45 KiB
r!Animorphs: The Reckoning - Chapter 33 - Marco
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Author: u/4t0m Chaos Legion*
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URL: http://archiveofourown.org/works/5627803/chapters/22292552
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Score: 61
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Created: 2017-02-27T09:33:58
Post:
Comments:
u/CouteauBleu [+22] We are the Empire. (4 hours later)
Things blowing up! Livestreams broadcasts! Abducting intelligence officers! Man, as off-rails as this thing went, it's still Animorphs. If not to the letter, to the spirit.
I like the operation the Animorphs are setting up. Reminds me a bit of Worm, with the whole "recruiting civilians, operating undercover and on the run" themes.
The whole "torturing a yeerk to death" thing was eerily similar to a CHERUB book, where the kids infiltrate animal's rights terrorists and interrupt a livestream where they force-feed detergent to a corporate executive. The Animorphs acted a lot like the terrorists in the book did (except more brutally).
Marco's motheeeeeeer!
The Animorphs give a lot of tactical information in that broadcast, some of which V3 probably didn't know they knew (for instance, that he had a "political rival", or the "stasis technology"), though it's disguised enough to give them plausible deniability.
I like that they're really going for the "information wants to be free" route. It makes a lot of sense, and they're making a pretty good effort to counter Esplin's half truths and lies by omission.
Poor Daskan. All he wanted was... well, we don't really know what he wanted. Proooobably didn't get it. Because he died. Horribly.
I kinda wish the Animorphs had sent a message to Telor, like "guys, Visser 3 killed your brothers, he's gonna do the same to you!". Especially if Rachel could remember something incriminating.
By the way, Visser 3 must so pissed right now. Come on, I threw an asteroid at these guys? How many of them are still alive?
Wait, Paul Evans has the power to give any sergeant command of an off-the-book black ops squad? That's both awesome and kinda creepy. Though I guess if it's off the book, all he really has to do is send them some money and tell them "you work for her now", and the rest is faking papers and making excuses.
I remember the first interlude where Visser 3 started planning for what would happen if the team started using the cube full time. It looks like we're getting close to this scenario. That is, until David inevitably steals it and everything goes to shit.
Dammit, Algeria! Why won't you let us do our own thing? Anyway, I'm glad we're starting to see the impact the events have on the entire world, even if it's just a glimpse.
The Australian government just flat-out taunting North Korea in the middle of an international crisis strikes me as pretty odd, on the other hand. And petty.
Wait, doesn't showing Sergeant Nickerson in public negate the point of giving her a secret task force? I mean, she's obviously going into hiding from then on, but still.
Sergeant Nickerson confirming the kid's story reminds me that there is no way they could prove any of what they say. Like Paul Evans said, they've proved they're interesting, but that's about it. They could have faked the witnesses (unless those stay in the public eye afterwards), infested David themselves, and everything they said could be lies.
The way Marco acknowledges David's pain, but not the yeerks, and goes "This is V3's fault" is really creepy; and is another CHERUB bad guys parallel.
It's really convenient that a yeerk starving to death is a perfectly clean process that doesn't leave any amount of dangerous mind-altering toxic waste the host brain. I mean, if I starved to death inside of someone's head, there would probably be puke and stuff everywhere!
Waaaait a sec. Timestamped by google... does this mean they're streaming on Youtube? Awesome!
And then I said: OATMEAL? Are you crazy?
The "fighting on 20 fronts at once" thing is a nice nod to canon, but I'm not sure it makes sense? The Andalites give bridge-slicing guns to their infantry. Surely they have enough nukes to glass 20 planets? (I mean, the USA certainly does) Unless Elfangor was an extremist, as Alloran's pupil?
"Animorphs out." Squeeeeeeeeeeee.
Honestly, the entire speech is super cool. The few theatrics moments (like "Welcome the Resistance"), the rising view count... But the most awesome part is the way Marco casually namedrops his group while live, to a million viewers, and Fox News. Like, you can just imagine the TV debates and the government speeches where people will just casually mention the Animorphs afterwards. (while Visser 3 watches, petting a cat, and goes "Damn these meddling kids! Damn you, Animorphs!")
While I'm on the subject, a really cool scene at the end of the Animorphs series was when the team last sneaked into the Blade Ship, got spotted, and guards (who usually shouted "Andalite bandits" as an alert) shouted "Animorphs!" I hope we get a scene like that at some point.
I like the way Jake is kinda casually dismissive of David's abuse. Well, no, I mean, it sucks, but it's very realistic.
Nooot sure what happened at the end. It's ominous.
u/TK17Studios [+17] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (8 hours later)
Paul Evans doesn't have the power to order black-ops squads around, but Paul Evans impersonating President Tyagi does.
Elfangor was an extremist, and the Andalites have life-preservation and non-interference policies that they're only slowly abandoning. Also, Earth was an unusual case, as most planets have a much lower total population (only Earth has a high enough population to straight-up outnumber multiple other host-producing planets).
OMINOUS INDEED.
Thanks as always for the feedback. <3
u/None [+6] (a day later)
Also, Earth was an unusual case, as most planets have a much lower total population (only Earth has a high enough population to straight-up outnumber multiple other host-producing planets).
I get the feeling this is because the Yeerks just got lucky (for certain ellimist/etc including definitions of 'lucky') to happen across a planet on which a sapient species was going through a historically-and-geologically brief unstable blow-off top as it unsustainably runs through concentrated fossil energy sources and natural resources before stabilizing after a millennium of crisis at high-tech low-density stable technic civilization (or low-tech low-density).
The timing of that, assuming it was deliberate, would imply either long-term control over the glacial cycles of Earth or timing of the Yeerk breakout. I suspect the latter.
u/TK17Studios [+6] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (a day later)
TINACBNEIAC
u/Bowbreaker [+3] Solitary Locust (2 days later)
Isn't it TINACBNIEAC?
u/CouteauBleu [+3] We are the Empire. (2 days later)
What does that mean?
u/None [+4] (2 days later)
Google suggests 'this is not a coincidence because nothing ever is a coincidence'.
u/TK17Studios [+4] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (2 days later)
It's from Scott Alexander's UNSONG. roaisol's correct.
u/TK17Studios [+2] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (2 days later)
Yes. I am burnt-out.
u/CCC_037 [+7] (23 hours later)
Dammit, Algeria! Why won't you let us do our own thing?
I kindof like the idea of Africa at least getting acknowledged during these negotiations.
u/Trips-Over-Tail [+3] Death of Crabs (a day later)
David is a psychopath, and his morph facsimile was able to hack Marco's brain to be more amenable to his desires.
u/WorkingMouse [+5] (a day later)
That seems like it would go against what we know of the morphing tech; if he can't mentally fight against Yeerks, there's no reason to think he'd be able to put up a defense to the old morphing mind meld.
I suspect instead that what we just witnessed was The Old Ones screwing with things. Remember, the Ellimist had something of a debt to be paid; how much energy do you think it would cost Crayak to give Marco a good impression of David?
u/Trips-Over-Tail [+3] Death of Crabs (2 days later)
About 1.21 Gigawatts?
u/kleind305 [+16] (17 hours later)
I know I haven't commented before now, but since comments are important for the author, I will give my thoughts:
This has the potential to be the single best work of rationalist fiction. My only fears are lack of commitment to finishing it (too many fanfics..), and a steep entry curve for the uninitiated.
You bear the community's hopes and dreams.
u/TK17Studios [+4] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (19 hours later)
<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3
^(all typed, no copy-paste)
u/eroticas [+12] (12 hours later)
Hypotheses, arranged from most to least likely:
The the fleeting change is the Ellimist or more likely Crayak, meddling, trying to change the outcome of things. Other than that, everything is as it seems - David just happens to be a severely abused sociopath who was captured by a yeerk, and Crayak wants him to be on the team to make the peaceful solution not work out.
David is an ordinary sociopath-like individual who is cooperating with the yeerks for self interested reasons. Marco is being controlled some other way. Perhaps via Leeran or other psychic creature.
David has some unusual mental abilities, enabling him to manipulate his yeerk and morph-David to mentally manipulate Marco.
Yeerks are able to do choose to permanently alter their host's minds before they die, the effects of this somehow hit Marco.
Turns out David's personal satisfaction includes the survival and thriving of humanity, a disorienting realization.
David's last name is Monroe, this is a crossover fic, and David just used Obliviate.
/u/TK17Studios
Also
closing down the mental copy of the kid so he wouldn’t suffer.
Implies morph-David is conscious, which if I recall correctly doesnn't automatically happen just from going through memories?
u/TK17Studios [+3] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (13 hours later)
u/None [+2] (4 days later)
Whichever being did it, it wasn't the one that offered them a choice. This was straight up control, not threading the needle through chaos.
u/scissorslizardspock [+13] (2 days later)
I haven't seen anyone else point this out, but:
Why use Rachel for the Chee-test, if you've already witnessed evidence that Chee rules don't apply to her?
I think they messed up.
u/TK17Studios [+8] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (2 days later)
Ooooooh, I literally didn't even think of that. +1.
u/None [+8] (5 hours later)
Question time!
I am very concerned. If there was ever a scene where somebody explicitly described what being in Jake's head is like, I missed it, but if there was I have to ask; why the hell does Marco think David is like another Jake?
From my point of view Marco describes a textbook sociopath, caring only for his own well being. Nothing from his experience of Marco's mind denotes any of Jake's perceptive abilities or leadership qualities. I'm not sure what Marco is playing at here.
Does anybody get it? What does Marco think the group gains from including David, that outweighs the dangers of letting a sociopath into their midst?
u/Kylinger [+10] (5 hours later)
Yeah, I was really confused. Why on earth would Marco lie to jake? That goes against so much of his characterization!
You know it's bad when the malevolent god-thing wants you to do it.
What really happened was that Marco's mind has been tampered with. Crayak wants David to get the morphing power.
u/None [+15] (5 hours later)
Mother of god. I didn't see the 'fleeting disorientation' part. Is there a precedent in the fic for that denoting mind tampering from extra dimensional entities? I agree with you, but has anyone else been messed with in this way.
Because if the Crayak or the Ellimist is running around capable of directly altering the minds of mortals, then avoiding the game has become almost impossible. Unless the Animorphs start morphing each other regularly to look for memories where their perspectives suddenly, inexplicably change, I don't see how they can guard against this new threat.
I always liked the Animorphs series because it took a very mental approach to the concept of aliens, really looking at alternative minds, something this fic takes a step forward with it's hiveminds and telepathic quasi collectives and artificial intelligences and extra dimensional gods.
But direct, Xavier style mind altering is a big addition to the host of mental threats assaulting our protagonists, and brings even more questions to the table.
This must be a very big, costly move for an entity to undertake. Otherwise why did the first entity waste time simulating the Pool scene, when it could have just made Cassie choose what i wanted her to? Are we to assume that Visser 3 decision regarding the space tunnel was exactly what the entities wanted, because otherwise they would, had simulations somehow failed, hit him with the 'trust me this a good idea beam'?
No, this has to be a massive move, considering what it could be used to do, and I can't wait to see the pay off.
u/TK17Studios [+9] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (21 hours later)
This has already happened once, on-screen, in a way that is very hard to see ahead of time but stunningly obvious post-reveal/in retrospect (i.e. no one is stupid for not having seen it yet, but it should make perfect sense once you know). It was not denoted by "fleeting disorientation," which was my nod to HPMOR.
u/TexasJefferson [+5] (a day later)
If you don't intend to cause people who need to go to bed to add another 220,000 words to their day's reading list, comments like this are not the way to do it...
Also, you've been missed.
u/TK17Studios [+3] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (2 days later)
<3
u/Ristridin1 [+3] (2 days later)
The Chee and Rachel? That one screamed Crayak/Ellimist intervention, though I would have guessed a more subtle flaw in their programming rather than a direct mind alteration.
It also resulted directly in the Animorphs gaining David.
u/Kylinger [+7] (6 hours later)
Yeah, this must have been immensely costly. Maybe there were no other possible timelines (that are achievable with minor manipulation) where Marco was actually onboard with recruiting David? Seriously, he's pretty bad news.
u/360Saturn [+3] (7 hours later)
I assumed Marco was lying right now? Or that he had a plan to prime David for the kind of suicide mission that Rachel was given in canon, behind Jake's back because Jake wouldn't sanction it.
u/TK17Studios [+3] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (9 hours later)
ctrl+f "fleeting disorientation"
u/360Saturn [+3] (a day later)
Ughh I'm gonna have to re-read the whole story now :P
So clever though. What a talent.
Hoping you don't end up killing off Rachel the way canon does. Canon really started going off the rails towards the end.
u/TK17Studios [+3] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (8 hours later)
Speculation on what, exactly, is going on here is welcome. I'll quietly confirm any correct guesses behind a spoiler tag, for those who want to know.
u/CouteauBleu [+7] We are the Empire. (10 hours later)
Well... the obvious idea, if we look at the paragraph from a sane perspective, is that Marco had his mind altered somehow and got a wrong idea of who David is.
NOT PARANOID ENOUGH! Also, that doesn't make sense. Marco's description carries a lot of information that wouldn't make sense if Marco had been brainwashed into remembering a "better" version of David. If we're slightly paranoid, the personality Marco describes sounds like it has been optimized to make Jake like David as much as possible, not shaped by an organic process.
The obvious idea if we take a completely paranoid perspective, is to notice that no actual name or identifying element is used after the "fleeting disorientation". Or that both the inner voice and the actual thought-sentences sound a bit... off, for Marco. Also the post-disorientation narrator feels "confident, almost hopeful", which would make a lot more sense for a sociopathic kid put in a position of power for the first time in his life, than what Marco would feel after reading a promising recruit's mind.
David pulled a Lucrezia, and somehow swapped his brain with Marco. The sentence "closing down the mental copy of the kid so he wouldn’t suffer" refers to Marco. I have no idea how this is even physically possible.
u/TK17Studios [+5] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (10 hours later)
u/CCC_037 [+6] (23 hours later)
My first thought was that David was pulling a Batman-style direct modification of Marco's impressions of him from the inside.
u/None [+10] (a day later)
The thing that really gets me about David at the end is he was so certain. This suggests he knew that Marco's mindreading wouldn't cause a problem, which is pretty interesting information for him to have. It implies one of a few things:
David mistakenly thought that Marco would think he was an A-OK guy. I don't think this is particularly plausible, because David's track record with authority figures seems to be trash, and his entire psyche is built around distrust. This means David knew Marco's read would be spoofed somehow.
If David's mind is somehow a Memetic Hazard, probably of the self-replicating variety, he might've already flipped the Yeerk in his head. This would give him experience in knowing that his mind is a dangerous thing to touch. This only makes sense if David's Yeerk had not yet had an opportunity to return to the Pool (and I would think he'd seem more frustrated then.) Also, David is still eerily confident given how different the mechanism is here.
If on the other hand Marco was Obliviated by the Ellimist or Crayak, David's reaction means it is likely he knew this would occur in advance and is either working as some kind of permanent agent for one of them (ala the Drode) or at least has some sort of deal in place.
u/TK17Studios [+9] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (2 days later)
Taking off my author's hat and just speaking from general prior knowledge (my mom's a psych nurse)—psychopaths are confident right up until the very end, and generally have a strongly unjustified belief that everything's going to work out fine for them (which, in turn, helps it do so on the margins when it otherwise wouldn't've).
i.e. I don't know if, as a reader, I would've read anything into David acting certain. In fact, if you consider him having unjustified certainty, and then extrapolate out from that what conclusions he might have drawn about Marco, interesting things ...
u/earnestadmission [+10] Singular "they" user (2 days later)
I am aware feedback is important for the author. I don't always comment because I have occasionally found the actual events of a chapter to be difficult to interpret. No such problem exists for this chapter.
This is among the best fanfiction i've ever read. The description of David gave me goosebumps. It was evocative, touched on archetypes that I've been expecting you to use in a different context, and offered the same dawning horror as the Leeran chapter where Esplin has like 12 different viewpoints.
Honestly I might describe this as rationalist horror. When I know what's going on, there's usually a sense of dread about the world unfolding that reminds me that humans are always less-pessimistic than is optimal.
u/Agnoman [+8] (21 minutes later)
You know it's bad when the malevolent god-thing wants you to do it.
I wonder how long it takes for the Animorphs to realise they've been played. I'm assuming that there won't be any more interventions - it doesn't seem to be how the game is played - so it's either when David crosses the line / someone peaks into his mind (is Marco still doing this following his confession?). David's definetly getting morphing tech, but the damage he can do is limited somewhat if he's outside the group.
And I wonder how the crew is going to react when they figure out that Crayak(?) has been/ could potentially still be messing with their minds.
u/4t0m [+8] Chaos Legion (56 seconds later)
u/philh [+8] (5 hours later)
Holy shit did David just take over Marco's mind?
u/CouteauBleu [+8] We are the Empire. (7 hours later)
Yeah, that was my thought at first, but it wouldn't make much more sense. Morphing in this fic stores the original's brain in a pocket dimension and links them through a limited interface. It's not telepathy, there's no "soul" or spirit that would be in direct contact with David's brain.
u/philh [+5] (9 hours later)
I agree it seems unlikely on priors, but not totally out of the question - there are definitely sci-fi subgenres where that kind of mind virus exists. I'm not sure this is in one of those.
Might be related to the way animal instincts can take over temporarily, but I don't think it fits well with that, so it would need to be a new mechanism, with a complexity penalty.
u/TK17Studios [+6] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (8 hours later)
Speculation on what, exactly, is going on here is welcome. I'll quietly confirm any correct guesses behind a spoiler tag, for those who want to know.
u/chaos-engine [+5] (11 hours later)
David's mind violently resisted the yerk when he was turned into a controller, but the yerk was too strong for him. However, the morph-David would have the same violent reaction but Marco might not be strong enough to stop David. This would lead to David being in control of Marco's body until he demorphs, which could be after the real David had already been given the morphing technology.
Worse, morph-David could choose to just not demorph so that Marco doesn't spill the beans on his hijacking. Also, he now has access to all of Marco's secrets and can share them with the real David
... Or just kill real David, stick in the morph controlling Marco, and reacquire the morphing technology (like Morph Jake did after his resurrection)
u/TK17Studios [+3] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (13 hours later)
u/philh [+4] (9 hours later)
Presumably you also need to disconfirm incorrect guesses?
u/TK17Studios [+2] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (9 hours later)
u/kuilin [+3] (18 hours later)
What about guesses that aren't able to be proven to be correct or incorrect?
u/TK17Studios [+5] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (21 hours later)
u/etarletons [+7] (8 hours later)
'Then the Australians had declared that nobody cared who North Korea was at war with, and sent a gift of ten thousand cheap plastic boomerangs to the South Korean president with a note saying “Just in case.”'
Yes good :D
u/KnickersInAKnit [+6] (3 hours later)
Marco, how is this a good idea? Cassie'd have your head for this...oh wait :( I think we're starting to see the effects of lack of Cassie on the group now. E/C all according to keikaku?
Also, looks like morphing Yeerk is an impossibility now? TemrAx combined would be the authority on this matter, I suppose.
Re: Tobias...in the original, he was trapped in morph. Now that he's lost an arm, he's pretty much stuck using a morph of some sort now to have both limbs, isn't he?
u/TK17Studios [+5] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (8 hours later)
There's clearly a regrow-your-hand option along the lines of let-yourself-die-in-morph-armor, the way Jake did. It's questionable whether Tobias would take that route willingly, even for a hand.
Also ctrl+f "fleeting disorientation"
u/KnickersInAKnit [+5] (8 hours later)
Oh shit. Marco got directly poked by E/C?
u/confettibin [+3] (9 hours later)
There doesn't really seem to be a precedent, but I'd assume a Yeerk would be held in Z-space in stasis like anything else brought into a morph. As we saw with Tobias, acquiring a Yeerk while in morph and then ending the morph destroys it, but I doubt Temrash would be in any danger if it's the other way around. Ax could probably continue to morph, though I'd imagine Temrash would be out of commission for the duration of the morph. Not sure Ax would be willing to compromise that.
u/KnickersInAKnit [+5] (9 hours later)
Sorry, that's not what I meant at all. When they tried to morph Yeerk early on, the morph just went strange and they had to reverse it. I'm saying that the combined knowledge pool (heh!) of TemrAx would lend both the knowledge of the Iscafil device from Ax along with the knowledge of Yeerk physiology/anatomy from Temrash, letting them say with a lot more certainty than Ax alone whether morphing Yeerk is doable or not.
u/confettibin [+3] (10 hours later)
Oh, I get what you mean. Yeah, that does seem to open up the opportunity.
u/CCC_037 [+3] (23 hours later)
Ax could probably continue to morph, though I'd imagine Temrash would be out of commission for the duration of the morph.
Visser Three can morph, and remains in control during the morph. So Temrash will probably remain in commission.
u/PM_me_couchsurfing [+7] (12 hours later)
Didn't the Ellimist say that his teleportation move would have significant cost? My guess is that this --Fleeting Disorientation-- is Crayak's (allowed) counter move.
u/TK17Studios [+1] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (20 hours later)
u/Bowbreaker [+3] Solitary Locust (2 days later)
This seems less like a spoiler and more like fanning already existing speculation :P
u/CouteauBleu [+2] We are the Empire. (2 days later)
Yeah, but you can't just hide answers to correct speculation, or you're giving it away.
u/4t0m [+5] Chaos Legion (36 minutes later)
Typo Thread:
They’ll be held until the Yeerks are starved out of their and they’re free humans again.
Seems like a missing word or something.
u/TK17Studios [+3] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (7 hours later)
Fixed; thanks as always.
u/philh [+6] (7 hours later)
Bitcoin is trading at sixteen hundred forty-three dollars and thirty-eight cents
Currently it's trading at like $1200, and that seems to be an all-time high. I'm guessing the price went up after recent events.
u/ArgentStonecutter [+5] Emergency Mustelid Hologram (9 hours later)
This episode needs to be broken up into at least three sections. There's too much going on in too little space to make following it work.
- The filming. Also, the whole business of David and killing the Yeerk live seems like a really bad idea and playing into Visser Three's hands. That's basically a live execution, that makes them look like terrorists, and you know that's how V3's going to spin it.
- The attack on the factory.
- The sequence with David at the end.
u/TK17Studios [+5] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (10 hours later)
Luckily, it's broken up into five sections. =P
In all seriousness, though, your criticism lands. It's one of the reasons I struggled with this chapter—I considered (e.g.) cutting the factory attack entirely, and having it take place off-screen, but I was worried people would be upset about "not enough action," so I went with the compromise of showing Marco hovering around the edges of it.
In general, I try to leave each chapter at a place that's either cliffhanger-esque or dramatically moves the plot forward, and lately it's been hard to find those natural ending points, as the story grows more complex.
u/DaystarEld [+12] Pokémon Professor (14 hours later)
For what it's worth, I found the pacing of the chapter worked well for me. Starts with the meat that builds to a climax, follows up with a bit of aftermath/falling action, then ends with the hook of the new plotline being introduced.
u/Evan_Th [+7] Sunshine Regiment (19 hours later)
I thoroughly approve of your choice about the factory attack: it's too major of an event directly involving our protagonists to take place off-screen, but the specific details aren't necessary for the story.
u/Bowbreaker [+3] Solitary Locust (2 days later)
Honestly, I'd personally prefer it if you actually draw a few things out a bit more. In the Ventura chapters very little that mattered happened so off screen that all it got was a minor mention. Here adults get added in and all kinds of other things happen and we don't really see how they got to that point or how it affects people.
By the way, have the Animorphs continued morphing into each other more frequently? I'm curious if they decided to use that (creepy) trust reinforcer or not.
u/TK17Studios [+3] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (2 days later)
The only problem here is trying to actually wrap up the story before it gets double its current length. There are lots of things where I skip over them because it seems (to me) that the process of getting there is cookie-cutter.
For example:
- We call the number Paul Evans gave Tobias; we get a voice on the other end.
- We agree to meet that person in a place. We shake her hand and acquire her DNA, then GTFO.
- We morph her to see if she's trustworthy.
- We bring her someplace off the grid.
- We show her stuff, tell her stuff, give her the morphing power.
- We coordinate with her to find a bunch of other useful grownups, for whom we repeat all of the steps above.
... there could be some tidbits of good dialogue or character development in there, but it's just not very high-density. It's why I don't show how they break into stores to steal phones and stuff; I think ultimately it ends up wasting your time.
u/CouteauBleu [+3] We are the Empire. (2 days later)
Personally, I really liked this chapter because it introduced a lot of new elements and move things forward, while the previous chapters had been establishing things that didn't really "matter" to the plot.
I guess there's a balance to be found, between the parts of a chapter that develop characters and reactions and the psychological impact of on-screen events, and the parts that just move the plot forward. I think Twig really struck this balance, for instance, with arcs that both maintain a constant pacing and always introduce new characters.
Also, while I don't really care about how the characters were recruited (I mean, we already had three "Tobias explains the invasion to a grown-up" scenes), I'd really like more insights on how they think, how they relate to the characters, how the war is impacting them, etc.
Also, I'd completely read a chapter from Anji's POV.
u/Bowbreaker [+3] Solitary Locust (2 days later)
I'd have liked to see the reaction of said normal citizen suddenly getting introduced to the resistance and having their life changed forever. I guess I mostly miss the emotional development and repercussions of getting more and more used to this stuff. But then, maybe I'm the weirdo for preferring to also see some "slice of life" parts in the stories of people with unusual lives.
And maybe I also have an irrational dislike for major time skips during interesting times. The large time skip in Worm for instance made me so angry (I was a teen) that I couldn't continue reading the story for over 6 months.
u/Zephyr1011 [+3] Potentially Unfriendly Aspiring Divinity (12 hours later)
Can you clarify on what you mean by broken up into sections? The chapter seemed to be pretty clearly broken up into sections already. Do you mean different chapters?
u/ArgentStonecutter [+3] Emergency Mustelid Hologram (14 hours later)
Yeh, different chapters.
u/Zephyr1011 [+4] Potentially Unfriendly Aspiring Divinity (23 hours later)
That seems like it really wouldn't work with the changing viewpoints every chapter schema. I'd consider this an entirely reasonable way of doing things
u/LieGroupE8 [+5] ** (12 hours later)
AHHHHHH. AHHHHH. AHHHHHH. AHH. AHHHHH. AHHHHH. I hope this has been a constructive review.
In all seriousness, I'm very excited that this fic is back!
I'm very worried about what happened to Marco at the end - at first I thought David had taken over his mind somehow, but that doesn't fit what we know about the morphing tech so far. The construct should have no lasting influence on the host emulation. Even if Marco had gotten "lost" in David's morph, as sometimes happens with morphs, this effect would go away when he demorphed. I also don't get the sense that Visser 3 had any opportunity to add some technology to David to cause a brain swap or trace the Z-space interlink. As other commentators have pointed out, influence by Crayak (or whoever) seems the most plausible option.
My guess is that Crayak did the time-stopping thing with David and made a deal with him. He did something like this in the original series, after all. Part of this deal involved David getting the morphing power, which Crayak made possible by altering Marco's mind. David didn't seem surprised by what happened, after all, though that could just be a controlled reaction on his part. Though it seems to me like direct mind altering of the pawns is a low blow and would be prohibited by the rules of the cosmic game.
Alternative, hypothesis: Visser 3 influenced the Chee to implant some kind of technology in David that accomplished what we saw. Or perhaps the Chee were there all along influencing events. Can the Chee modify memories?
u/TK17Studios [+1] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (19 hours later)
u/CCC_037 [+5] (23 hours later)
u/CouteauBleu [+4] We are the Empire. (23 hours later)
That's exactly what happened. E/C's interlude said that the timestop chapter was a simulation, but that for some reason the rules bound it to be completely accurate to "respect" Cassie's choice (which means the only modifications E/C could do to the "final" simulation were the same he could do to reality).
Not sure why this would be different in other situations.
u/CCC_037 [+3] (a day later)
Huh. I'd thought that interlude was merely E/C preparing for the meeting by simulating it, so that the required decision would be forced without appearing to be forced...
u/CouteauBleu [+3] We are the Empire. (a day later)
Interlude 4:
The rules of the game were clear—when the moment came, there could be no discrepancies between the true pool and the projection, no unfair manipulation via cheap and easy deception. It had to be real, down to the smallest peak in the quantum wave function.
This makes me think that the pool scene was simulated (hence why Cassie was brought back to the trees when the simulation ended).
u/LieGroupE8 [+3] ** (2 days later)
Okay, okay, I got it. Here's my crazy off-the-wall theory of what happened. I'm only giving it 40% confidence because I don't think it quite fits, but it is a very intriguing possibility...
u/DaystarEld [+6] Pokémon Professor (14 hours later)
Fantastic chapter. All I could have wanted in an Animorphs-coming-out broadcast, down to the unexpected name-drop at the end.
Also, love r!David's appearance in the story. Can't wait to see how it goes, worried as I am for our intrepid heroes. At first I thought some sort of psychic powers were being used, or that Visser had somehow managed to create a clone-body and implant memories in it, or a bunch of other outlandish things, and then I remembered they live in a world of near-omnipotent god-like aliens and everything made sense again.
u/CouteauBleu [+4] We are the Empire. (an hour later)
Yaaay! It's back! Now I can get out of my cave again and meet people! Seriously though, great chapter, lots of interesting things to obsessively dissect.
u/None [+4] (11 hours later)
[deleted]
u/TK17Studios [+3] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (13 hours later)
u/None [+3] (13 hours later)
Gotcha. Thanks for the response! Loved the chapter.
u/None [+3] (17 hours later)
I'm holding off on proposing a solution and waiting for some more shoes to drop, but some of the possibilities of what is going on with David are frightening me.
And I endorse the actions of Algeria and Australia from the perspective of audience amusement.
u/None [+4] (a day later)
Wonderful chapter as always!
I'm wondering if anyone else sometimes has trouble following this, though, because the periodic update schedule makes it hard to remember past events? (Or do you guys do a re-read or something every time to stay updated?)
u/TK17Studios [+2] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (3 days later)
I generally do a re-read. =P, but it's true.
u/noggin-scratcher [+3] I am a happy tree (4 days later)
Since feedback was requested I guess I ought to express how much I love this story... it's one of my favourite fics and embodies the ideals of "rational" fiction in a somewhat rare way (at least from my limited perspective of having not read everything).
The characters are acting according to their own motives and goals (and limited information) with a blend of brutal efficiency and understandable human fallibility. Their personalities are clear and distinct (V3 especially is just delightfully unpredictable in his "actually being intelligent and not a hamstrung stooge of an antagonist" way) There's no feeling of "cheating" or plot armour - it genuinely feels like every encounter could spiral into a total party wipe if mismanaged.
Just a loud resounding Hells Yes, generally. As long as you keep writing I'll keep eagerly reading.
Also the reveal-stream was pretty badass, and this David thing is going to go so wrong for them. In this world of Unrestrained Consequences I slightly shudder to think just how bad it could be.
u/MagicWeasel [+2] Cheela Astronaut (19 hours later)
Yayy another chapter :D
Thanks as always for posting them!
I don't know if you're writing more clearly or I'm just getting smarter, but I followed this chapter a lot better than the other more recent ones. So, kudos!
u/swaskowi [+2] (3 days later)
Also just dropping by to thank the author for his amazing contributions!
u/None [+2] (4 days later)
I was engaging in some paranoid speculation while at work and had some paranoid speculation which I don't consider especially likely but I thought I'd toss it out there. Suppose that, instead of the Ellimist or Crayak doing the time freeze chat at the pool, and then the other one messing with Marco's sense of orientation, the same superbeing is responsible for both events? Kill the moral compass and stick in an amoral sociopath, and make it look like your nemesis is responsible for whichever of those two things you, the superbeing, prefer to pretend not to be responsible for. I'm not sure this is actually plausible, but I had fun thinking about it. Canon!Aximili described the Ellimist as showing up as a trickster god type in traditional Andalite mythology, and he seems very tricky in this fic thus far (more so than in canon) so I won't completely rule out this silly idea of mine.
u/CouteauBleu [+2] We are the Empire. (6 days later)
...
...
...
Holy shit, when did this fic become 33 chapters long? oO
I still remember when it was, like five or six chapters.
u/TK17Studios [+1] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (6 days later)
With all the interludes, it's like 34.5!
u/Amezis [+2] (2 months later)
So /u/TK17Studios I just read this after it was linked in a reddit thread a few days ago, and I'm amazed at the way the story developed - much more thought-out than the originals, in my opinion. Sometimes I feel it's hard to follow as a lot happens "off-screen" or simply builds upon stuff from the originals, but the devil is in the details I guess; I sometimes skipped sections as I got a bit carried away by the story! Will there be more chapters soon?
u/TK17Studios [+4] Author of r!Animorphs: The Reckoning (2 months later)
Yeah, there's an update coming within 9 days, and hopefully a few before another hiatus. <3
u/CouteauBleu [+3] We are the Empire. (2 months later)
!!!
u/CouteauBleu [+1] We are the Empire. (2 months later)
Since the new chapter is going to be posted soon, here's some speculation about what happened with David:
In canon being infested by a dying yeerk gave Jake a nightmare vision of Crayak. This happens in the Reckoning too, though at first it looks like the vision is caused by Jake's death-and-resurrection; but I think it was actually triggered by Jake's artificial yeerk being burnt out by Erek.
Maybe something similar happened to David what his yeerk starved out? We know that artificial morph-yeerks are controlled through Z-space signals, which makes them vulnerable to interferences; maybe regular yeerks can interact with Z-space signals too?
That still doesn't tell us what happened... but I'm suspecting there's a causal link there.