MISC: The Girl Who Saved the World

[Drew Perron]

On 10/23/2015 10:47 PM, George Phillies wrote:
> I am going to restart this, with pieces in digestible shorter segments.

Hell yeah! <3 I remember the original edit of this coming out back when I was a 
hardcore lurker in the late '90s and being an effective character-driven 
narrative. Let's see how this version stacks up!

> Err, can't most people type in their UID and password?
>
> Yes, but they needed to known what the password was.  Password Lord does
> not need to be told what password to type.  He simply *knows*.

Ohhhhhh. o.o What power!

> Meet Eclipse.
> She's pretty, hardworking, bright, self-reliant, good with tools.  She’s
> everything a twelve-year old girl should be.  She also flies, reads
> minds, and is not afraid of necessary violence.
> Now she’s procured the Key to Paradise. And everyone in the world will
> be happy to kill her to get their hands on it.

Good capsule!

> Kniaz Kang's Shanghai Marco Polo
> North Cosmopolis, Washington
> January 10, 2018

That's an enticing jumble of cultural signifiers to start off with, I must say.

> The sign in the parking lot announced: Kniaz Kang's Shanghai Marco Polo.
> Featuring the finest in Chinese, Italian, and Russian Cuisine.  Invented
> Here -- General Tso's Pizza! Invented Here -- Il Professore's Dessert
> Pizza!

Heeheehee.

> After all, hash, egg rolls, borscht,
> and pizza were in large part based on chopping many things very finely,
> a skill that his employees denied was a gift.

That's an odd way to put it.

> Teranike publically
> denied being what Kang knew she was, namely a Polarian from Otherearth
> stranded when her empire closed the WorldGate.

:o

>     Dorothy Elizabeth Schumacher was North Cosmopolis's best-known public
> persona.  She had not planned to be public.  However, when the agent of
> the League of Terran Justice walked up to the front entrance of her High
> School, started screaming "Down with Private Education",  and started
> shooting up student automobiles, she did what any persona should.  In
> her case, it was put up her force field, run directly in front of the
> agent thus taking some dozens of rounds square in the chest, and flying
> -- literally -- tackle the loon into a wall.

YEAH!!! This is what I'm talkin' about.

> The Society had
> decided to channel the greatest motion picture actor in the history of
> Oregon.  They expected to speak to Stanford Smith, who had made more
> than 200 westerns and gone on to be Grand Trademaster of All Leviorkian.

Every specific noun in this is fascinating.

> They’d agreed,
> when they broke up, that they would forget each other.  A mentalist had
> ensured that she had no remaining memories of him. No one else had known
> that she had had a boyfriend, not even her parents, so questions about
> him remained unanswered.

Fascinating. You're really building a world; I *think* I remember that the 
original version of this story was a lot more focused on wide societal trends 
and less on these important details.

> The usual third at her table was the seventh-grade boy who, if pressed,
> claimed he was Silk's heroic side-kick, there to protect her from truly
> dangerous villains.  He had his trusty slingshot for that.  He confessed
> that he never carried his slingshot.  Someone could get hurt.

Oh my god what a cutie.

> The text alternated every few seconds between orange
> lettering on a blue field and violet lettering on a yellow field, colors
> reserved for the most serious emergencies.

Ow. I can see why.

> "I am now broadcasting from
> Atlanticea.  The sounds you hear behind me are the waves of the
> Atlantic.  Atlanticea has just  been raised from the ocean by the power
> of the Holy Namestone. Not one hour ago, a figure appeared above the
> entrance to the Great Maze and announced she would be contesting
> possession of the Namestone.   The island promptly rose to greet her.
> She, or perhaps he, has already entered the Maze.  All-Channel
> broadcasting of the contest by the Namestone itself will begin momentarily."

YES. This makes this event feel important and epic, strange and fitting 
fascinating tropes. It feels much like the incursions people have taken into 
what a universe affected by superhero events would really be like, but several 
steps further - and weirder - than most examples I've seen.

> Kang returned to his chopping, interrupted by instructions to his
> assistants.  "Benito, just keep making pizza shells.  We're going to
> have a huge business today.  Nikolai, that cabbage was a bit mature;
> steam it an extra ten minutes. Wang, lower the sports view screens.
> Almost everyone will want to watch.  Oh, there's the announcement,
> Governor Molnar is cancelling public school sessions; 'After all, the
> kids will be paying absolutely no attention'. Schools stay open so
> children have a place to be if parents are working.  Vito? Put that
> announcement up on the Big Sign." Kang looked over his cash register.
>
> "Ah, Miss Schumacher.  The usual breakfast, the usual tab.  You didn't
> know about this in advance?" Kang asked. "Or are you the next challenger?"

RAD. :D

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