Hist super-liner slip seed stalkstrum builtgrown wash branched out in snapthorn belly bass crawler phloematic thornplex virsliclk-ix-that’ls its thatls riggered out scale calyx critical sepals critical corolla critical stemens engage floodbogmud lignicore pasted drowned thing. It made a sound.

haha It never gets old, Overall I must say excellence unfeathered

I was wondering about the jewels. The way I read it, it sounds like the Carrickers went to Cold Harbor, Haekele took a bunch of jewels, and he paid the price for it by being possessed by a scamp. Sounds like a fable to me except instead of the greedy fool taking the gems and paying the price for his foolish greed, Cyrus had the good sense to tell Haekele to dump the gems and avoid punishment. Did Cy know what was going to happen to him? Also did Haekele get killed by an Imperial potato?

Also, to MK: Why not use line breaks to separate dialogue in the italicized portions and use a few dialogue markers throughout. I'm guessing it's not your style, but it helps me a lot when reading extended dialogue scenes.

It reminds me of two things:
The period where Peryite posed as the Emperor, and Sermon 12. That makes two ruling kings that have done illicit business with King of [censored]. It's turning into a prerequisite for absolute rule, but I like the implications of that. No one gets anywhere playing nice and only associating with saints.

Fine. Argue semantics. There are no good guys or bad guys only better and worse guys, and there don't seem to be any better guys here. It's all well and good to root for Cy with his reckless abandon for danger and pathological, Ulysses-like inability to stop adventuring and fighting. I don't like the fact that he'd sacrifice one of his crew though and destroy just for the sake of destruction, the latter making him a terrorist. I'm not exactly sure what Cy's game is in the long run, but it seems mental for him to continue his life in this manner. It's like he's a PC. PC's don't settle down or make due with the wealth they have; they just keep fighting, killing, stealing, amassing.

As for Tiber, the only reason I wouldn't completely root for him is because of what he did to Tobias. Not a good thing to torture someone to death with the Thu'um. In this case it feels contrived just to give Cy a non-extrinsic reason for fighting Tiber. And @your timeline, you place it early, when it felt to me like it happened after the Carrick landed on Masser.

*edit*
And it feels like Cyrus is not long for this world. He'll surely outmaneuver Tiber, the Empire, the Hist, and whatever foes make an appearance in this story, but based on the things he does here and the things Tiber says he's done in the past; Cyrus' list of enemies is quite large, and the fact that Cy has no intention of stopping means he will die soon. The evaporation of Cy's crew by death and waning trust and confidence of Cy seems like foreshadowing. It even seems like Cy's aware of this.

I don't think Tobias is really the reason Cy is fighting Ti, just an added bonus. I'd think that Tobias would be mentioned during the 'present tense' sections if he were on the ship, so I figured that it happened a while back.

Just another tale of adventures past then. As I've said before, I really dig the way Cy reminisces about past battles rather than calmer times, as we almost always see in "battlefield memories". It gives the narrative a feeling of tenseness and circularity befitting Cy's character.

Quoting you from another thread to keep stuff in one place (and bump this thing).

Mostly seconded. I agree that the supporting cast is a huge part of this. I love the dynamic of the Carrick, be it here or in the earlier meeting with Vivec. We don't see much of them, but they're strong characters none the less (I've got an unexplainable love for the unnamed young Scribe). Also agree with the "Carrick loosing itself," which I think is a great way to put it. They've gone to the ends of the earth and done all this fantastical stuff, formed strong bonds. But it seems like Cyrus just keeps pushing them. He lives up to his moniker as the Restless. I'm going to attribute it to his past - he can't come to terms with what he's done, so he just keeps doing it. At some point you forget the reason for your actions and go on because it's the only thing you know how to to; keep pushing it to try and find purpose again. In this way, we see Cyrus' descent: he is an unintentional revolutionary in Redguard, a pirate driven only by his honor and by adventure in the first Sword-Meeting, and now he is back to fighting against the Empire (All Flags Navy, the Battlespire) despite not having any real cause to do so, while trying to win over anyone along the way. I'd also be interested in seeing what happened between him and his wife, seeing as his first accidental murder of his brother-in-law defined his entire character.

What I don't agree with is your assertion that Cyrus doesn't care for them (has little reaction to their deaths). I find his reaction to Coyle's death incredibly moving. This guy is his longtime friend, one of the first, the guy who was there when it all started. Outwardly, Cyrus is trying to remain the strong, stoic captain ("If he talks again, burn him") but inwardly he does care for his friend, wants to see him rest in peace ("Please stay quiet, Coyle. Just this once"). Have you seen the Doctor Who episode about the library and the death-shades? I the feeling of that here, but much more condensed.

There are other tender scenes, too. The part where Cyrus catches Chemli and compliments her. It's not a "you're the awesomest!" sort of compliment, but a "you'll do good, kid" one. He remembers himself being her, in a sense. It's a nice contrast to the Tobias parts earlier on. Or the part in the beginning where they make moonfall and he reminds them to have their suits in order.

But yea, he's a dike in this one. I can't help but care for him, but his actions put the idea of an antihero in perspective. It's kind of like Luke destroying the Deathstar, with millions (billions?) of lives aboard. Except that here we're very blatantly told that what he did was not all (or perhaps not any) good, made to see that the hero is perhaps just a very lovable villain. Or not so lovable, because I think dissolution (a loss of sympathy) is a very valid reaction at this point.


Please, other people, chime in. I'm really excited about where this is going as a story.

Why do I get the feeling Cyrus is going to lose?

Edit: I never played Redguard, where these characters in it?

Personally, I get that feeling because even if he wins and gets whatever he wants from Tiber... it'll be a pyrric victory and Cyrus might not come out the end as Cyrus. As I said in another thread, I could see this ending as a Greek tragedy. Cyrus as the archetypal hero, a character flaw, a final self-revelation, and a downfall at his own hands.

Some of them, yes. Cyrus and Coyle were, as were Tobias and S'rathra (mentioned in the story but not shown). Chemli and Jill are new, afaik, but the rest of the crew was in the http://www.imperial-library.info/content/origin-cyrus comic as unnamed characters.

[edit] Rereading the comic, when I found the quotation that describes all this perfectly: "Cyrus desperately trying to displace the guilt of the past in bloody deeds of the present."

True, I could easily be misinterpreting Cyrus' response to Coyle's death. I didn't even know he was dead the first read through. My only problem with this story is that the actual actions are hard to follow in points like for example, Coyle's death and the charge through artillery fire. Also Haekele's "death" was confusing. What I really like is how Cyrus seems to be evolving so organically. From what MK was saying Cyrus is writing himself.

And maybe it's because we haven't seen dozens of Carrick stories, and we didn't see any crew die in the first Sword-Meeting, but it feels like this is a real end a chapter for Cyrus. Three big characters are dead, and no matter what happens to Cyrus, things will be very different. What I love about Cyrus is the way he's not just a captain but a friend, and he's far from perfect. In the first Sword-Meeting his crew helps him and gives him advice. Also Cy's not so perfect that he's immune to the occasional taunt or slight, and the other crew members bust each others' balls from time to time. So what do I think this story will amount to?

I think the quirky, smart aleck Cyrus is dying with his crew, and he's going to take the road to introversion. Not for the cliche reason of being tortured over losing friends but because he'll just have less people to talk to. And this will make him less and less amiable until he is restlessness personified, a ghost going through the motions tragically ignorant of why.

And it is a bit reminiscent of the death shades now that I think about it. That was one of the coolest/saddest moments from Doctor Who.

If there is a character that is more of a MK-TES protagonist than Cyrus, it's Tiber Septim... and Aka-Lork. Don't see this working out well for the Hoon Ding.

Good story being used to fill in some gaps. Thumbs up, looking forward to the completion (and the second half of the latest Aldudagga).

Cyrus is definitely going to win this. Cyrus always wins, but when this is over Cyrus may not still be Cyrus. He may be Talos.

Do you think that's because we're seeing this one through an Imperial-lens? Cyrus is a mercurial spirit come to insult the Emperor and although he is successful, he is still the villain because he dared to cross the Tiber? I forget if Vivec's is told through Vivec's perspective, though it wouldn't really matter if it did I suppose.

Too predictable, IMO.

The Talos theory is in the garbage now, so I'm giving that up. It still seems inevitable for Cyrus to turn villainously ambivalent.

New bit up. I think we've leveled the playing field now.

Or [censored] tilted it.

Tilted it? Turned it upside-down, sideways, and then inverted it for good measure. Dammit man, you're playing with my heart here, and my logic. Just when I think I know how it's going everything switches.

Too good, in other words.

So Tiber Septim lives up to expectations then, and then dances a jig on top of them.

I'm not sure whether that just made Tiber Septim more or less frightening. Either way, I'm pretty sure that last part qualifies as wonderful. Reminds me of Tedders in full Sheo flow. That's what reading about a God among mortals should feel like.

It's nice to see a real proper thu'um. Talking to folks in chat right now and the general consensus is this makes the rest feel like a kiddy park.

Awesome.

Except now I'm going to have to check under my bed every night, just in case Tiber Septim is hiding there, on all fours.

You know what? I'd completely forgotten about this and still hadn't read it. Now i get to read it with the extra bits. Ballin'

Geez. So this is how Tobias bit it. Pun intended. He had a falling out with Cyrus and tried to ambush Tiber but got shouted down. I'm not sure I understand the dialogue between Tiber and Tobias up to the point where Tiber kills him, but it sounds like they're discussing Cyrus and Cy's plans against Tiber along with Tobias' misgivings concerning Cyrus. Why then does Tiber turn into a complete maniac here? Like I had said earlier either on here or TIL, it feels like Tiber is being contrived to be unnecessarily cruel in order to make Cy's victory and his humiliation of Tiber more noble. Like Reman, we hardly knew anything about Tiber, save the histories, and besides Many-Headed Talos we never even heard him speak. So I guess it's fair to do whatever you want with him as a character. To me however, it feels strange. Especially to make him a lunatic. Pun intended. Not sure how this could turn out.

So in the present Tiber has a helmet on which nullifies his Thu'um, and if Cy manages to steal it, Tiber will link up with the Imperial history of having lost his voice. What then will happen to Cyrus? If we assume that something like the Thu'um can be stolen and imbibed, Cy will now have Thu'um? More importantly his voice will now be that of Tiber Septim? Again if I had to put my subjective logic on it all, how would Cy not become Tiber?

This whole piece is a casting-down of heroes. Tiber got more 'evil', by Cyrus is hardly a good guy, either. Really, when you think about it, those elements were there (an emperor who is made of people who betray one another for power, who conquers the whole world, and steals heaven's mandate is already scary), they're just being pointed out and amplified. http://imperial-library.info/content/fireside-chats is mythology strait up, and, for some reason, doesn't read half as [censored] terrifying as Tiber in this.

Cyrus, however, seems to at least have a moral center. Tiber is just horrifying.


Edit: Never mind what I said before.

Talos is made of betrayers. This is pre-Talos. And yes, Tiber is truly monstrous here. If nothing else I take this piece as a go-ahead for some ideas of mine that I had thought too [censored] up to write purely because of their grotesqueness. And having a character laugh and jest while committing a heinous act ramps up the sickness of it. I still wonder how Cyrus could stand more than a few moments in Tiber's presence without being Thu'um'd to pieces.

Pre-Talos? How do you figure? He's already conquered Tamriel, which means he's already Talos in my book. He's had the power to turn jungle and retcon the Pancratosword, not to mention the timeline of the section.

I think it's saying that Tiber was holding back. Now it's on.

Allie has been known to do things that looked pretty evil and then reload, too. Just sayin'.