7.9 KiB
[RT] Glimwarden, Chapter 7
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Author: u/alexanderwales Time flies like an arrow*
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Score: 45
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Created: 2016-07-01T17:17:50
Post:
Comments:
u/CouteauBleu [+22] We are the Empire. (2 hours later)
Well, I'm in a much better mood now than I was before I started reading. Random thoughts:
Colsum is a super interesting character. He gave me a Jaimie Lannister-ish vibe of "Do what is of most interest to me, unless doing the right thing is easier, or when I'm bored". And he seems to really enjoy playing the town's arch-villain.
Melanie exhibits surprising depth. I like that she starts second-guessing herself and actually thinks about what Colsum said about her being spiteful.
"You see, everything you did from that point on was motivated by your pure, undiluted spite." "No, I was actually motivated by several different mostly non-dramatic things. Sorry, turns out I'm a multi-dimensional character." "Oh. Never mind then."
"So you see, I'm not a villain at all! I mean, it's not my fault I'm making you work 24/24h, every day of the week, for a dept you never actually contracted! Now feel guilty for hating me!"
Wait, so there won't be any structural changes in the town's defense systems? No fortifications? No conscripted snipers? No mandatory training for the auxiliaries? Come on, Philip, it's your time to shine!
I'm hesitantly shipping Philip and Melanie from now on. Um. If that's alright.
Melanie seems pretty good at noticing people's body language. Not sure how it plays into her character, but it's definitely there.
"The Mender and the Builder where brothers who lived together in harmony for eons. Then one of them asked the other, hey, have you ever thought to compare the characteristic that defines my entire life to the very similar characteristic that defines your life?" "No! What a novel idea! Let's fight to the death!" Sounds legit.
I didn't think about it last time, but how did Philip learn to put an unconscious person in recovery position? Somehow I don't think he has any experience caring for people in ethylic coma, so I guess he has first aid training?
u/CCC_037 [+1] (2 days later)
First aid training is a lot more common in worlds where injury is more likely. And it's the sort of thing that's easy to get and can make you look like a hero, so I am not surprised Philip made the effort to know about it. Just a bit of training and one lucky incident and he wins a lot of votes when he runs for mayor...
u/Aretii [+17] Cultist of Cthugha (4 hours later)
"I cried over what I thought was your death and went to the hospital to see for myself that you were all right, but it's not because I like you or anything, b-b-baka!!!"
u/gryfft [+17] (3 hours later)
Great chapter. I notice that Philip left the skipped 15 minutes out of his story. Combined with the bit about clearing the vomit from Sander's airway (a detail nobody could or would challenge), he's managed to make his contribution seem pretty heroic.
I can see these three making it through Glimwarden as best friends and fierce allies... with nobody but Sander experiencing any actual fondness or enjoyment of the others' company.
u/waylandertheslayer [+6] (16 hours later)
I'm going to go ahead and guess that the lantern failure was sabotage, not accident. Whether it's Colsum or someone else, the timing is too convenient (it happens shortly after the competition is announced, there just happens to be a nearby new, extra-strong Darkling, and the lantern comes back on right after the competition is thinned out - auxiliaries - and new spots are made available - 4 dead glimwardens?)
Also, Colsum already has at least one Glimwarden who he's working with to some extent, calling it now. Might not be a close relationship, but some sort of trade of information, even if it's just minor, is probably happening. He just strikes me as that sort of person, especially after talking to Melanie. It's unlikely that he told her the whole truth, and slightly less unlikely that he didn't lie at least once.
u/None [+6] (a day later)
[deleted]
u/CouteauBleu [+5] We are the Empire. (a day later)
I'm not sure this is possible. From what we've seen of Light’s Hollow's administration, they have pretty good record keeping, and could probably attest the authenticity of whatever acknowledgment of debt Colsum has.
u/TheLeo3314 [+4] (a day later)
Hey I just devoured the series up to this point and felt like sharing my thoughts.
I'm sure other people have mentioned it but I'm getting a RWBY vibe, and I mean that in the best way possible. RWBY has, until recently, a too light tone for how dreary that universe is. Your tale does a better job, in my opinion, of accurately describing the grim (heh) situation humanity is in struggling against a terrifying and inevitable foe.
Your world building is quite interesting so far, with a ton of potential, and your characterization is strong - which was my main complaint with limelight. That's not to say those characters were done badly, but I already find myself more attached to glimwarden's POV characters than any of the people from limelight.
Anyway, I just wanted to drop by to say "heck yes" and that I'm looking forward to new chapters.
u/ZeroNihilist [+3] (3 days later)
Finally got around to reading this chapter. Incidentally, it isn't listed in the Glimwarden Index page (./glimwarden/).
Melanie ran out of horse meat soup unexpectedly, which indicates that either her impromptu lie in chapter 5 about the history of the soup was successful (and thus that the stories she tells are useful despite her misgivings) or that Sander and Philip apparently enjoying it was enough for word of mouth to spread. Or, conceivably, that people just wanted a piece of some of the last horses of Light's hollow.
I think her arc will involve becoming very good at crafting stories. Philip is persuasive and Sander is knowledgeable, but Melanie will be the one to capture hearts and minds. Give them a narrative to believe in and you can sway a whole town.
There were signatures that frightened her, ones that almost always belonged to villains in the stories that described them: mind control, mind reading, or the ability to reach into a person’s head and change their emotions around.
Potential hint about the future of her arc or that of one of the main trio.
“The reaction to the failure isn’t actually about stopping the failure from happening,” said Melanie. Low expectations of the world were almost always justified. She noticed Phiip looking at her more intently than she really liked.
Well that's going to make Philip very interested indeed. He doesn't seem to really understand people's deeper motivations at all, and may latch onto her as a candidate for shoring up the holes in his knowledge.
u/CouteauBleu [+2] We are the Empire. (4 days later)
Or, conceivably, that people just wanted a piece of some of the last horses of Light's hollow.
Probably that, scarcity effect and all.
u/TotesMessenger [+1] (15 hours later)
I'm a bot, bleep, bloop. Someone has linked to this thread from another place on reddit:
- [/r/glimwarden] Glimwarden Discussion Link - Chapter 7
^(If you follow any of the above links, please respect the rules of reddit and don't vote in the other threads.) ^(Info ^/ ^Contact)
u/fljared [+1] United Federation of Planets (2 days later)
So we have a confirmation that there exist long distance travel, which I wasn't sure of.