ASH: ASH #109 - The Office Part 3: TGIF

[Andrew Perron]

On Wed, 27 Oct 2010 14:48:30 +0000 (UTC), Dave Van Domelen wrote:

>      Vicente nodded to Cristovo.  It was time for another lesson, the humans
> were once again spreading a little too close to the family's lands, as
> evidenced by the small party setting up camp.  As long as they merely drove
> out in the day and went back to their towns at night, the human patrols were
> tolerated.  After all, the family understood that they weren't the only ones
> who had the right to defend territory.

Mysterious!  Intriguing!  Feline!

>      People tended to assume Oni's sometimes distant and aloof appearance was
> simply a result of her powers.  Maybe she seemed to be ignoring you because
> her mind was inhabiting a magnetic ghost miles away, her body running on
> autopilot.  But Justice knew that Saori really was just that sort of person,
> even when her mind was in her body.  She'd let people run off at the mouth,
> waiting for what she considered to be the right time to interject something
> important.  If she didn't think you'd listen to what she had to say, she
> didn't bother saying it.

Personally, I just get distracted!

>      Meteor shivered a little, and Solar Max recognized that look.  The
> Office reminded her of her parents, emotionally distant "wage slaves" who had
> put in ten hour days at the office not because they had to, but because it
> was their way of hiding from the horror of 1998.  A lot of people who
> survived had just buried themselves in work, using the excuse that the nation
> needed everyone to pitch in if things were going to avoid collapse, but
> really just trying to shut out the voices that told them that the world had
> already ended and they had been abandoned by God.

Interesting.  Have we seen this before?

>      Still, it was only a temporary solution.  She had to let her superiors
> know about the Office, so that they would know to countermand any attempts to
> access it by those who were higher in the hierarchy than Delta herself.  And
> then they had to decide if it was time to take another shot at simply
> destroying Earth before it could further infect the galaxy....

Hmmmmmm.  So this is being set up as a slow burn...

>      "Actually, I'm starting to get the feeling that this isn't something out
> of TwenCen dystopian literature," Breaker mused.  "It's not ominous or
> malevolent, simply focused on following correct procedure and helping you do
> so as well.  Even if, um, you don't appreciate its help."

I quite like this concept!  Very postcyberpunk.

>      "Why, the Name Fight, of course," the Human Resource grinned ferally,
> suddenly wearing the form of the original Cabellero.  "I hereby formally
> challenge you to the right to the name of El Cabellero Verde!"

Awesome.

>      The original Caballero coughed bloodily.  "I am afraid my gift is not
> that strong.  Perhaps you...can carry on...for me...."
>      And with that, he died.

Double awesome!
>      "But none of this is a matter for us, at least not at the moment," Solar
> Max told the various people, teleconference screens and mystically animated
> portraits in the room.  "And I'm perfectly happy to let someone else take
> care of the paperwork this time."

Huh.  Not how I expected this arc to end.

Andrew "NO .SIG MAN" "Juan" Perron, innnnnnnnnnteresting.