Mark Doherty wrote:
At 08:11 PM 22/10/97 -0400, Matthew Campbell wrote:
Mark Doherty wrote:
I'm Here to Help
by Mark Doherty(mdoherty@mailbox.uq.edu.au)
Chapter 3
Sailor Moon. Sailors Procyon, Formalhaut, and Terra. The ten members of
The Rising Stars, drawn from such diverse countries as Pakistan,
Indonesia, Spain and China. The five member Brazilian team whose name I
have regrettably forgotten. Every member of the Australian team, The
Southern Cross, except for Opal. The Italian girl who liked to dress
like Zorro. That Englishman who used a rapier. And at least twenty other
people with power, one of whom sacrificed herself, just so that I could
continue to fight. And, of course, the ordinary people. Soldiers,
salarymen, husbands, wives... normal people.
Let me ask you a question. Do you read Kurt Busiek's Astro City? (It's
a comic book). I ask because the type of universe building you're doing
hear reminds me of it in a good way. Heck, I'd be willing to read a
story about the Italian girl who dressed like Zorro.
I haven't. Two other different people have recommended it to me now, the
most recent when I started buying Thunderbolts(and I started buying that AFTER
the second chapter was released, BTW). I guess I should check it out, the
way people keep mentioning it to me.
Try buying the trade paperback that has the six issues of the
mini-series. Thunderbolts is good, but Astro City is where Kurt's best
work is.
It's just a little way of building the universe. Just for the hell of it,
I'll try to fit any Sailor Moon fic I do into the one universe, so there's
always the possibility that these characters could be used. But for now,
they serve to paint a backdrop.
Cool.
You keep mentioning ruins and burned out buildings. Yet at the same
time it seems like Serenity rules the entire world. Is she just letting
everywhere except Crystal Tokyo go to hell?
Hmm... I think I have a journal entry up my sleeve explaining this one.
Wait and see, he... er... 'explains' it soon.
Explanation no doubt slanted to his unique view point.
"I don't suppose you remember which horses won at the track in the
next couple of weeks? Just imagine the bets we could make..." he said to
the crystal hidden underneath his shirt. After a small pause, he harumphed,
I'm really getting curious as to who or what this crystal actually is.
And I'm not going to tell! Bwahahahahahahahahaha!!!
What, never? Or are you just not going to tell anytime soon. You're
not just going to never tell us, right?
He sighed, shook his head, and lowered his arm. "No, you're right. If
not me, then whom? There is no-one else to stop the madness of Serenity.
I cannot afford such selfishness." He leaned back against the tree again,
After a thousand years he still fights alone, eh? Has he given up on
recruiting others or does no one else have any problem with Serenity?
All the hardliners got exiled in the initial fights after the ice withdrew,
to form the Black Moon clan. Anyone left was either on the other side, or
else a normal mortal, and not really worth recruiting.
OK, this is the main reason I'm responding. First, I just assumed new
paranormals would be born or created every year. So it seems
reasonable 'Nameless' would be trying to recruit them to his side, in
order to rebuild the rebellion.
Now as for your line about 'normal mortals' not being worth
recruiting.... You say you're a Thunderbolts reader. I refer you to
the following quote from issue #9.
THE RADIOACTIVE MAN: No! It cannot be! You were helpless! You are but
an ordinary man!
CAPTAIN AMERICA: Never underestimate an ordinary man.
Hmmm. Bet Cap would have joined the Rebellion. Probably would have won
too. :)
Actually, I have an idea for a Sailor Moon fanfic, to be written
sometime this century. It's called "Hero for a New Age". Basically,
it's about a man with no powers who's trying to help the Senshi fight
their enemies. He's really trying to prove a point. "She said they
were heroes from another age, reincarnated to protect the future. One
question. Why can't the future protect itself?" This could be fun, as
I can have him spend an entire chapter heroically trying to defeat a
monster the Senshi would wipe up in five minutes.
I really feel for poor 'nameless' here. What do you say you let him
win and kill Serenity. Yeah, that's it. Do the unexpected and have
him actually win. Time paradox? He's not worried about some steenking
time paradox.
There does seem to be a bit of an inevitability to his defeat, doesn't there?
Perhaps because he just can't cut a break, and win one.
Well, I'm sure you already have a good ending in mind.
They obviously didn't know what the crystal truly was. If they had, they
would have put more guards on it than they did on me.
SO WHAT IS IT! Arghhh. This mystery is killing me.
And I'm not going to tell! Bwahahahahahahahahahaha!!! Cough, cough.
You'll tell us *eventually*, right?
At some point are you going to reveal exactly *why* the Senshi chose to
reveal so little about this period to the history book writers?
Possibly. I haven't finalised the chapter 5 Senshi journals yet, I may
mention it there.
A large part of it depends on if they ever figure out who 'Nameless' is
and where he's actually from. (I'm speaking of them figuring out future
Nameless in the past.)
How can you not cheer for this guy? We have yet to see him do anything
really horrible (Killing youmas doesn't count since the Senshi do that
too.)
Er... next chapter, things come to a head regarding the relatively gentle
way he's been acting.
I hope he doesn't do anything too evil.
The youma killer is almost defined by the way he conserves every drop of
energy. It would only be natural that he would look on the expenditure
required for a citywide illusion, and moving around those planes, as
foolishly overspending energy.
And he's not finished with thinking about Jadeite just yet, don't you
worry.
I have no idea what you mean by that, but it sure sounds interesting.
Somehow, I can't see him allying himself with the Dark Kingdom. He
wants frredom, not to replace Serenity with Mettalia.
He turned, and walked away from the fight. "Huh, to see all that energy
being wasted in such an unbelievably crass display of macho desperation.
It's enough to make me want to cry. I need to get away from this foolishness
for a while."
You know, this makes me look back on that episode with a whole new eye.
Why the heck was Jaedite acting like that, anyway. Just saying he's
stupid doesn't cut it.
There will be an attempt by the killer to rationalise the energy waste
by Jadeite, in the next chapter or two.
Like I said, no idea where you're going, but it sounds interesting.
I suppose there's no way he's going to make it to the four weird
sisters. Too bad.
Not if I finish it at the first part, no. If I decide to continue beyond,
there's at least a good chance, though. Certainly, the question is there:
what would he think of the Nemesis clan, especially _PRINCE_ Demand?
I hope you do continue it. He would probably be happy to see the
Nemesis clan alive and prospering, and very unhappy to see them under
the influence of yet another powerful being. (His opinion of Sailor
Moon's 'healing' of the weird sisters need not be discussed)
Also, is he the only rebel left in the future?
The only one not on Nemesis. Again, there is a journal entry which basically
says he's all alone, in the next chapter.
I just figured in hundreds of years, other people might have become
unhappy with Serenity's rule as well. I wasn't talking about active
fighters so much as I was about "popular support". You know, butchers,
bakers, and candlestick makers, who might give a silent cheer when
reading about his exploits in the newspaper.
I'd like to know how he does at recruiting others to his cause. How is
he viewed by those outside Crystal Tokyo. A devil? A hero? Or
somewhere in between. Finally, we really need another POV.
Yep, other POV's are definitely needed. Chapter 5.
I'm beginning to hate Serenity myself, simply because if 'Nameless' (who
obviously has a large core of decency beneath his obession) hates her,
well there must be some merit to his viewpoint. That's why I'm asking
about the opinions of those outside Crystal Tokyo. They're likely to
come closest to the truth.
Sometimes, right and wrong are merely a matter of perception. He hates
Serenity for legitimate reasons, the Purification being top of the list,
her becoming a 'benevolent tyrant'(first chapter), a close second.
Hearing about the Purification will be good. I understand the
benevolent tyrant part, I just.... Oh I guess you have explained it
pretty well in the first few chapters. Imagining all the things a
benevolent tyrant might pull is probably better the you trying to list
them, anyway.