broken Gate, two angry voices confronted her.
“I told Malum what you did. He’s pissed.”
“You can’t go off and do things on your own like that! You’re throwing off everything Malum planned!”
These two people were also characters taken from Blake’s stories. Whetu Kealoha was still looking shaken from her experience in the SolAARium, but next to her, another woman looked full of resolve.
Whetu’s companion was Cassandra Espinosa, a twenty-one-year-old woman taken from A Coldwar Affair. Cassandra had vivid green eyes that seemed to give off a faint glow, making her stand out in any surrounding. Like Whetu, she wore an outfit that left little to the imagination, but in a far different way from grass skirts:
Cassandra’s whole body, except for her head and neck, was covered in what appeared to be a skintight bodysuit. One needed to look closer to realize Cassandra was actually wearing Nanite Armor, a protective layer composed of several trillion microscopic nanomachines acting in concert, all under the control of a cybernetic implant in Cassandra’s brain.
When she confronted Akira, Cassandra folded her arms and her Nanite Armor rippled dangerously.
“Malum said we can’t send more Creations into the real world without going through him first.” Cassandra said. “You’ve got some explaining to do, Mom.”
In any other circumstance, a 21-year-old calling a 19-year-old “Mom” would be met with some measure of skepticism, or perhaps alarm. But Akira and Cassandra had already been warned about this detail when they first joined Malum’s team:
An older version of Akira (who was not pulled into this series of events) had mothered three children, of which Cassandra was the middle child. This detail was supposed to be a surprising plot twist in a story called The Last Heroes, but right now… it was a minor detail that both Akira and Cassandra found inconvenient.
“Well, it’s already done.” Akira said. “And I’m positive Emily will cause Blake’s new ‘team’ to break up and start fighting each other. It’s all to our benefit in the end.”
Whetu pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes.
“You’re missing the point.” Whetu said. “You’re not the protagonist anymore, Malum is. He makes the decisions. If you really love him, you wouldn’t go over his head like this!”
Akira bristled. Cassandra noticed.
“Ugh… not again. How many times do we have to do this, mom? Follow me.”
Cassandra led Akira away from the Broken Gate. The ring-shaped structure was located in the bottommost section of a derelict starship, left abandoned for hundreds of years. Archeologists and treasure hunters had recently excavated the upper decks, but no one had gotten this far underground yet. No one aside from Malum’s team, anyway.
Cassandra brought Akira to a doorway near the bow and wrapped her knuckles on the door.
“Enter.” A booming voice commanded.
“Here we go. Third time’s the charm, right?” Cassandra said. Then she pushed the door open.
The ship’s galley had been converted into something resembling a Medieval European Royal Court. Two thrones, one large and one slightly smaller, stood on an elevated platform at the far end of the room. Various relics and trinkets were put on display throughout the room, while two long tables were set with dishes and silverware, as though a feast would be served soon. The smell of freshly-cooked meat and vegetables wafted through a door to Akira’s right.
The Court was busy. Dozens of aliens milled about, talking and arguing and debating. Akira and Cassandra bypassed them all, walking directly toward the thrones instead.
Malum Ralpakin was seated in his throne, while the smaller one was vacant. The villain also known as the Great Khan was a giant of a man with blue skin, pointed ears, and bright yellow eyes. The left side of his body was covered in gruesome-looking scars, a reminder of the battle Malum fought against his own son during the final chapter of Song of the Solitaire, the story from which he originated.
Malum did not see Akira and Cassandra approach. He was locked in deep conversation with one of his concubines. The alien woman looked as though she was enraptured by Malum’s every word. Akira took the opportunity to study the alien woman’s face, trying to identify her species.
Assurian. Akira said to herself. Does that mean he finally got access to my world? Or is he still sending lackeys through the Gate?
Malum Ralpakin told the concubine to go away, and she scampered out of sight. Then he turned to look at Akira.
“Again you’ve closed off your mind to me, Akira.” Malum said. “What a selfish lover you are.”
His tone was light, as though teasing her, but Akira could sense a deep rumbling anger within him. Both villains were emitting powerful fields of Psionic energy that buffeted one another in silent conflict.
“It’s a force of habit.” Akira said. “After the Instrument of Desire, I find it hard to open my heart to anyone… let alone my mind.”
Akira was referencing a particularly infamous moment in her backstory, where the hated author had strongly implied she got intimate with a Lovecraftian nightmare monster.
Malum narrowed his eyes.
“That won’t do at all, my dear.” He said. “I’ve known you now many weeks. I see that you become stronger, more focused, and wiser when you are open about your love for me. When you close yourself off, you become so frustratingly independent that you drag down those around you and impede the progress of my plans. Allow me to restore what you’ve somehow managed to lose…”
Akira could feel it coming. A wave of telepathic energy seeping into every crevice of her mind. Just before she was overwhelmed, Akira felt a last second pulse of joy.
I was right. Akira told herself. Willpower from my world and Psionic Resistance from his world are not the same thing. I can fight this off again. I can take control.
Filled with newfound resolve, Akira quickly purged her own mind of rebellious thoughts, making certain her head was empty before Malum regained control.
…
“Now, Akira, my dear.” Malum said. “Don’t you see how angry I get when you go behind my back?”
Akira bowed her head.
“Yes, sir. I’m sorry sir.” Akira replied in a demure tone of voice. “I thought I could do things my way and get a better result. I was wrong. I’m so deeply sorry.”
Akira was feeling very hot. She fidgeted uncomfortably, still looking at the floor. She also felt terrible. How could she earn Malum’s love if she kept striking out on her own like this? She wanted to hit herself for being so stupid.
A tiny voice spoke in the back of Akira’s head, but she ignored it.
“Cassandra, my dear.” Malum said, speaking over the top of Akira’s head. “That Emily character is a wildcard I will not tolerate. Go get her and put her back in her world now. If she resists, kill her.”
Cassandra nodded.
“As you wish.”
Cassandra turned to leave, taking her eyes off Malum with the most extreme reluctance. The Great Khan stood up from his throne and directed his voice toward one of the courtiers.
“Carry on without me for a few minutes. I must take this one to give her forgiveness.”
Akira felt an eruption of happiness deep in her soul as Malum grabbed her by the arm and started pulling her in the direction of the harem chamber.
“Give me those two books in your coat pocket.” Malum suddenly ordered.
Without hesitation, Akira opened her coat and retrieved the two books she had stolen from the Inkwell: My Father’s War and Finding Love Under the Winter Star.
“The only books in which our author made himself the main protagonist… hmm… how curious.” Malum said as he examined each book. Then he put one hand on Akira’s shoulder and pushed him forward.
Just before they left the Khan’s Court, one of the other concubines looked at Akira and flashed a friendly hand signal.
As she was pushed out of the room, Akira did a double-take.
The concubine who waved at her was Kotori Sato… a character from My Father’s War. Kotori was having a conversation with Thomas Hutch, another character from the same story… one who was best known for being the puppet ruler of a collaborationist government.
… Marisol
Creator
Wayne County, Michigan
Marisol was pacing the length of Apartment 229, agitated. She had told Cali’s team several times that she could not stay. She needed to get home, and that Asiana had sent someone to collect her. But this had only resulted in Marisol being confined to the same space as the female Creations.
Kanti Divakar, the albino peahen, was similarly disturbed. She too was pacing, stalking up and down the headrest of a couch in the living room. Mina had to lean forward to avoid being hit by Kanti’s tail feathers. Sebakhira watched Marisol for a few moments, then asked:
“Why do you worry so much about going home quickly? Your family strikes me as being very resilient in the face of hardship.”
“Holy shit, Blake was right about the mind-reading.” Marisol breathed. “That’s really off-putting, you know.”
“Apologies.” Sebakhira growled. “Your mother and siblings exist in the forefront of your mind. You worry about them.”
“I bring home the most money.” Marisol said. “I can’t afford to not work, and getting left behind can end my career really fast.”
“She’s not like us.” Mina said from the couch. “For us, all of our duties and obligations and responsibilities get put on hold when the author decides to send us on a vacation. All of life gets told to wait its turn.”
“I uh… never thought of it that way.” Marisol confessed.
“I never had a monthly cycle for the whole run of my story.” Mina went on. “Hit me like a truck when it happened after Malum pulled me through the Gate.”
“So, did Malum pull all of you through the Broken Gate before sending you here?” Marisol asked.
She remembered helping Blake finalize the concept of The Broken Gates when he was writing his latest story. They were supposed to be a system for interdimensional travel… but this was now the third or fourth time Marisol had noticed a Creation making reference to them, suggesting Malum had found a way to hijack the Broken Gates.
Kanti nodded.
“Malum… huge blue-skinned Humanoid… pulled Akira Robinson out of her story first, and then she took over the duties of pulling everyone else. She’s somewhat rebellious, though. As you can see by just looking around, her efforts to recruit people to Malum’s cause don’t always work out. I don’t know why… but Malum either can’t or won’t go through the Gate himself.”
“He used Psionics to bewitch us.” Sebakhira added. “I do not know how to describe it… it is not a technique from my world… but we all started to feel a powerful love for Malum. Different types for different people. Some of us loved him as a father or brother. Some of us felt a more platonic love. I know a few experienced romantic love for Malum… and I think there’s a couple who are in unconditional love, as though he were an object of worship.”
“And you don’t feel any of that?” Mina spat from the couch. “That’s what’s wrong with you.”
Sebakhira peered around the room.
“I have noticed that some of us were able to shake off the Psionic effects… though I do not know how or why just yet.
Kanti looked very annoyed, and Marisol understood why.
“Hey Kanti… in your book – uh… I mean, in your world… didn’t you have a Psionic power that has to do with love?”
“I do.” Kanti replied, ruffling her feathers. “I’m oversimplifying to make things easy for your untrained mind… but I can telepathically force someone to fall in love with me. From what I witnessed, Malum’s ability is far more developed and nuanced than mine. It’s embarrassing.”
Marisol shuddered. Both Sebakhira and Kanti recoiled. They were able to see a series of dark thoughts passing through Marisol’s mind.
“Sorry.” Marisol said. “Just some stuff from my past. Forced love… or love for price… that’s not love at all. At least it’s that way it is for me.”
There was a scratching sound at the apartment door. Kanti fluttered across the room and opened it with Telekinesis.
A fluffy white cat with red eyes entered the room and sat down in the kitchen. It took a moment to lick its paws and wipe its face, then shapeshifted into a human girl.
“Cali’s going to come up and get us in a few minutes.” Aisling said. “A bunch of people just showed up in the tavern downstairs. She says they’re her ‘Committee’ or something like that.”
Akira has terrible luck with mind control. This is the second time she's been mind-controlled into being a massive villain... but it looks like she might be breaking free. Can Akira become a third side to this conflict?
Cassandra is from after the events of The Last Heroes? Why is she not more pissed at Akira, who put her under Mind Control?
I find it amusing that the villains have designated protagonists. Of course, Akira was the greater protagonist of the Stormbreakers Saga, even if she's also the villain. The idea that Malum self-labelled himself as the new protagonist is hilarious, though.
@HistoryDude, of course you can tune up @Macavity116's scribblings. Are you not the most prolific author this side of @Bullfilter and @Nikolai? Do you not like happy endings?
As for whether or not I like happy endings... I plan to end one of my AARs with the destruction of an entire multiverse. That death toll might even outstrip Macavity's.
Many of my stories could (and will) have happy endings. Many of them end in tragedy, though.
Convinced? Certainly not. Akira is under telepathic duress here in a "shoe is on the other foot scenario." She was the perpetrator in a similar action against Kyle Bradshaw all the way back in My Father's War.
I'm planning to deploy a joke involving those big disaster recovery fans most businesses in Michigan use after a flood. (Aisling has a childlike personality. She should do something funny with them)
Akira has terrible luck with mind control. This is the second time she's been mind-controlled into being a massive villain... but it looks like she might be breaking free.
This version of her is, yup. Cassandra knows she's dealing with a younger version of her mother, where that has not happened yet. Also, it's safe to assume that Cassandra has been made docile through Malum's telepathic manipulation.
Only a singular Broken Gate was described in this chapter, and the narration described a location that does not match the last known location of the Broken Gates.
In Song of the Solitaire, the Broken Gates were located in a cave in Oregon, and at least one was destroyed during Trig's fight against Malum. This gate has somehow been relocated.
The concept of Willpower is a deep callback to the earliest days of the Stormbreaker Universe, my first Stellaris stories on the PDX forum. All the way back in Faith in Chaos, I established that a person's "Psionic power" was directly proportional to their Willpower. A strong-willed person would have access to greater and more consequential Psionic abilities. Akira Robinson, for instance, was arguably the most willful person in the Stormbreaker Universe, making her the most powerful Psionic warrior as well. However, this particular concept of Willpower was phased out around 2021 when I started writing The Last Heroes. It was eventually replaced by:
Psionic Resistance: In the later parts of the series, I wrote a story arc in which, for a 50-year-period, all Psionic people in the universe lost their powers. (I am vastly oversimplifying here) Eventually, Psionics slowly returned to the universe in a slightly different form, with the rules having been changed. Most notably, I decided that access to more powerful and destructive Psi Techniques (Like Soulfire and Void Rift) should be locked behind training and practice rather than Willpower. Instead, I wrote in the concept of Psionic Resistance: the measure of how well a person could resist the effects of Telepathic attack. (Mind Control, Manipulation, Insanity, etc.) Under the new rules, a person's Psionic Resistance is tied to their willpower, which in turn is now a purely "telepathic defense" function.
The key difference is that the old version of Willpower is only applicable to Gifted characters. (those who have Psionic powers) Literally any sentient character in my ramshackle universe has innate Psionic Resistance.
[Example: Mami Tamihana was the first mundane person to throw off Mind Control in the Stormbreaker Universe]
Kill yourself.
The two words were loud and overpowering. Anyone who lacked in willpower would have complied instantly without thinking about it, but this wasn’t the first time Kendra had been under Mind Control. She recognized what was happening right away and began to resist! She wasn’t the same weak-willed girl who had been overpowered back at Fort Miranda. Kendra focused hard on her desire to live, to defy Akira. Kendra focused with single-minded determination on how much she wanted to disobey Akira’s command.
Shoot yourself. Now.
Kendra’s hands were moving without her input, as though she was watching a video of someone else turning the gun around. She could see down the barrel now… but her hands had stopped moving.
I said “kill yourself.” Do it now.
And finally, a defiant voice spoke up in the back of Kendra’s mind.
“No.” Kendra’s inner voice answered. “I won’t.”
Kill yourself! Shoot yourself!!
“No.”
Kendra’s thumb exited the trigger well and pressed itself firmly but harmlessly against the pistol’s slide.
Do it!
Kendra’s hands relaxed… just a little… but it was enough to cause the handgun to slide out of her hands and clatter to the ground.
By making a reference to Willpower and Psionic Resistance, Akira not only breaks the Fourth Wall, she is tipping her hand to the reader, signaling she understands the difference between Malum's Psionics and her own... and Akira knows she has an advantage over him. She's playing with the unbalanced old rules while Malum is locked into the new ruleset.
Very interesting. The transdimensional incursions continue to grow. Will the rest of this AAR take place in the present or will we be returning to medieval Ireland at some point?
Very interesting. The transdimensional incursions continue to grow. Will the rest of this AAR take place in the present or will we be returning to medieval Ireland at some point?
I've been wondering if we'll go back at some point too. Feels a little weird to put it in the CK3 bit and then leave nearly all the CK3 content behind after a few pages in...
The transdimensional incursions continue to grow. Will the rest of this AAR take place in the present or will we be returning to medieval Ireland at some point?
I've been wondering if we'll go back at some point too. Feels a little weird to put it in the CK3 bit and then leave nearly all the CK3 content behind after a few pages in...
Well, my intention is for the signature event/narrative endpoint of this story to be Malum Ralpakin's attack on Paradox HQ. The main duration of The Broken Gates will play out in the real world, so we may not see the CK3 setting until the final chapter. (As a narrative bookend, ending the story in the same place it started)
Mina’s eyes went wide and then she started speaking in a language that was not English. Cali turned and locked eyes with Mina, replying in the same tongue. Marisol strained her ears, listening hard.
To me, it seems like the Babelfish Anomaly is being subverted here (this is Episode Seven, mere lines before the Babelfish Anomaly itself is named and explained).
The Babelfish Anomaly does mean that every character's speech is instantly translated to the language of the listener, right?
If so...
1. Can characters consciously negate the effects of the Anomaly (as Cali and Mina seem to do)?
2. Does it always translate to the listener's first language? E.g.: does Marisol hear the characters speak Filipino? Or is everything translated to English (which I assume Marisol is also fluent in)?
Cali reached into one of her vest pockets and produced an ID card. Next to her face and name was the image of a platypus fossil, the official logo of Paradox Interactive.
Their backup plan is to recruit FamilyTreeEnthusiast, a reader/commenter who has become your equal and counterpart on my YouTube and Ao3 pages. If FTE also proves to be a hard target, Chosenpai/Marisol is shaping up to be Plan C.
The concubine who waved at her was Kotori Sato… a character from My Father’s War. Kotori was having a conversation with Thomas Hutch, another character from the same story… one who was best known for being the puppet ruler of a collaborationist government.
Well, my intention is for the signature event/narrative endpoint of this story to be Malum Ralpakin's attack on Paradox HQ. The main duration of The Broken Gates will play out in the real world, so we may not see the CK3 setting until the final chapter. (As a narrative bookend, ending the story in the same place it started)
