Subject: [FFML] Re: [C&C]Ronin Summer: Convergence 7
From: "Morgan Hudson" <dataraven_659@hotmail.com>
Date: 10/25/2006, 11:08 PM
To: ffml@anifics.com
CC: gabriel_gabdiel@yahoo.com

Yes! My backlog on Convergence is done! Only a few more months of backlog 
to
go, and I'll be... late again with the new batch! ^_^

I know how it feels - its the same for me when I write these things: "Yay! I 
got this chapter out, and it's only a week late! Now I can get to work on 
being late with the next chapter!" ^_^

(checks email, mouth goes slack) ...There's a chapter 8. And it's twice as 
long
as all the regular chapters. Aw motherf9*^56&^%*&^&*!!!11!

Aren't we all glad I split that chapter into two parts in order to make it 
more palatable? Of course, that did leave me sticking my readers with two 
cliffhangers in a row....

I am pleased to report that I was also able
to finally get the last DVDs I needed to finish off my Ronin
Warriors/Yoroiden Samurai Troopers collection. There were totally in the 
discount bin. ^_^

Congratulations. You now have more material to feed your hungry muse. ^_^

Just as another friendly little warning to anyone who may be planning to 
pick up a YST DVD after reading this story of mine: please, please, for the 
love of all that is holy, do not get "Message"!

"Message" is to YST what "Bubblegum Crash!" and "Grand Mal" are to Bubblegum 
Crisis. Or what "Dragonball GT" is to all previous Dragonballs. It just... 
misses the point.

ENTIRELY. >_<

Nana Asahina

Her actual real name from the episode in question, funnily enough. Me, I 
kept assuming that she must be some kind of water-based Crane Clan shugenja 
who doesn't believe in violence. But then again, I used to play a lot of 
Rokugan....

The Assahina Twins (Voltage Fighter Gowcaizer): Eyng?

local rag called the Weekly Dokkiri.

Dr. Dokkiri: Eyng?

Again, the actual tabloid she was working for the last time we saw her. 
According to Minako, it's such a rag that it's best known story was one that 
they made up about aliens and Bigfoot. In other words, the only newpaper 
that would be willing to print stories about crazy junk like the Sailor 
Senshi. :p

The problem with being Nana Asahina quickly became that she had
no friends. Her old self had not felt the need for them, and her new self 
had far too much bad press to hope she might make any. Everybody thought 
that she was a liar: who would believe her if she said that someone was 
trying to kill her?

Nice hedgehog dilemma for a person that's not really a main character.

Poor Nana: "I'm a liar, believe me!"

Trust is a very hard thing to get from people after spending so much time 
taking advantage of them. She's burned so many people in the past that none 
of them would be willing to give her a hand now that she desperately needs 
it.

Such dedication in
giving each and every last plot point and minor character a story is truly 
impressive.

Thanks. I've always been fascinated by some of the small details like that. 
I try to flesh out as many of the characters I intend to use as possible. 
^_^

I get the feeling that this particular 'former' youma is... Oniwabandana.

Yep! The once and future Oniwabandana, in fact. :p

Something strong, and vibrant, and powerful enough that no mere mortal 
could ever hope to harm her again. Nana Asahina could become a youma. 
Surely it couldn't be too hard: she had already been one before, hadn't 
she?

And we get to the point of it all. Certainly better than, "And some former 
trash tabloid reporter named Nana Asahina suddenly became a demon."

Well, that was her excuse last time. This time she knew what she would be 
getting into. I wanted to explain to the readers exactly what kind of 
circumstances little Nana-chan was under when she made that fateful leap.

Plus, I'm, like, ADDICTED to foreshadowing. ^_^

There had been a price, of course - there always was, when dealing
with the Ankoku. So far as Oniwabandana could tell, however, it had been

Ha. Got it in one. And I didn't even peek ahead of the story to get it. ^_^

I'm glad you were able to piece it together so quickly. That means I'm doing 
it right! ^_^

of light in the entire room was provided by twenty-two carefully arranged 
iron braziers,

Happosai (perks up) Eyng?

*faceplam* No, not "brassieres!" Braziers! Big metal things full of fire! 
 >_<

"Really?" Shin raised one eyebrow suspiciously. "And how, pray
tell, can you do that?"

"Well, for starters, he's bright red and you aren't," Shuu said in
reply, spreading his arms and shrugging as he leaned back in his chair.

He gotcha there.

Hehehe. Leave it to Shuu: only he could possibly have the wisdom and 
intuition to stand up when he is most needed and judge a book by its cover! 
^_^

"Besides, no evil twin could hope to copy your limp wrists and girlish 
figure."

That's another excellent point.

One which I think both Nise Suiko *and* Shin Mouri would seriously object 
to. :p

Reaching behind him, Shuu grabbed one of Ryo's ankles and wrenched his leg 
back, causing the other boy to howl in pain and give him an angry glare.

Shuu: Single Boston Crab, yo!

Uh... yeah, actually. Good eye! :D

"Hey, watch the wrestling moves, Shuu! Who do you think you are,
Tiger Mask? Shin, tell this guy to quit bending me into a pretzel!"

Shuu: I'm more of a Jushin Liger, really.

I picked Tiger Mask because he is actually based on an anime character. 
Plus, since there've been about four of five of him, it's a reference they 
can make without having to limit themselves to a specific time period. It's 
a safe bet that there will be *somebody* calling themselves "Tiger Mask" for 
a long time to come.

Fun trivia: Tiger Mask's ultimate enemy is Black Tiger, his "evil twin". 
Over the years, Black Tiger has been played by a large number of wrestlers, 
including Rocky Romero of the Havana Pitbulls, Silver King, the elder 
brother of Dr. Wagner Jr, and the late Eddie Guererro.

"No more, I swear," Ryo said fervently, shaking his head
vigourously as Shuu shifted position and sat on the small of his back, 
gripping one of the other boy's legs under each arm and forcing Ryo's feet 
back until they nearly touched his shoulders. "So, call off your maniac, 
okay?"

Shuu: Walls of Jericho, yo! If you didn't really mean what you said, I'll 
turn this one into a Lion Tamer, mmkay?

Speaking of Jushin Liger, Chris Jericho once played his alter-ego, "Super 
Liger". We can only assume from all this that Shuu must like to watch New 
Japan Pro Wrestling. ^_^

"Nothing you can prove," the blonde girl said defensively, deftly
tucking the notepad into one of the pockets of her green denim shorts and 
grinning innocently at her suspicious friend. "Besides, this isn't about 
what I may or may not have copied off of you! This is about why you're 
wearing Ryo Sanada's shirt."

LOL. Ah, it's good to see the chuckle-filled spirit of the first chapter 
returning in your latest offering. As great as action-filled plot points 
are, a bit of humor can really get a person to release some tension and 
achieve catharsis in this fast-paced fic of yours.

Thanks - I do try to lighten the mood every once in a while.

"Because I say so," Usagi replied simply, sticking her tongue out
at her friend. "And I'm the Moon Princess. So there."

Heh.

It's just one of those trump cards that always seems to win every argument, 
isnt it?

Rei: "You are not the boss of me!"
Usagi: "Actually... I am!" ^_^

She was starting to shiver uncontrollably, and her
exposed skin felt clammy - the parts of it that still had any feeling at 
all.

Petz: Damn revealing costumes! Damn fanservice! Brrr!

Hehehe. ^_~

"See?" she said, her teeth chattering as she lowered herself to
the ground and tried to look as imperious as possible when covered with 
seaweed and shuddering uncontrollably. "I t-told you we were p-past the 
groundline."

Suggest: ground line

Actually, "ground line" would not be accurate either, although it is closer 
than my own little mishap. The correct term would be "grounding line": it 
refers to the specific point under an ice shelf where the glacier ceases to 
rest over solid earth and starts to float over the surface of the water. The 
Milne Ice Shelf, where this little battle took place, is one of the largest 
ice shelves in Canada, and it extends more than 42 km (or about 26 miles) 
past the grounding line of the Milne glacier. At various points over the 
sea, the ice can be anywhere from 10 to 40 m thick. That's about 30 to 131 
feet down just to hit water!

So basically, they are sitting on top of a lot of ice, and there is a lot of 
water under them. Basically, there should be just about enough to sink a 
dinosaur.  ^_^

As for the story itself: I like the back-story behind the 
ridiculously-named youma (a fusion of 'Onibanwanshu' and a bandanna).

Good catch! Yep, like most youma, Nana-chan's name is a bad pun.

It makes her character
rounder and important, and less like canon fodder. I bow at your presence 
for
making sure that each and every last character has ample screen time, 
development, and relative equality.

Thanks again! As I said, I really do work at making sure everyone gets fair 
play as far as screen time is concerned. It does make my chapters a little 
on the lengthy end, I admit, but I figure it will pay off in the end when it 
all starts coming together. ^_^

Then there's the second half of the story with Petz and Kaolinite. What can 
I say? It's action-packed and tongue-in-cheek snarky.

Glad to hear you're liking the returning villains - reactions to them seem 
to vary. Personally, I like them, and they actually have a role to play in 
the plot, so it's nice to know that they won't be too bothersome for people 
to have around. :p

As an added bonus, it was
even suspenseful to boot. I have nothing more to say. Keep on writing. 
Can't wait for the next chapter.

Great to hear from you! Thanks for taking the time to work through all this 
stuff - I know it can seem a little daunting. I'm glad you did: there was a 
lot in here that needed to get patched up, and I'm going to need to work on 
keeping my batting average a bit lower in the future. Ah, well: at least 
it's always the same rules I keep breaking, right? :p

Anyway, it looks like I'm just about all caught up to the current 
chapters... hooray for me! I was hoping I would get through all this before 
the end of the week. Chapter 10 will be out as soon as I finish working on 
it, but I've learned a little too much to start predicting when that will 
be.

Later!

-Morgan Hudson

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