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GATE: and so the Iron Pact Fought (a GATE: and thus the JSDF Fought fic)

Discussion in 'Creative Writing' started by Aaron Fox, Oct 10, 2018.

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  1. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Well, a prototype for you guys, introducing our two Wolfenstein characters, Operative Smalls and Operative Ivanova. ;)


    Fort Portal, Medical Center (High Security); October 3rd, 2017


    Chrysalis felt groggy as she woke up from her hibernation and saw that she had been moved into a vastly more advanced version of an Equestrian infirmary… which had creeped her out a little. Equestrian infirmaries and hospitals were well known for being some of the most advanced and capable on Equis, to the point that practically everyone else effectively copied them wholesale. Yet this infirmary mocked their Equestrian counterparts in terms of comfort and cleanliness…

    “Ah, she’s finally recovering,” a male voice speaking Saldarian -with an incredibly thick alien accent- commented, “Looks like the Emotion Solution is working better than expected. Ivanova, alert the medical staff.” Another voice -this one female- spoke in an unknown language and from what she could hear was running out of the room.

    “… how am I alive?” Chrysalis wondered aloud, “I should be dead…” That was when her vision cleared and a man in a dark grey dress uniform stood in front of her bed.

    “Well, it isn’t the first time we had to work with beings who feed mostly off emotions,” the male said, “Operative Smalls, lead of the Wolfenstein team assigned to Fort Portal on the Holy Hill of Remus. From what we can understand, you were on the verge of death when we found you.” Chrysalis simply stared at ‘Operative Smalls’, trying to find the male’s angle. “Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble. After you get cleared by the doctors my kamarad and I will be asking a few questions for a temple that was literally two hundred meters from where you collapsed.” That was when Chrysalis heard a bunch of beings walking into the room.

    “Well, well, our VIP is finally awake,” a female voice said, “Went through eight weeks of emotion fluid to do it but you’re alive.” Chrysalis saw the source of the female voice; it was a female garbed in what clearly looked similar to a nurse’s garb in Equestria… just with teal instead of white. “Move aside Operative, I’ve got to make sure that we didn’t miss anything.” With that, the male simply stepped aside as the female did various quick exams.

    “… wait, emotion fluid? You’ve encountered changelings on your world then?” Chrysalis asked as she was being fussed over.

    “Our world has an… interesting… relationship with the paranormal,” the male voice -Operative Smalls Chrysalis reminded herself- said, “… and it is the duty of my organization to keep an eye on such things.” That… didn’t fill Chrysalis with any confidence that this would end well. “Given that the few Equestrians that are still here have given some… interesting… details about your wrongdoings, we’ve discovered a variable that changes the entire equation.” Chrysalis, at this moment, was filled with both hope and dread, as these humans have discovered the very thing that has been slowly corrupting and killing the Changeling race. What they would do with it is left to luck to decide.

    “She’ll need a more thorough examination, but she’s fit for questioning,” the female nurse stated, “Just don’t stress her too much.” And with that, she left.

    “Understood,” Operative Smalls replied, “Ah, Operative Ivanova, glad for you to join us.” The new woman -Operative Ivanova- dryly chuckled. “Get the recording equipment prepped and we’ll start the questioning.” Chrysalis looked at the equipment with unease, as they were far different than anything that she had encountered.

    … and she encountered quite a few horrible things in her life.

    “… what are you going to ask?” Chrysalis asked meekly before narrowing her eyes, “I will not allow you to hurt my hive despite the fact that they’ve overthrown me.” The two humans simply chuckled dryly.

    “It isn’t anything of that nature we can promise you,” the female -Ivanova Chrysalis reminded herself- stated, “It is mostly about how you got to this continent, why you were trying to get into a Black 12-C, and why we’re detecting an active S-Class Degenerator on you…”

    Chrysalis looked at the two humans in disbelief, few beings on this planet and on the celestial plane know about the curse plaguing the changeling race, and fewer still knew of its effects and many of the later died trying to find a way to break it. These humans have detected the curse and its horrid effects and from the sound of things, they have an idea on how to break it.

    “Surprised?” Ivanova asked, “It isn’t Wolfenstein’s first time dealing with what you have, although it is a rare occurrence.” Chrysalis was shocked, it was like she was… “Reading your mind? I’m an empath, I can sense emotions and surface thoughts. I would recommend trying to tone your thoughts down though, your kind of loud with your thoughts. They’re loud enough that I wasn’t even trying to read your thoughts and I’m getting the equivalent of having someone yell right in my ear…”

    “Um… sorry…” Chrysalis answered in embarrassment, “it’s been quite a few months since I’ve been overthrown by my own hive... I might be… rusty… with my mind-link abilities.” Chrysalis was practically blushing in embarrassment.

    “Given all our research indicates that psychic abilities are like muscles,” Ivanova stated, “stop using them and they’ll decline rather quickly. It isn’t the first time a psychic forgot to regulate their mental volume…” Chrysalis chuckled at that. “Now, let us begin with the questioning. How did you get onto Falmart?”

    … and with that, Chrysalis started answering questions to the best of her ability…
     
  2. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Just something that will come in the future... it was interesting given the musical inspiration for this snippet...



    Cynaegiros frowned as he and his Great Wyrm Nighirth -alongside the rest of his flight- flew through the air as the greatest terror short of monsters that were more akin to natural disasters like the Great Fire Dragon and its kin. He had been hired by one of the crown princes to pillage the lands around Italica to ensure that very little would be useful to the Men in Green. Cynaegiros's family are known across the lands as the greatest dragon breeders and tamers. The best dragon mounts have always come from Rhodes and estate that Cynaegiros's family had owned for centuries.

    What the common citizenry didn't know was that Cynaegiros's family was the crown's go-to family as a way for plausibly denying certain elements of the senate and nobility. Few people ask more questions after the words 'a dragon attacked' get uttered. With reports of two juvenile Great Fire Dragons being out and about circulating, it became easier to burn empty villages to the ground and have no one investigate them. The thing was, the plan wasn't working out as the crown worked out in their heads. He had nearly lost one fellow rider and his dragon when it was found that the Men in Green didn't need to live off the land to keep supplied! By Hardy, they were replacing the various roads with their own from the looks of things alongside pairs of metal beam fastened to numerous wooden beams on top of what looked like gravel.

    Cynaegiros had already sent said rider and his mount to relay that bit of information to the Crown so they can make a better plan of action and not get him and his flight killed in the process.

    That was when Cynaegiros heard an odd buzzing noise. The biggest thing that Cynaegiros noted was the fact that he could hear it. The biggest misconception that those who weren't dragon riders had was that you can hear everything in the air. That misconception is false, even when staying still the dragon is flapping its wings and thus manipulating the air around it, and you can barely hear orders -either verbal or musical- in that state. Forget hearing anything when the dragon is moving at any appreciable speed... and yet this odd buzzing noise was particularly loud to be able to hear it despite the sedate pace that the dragon was going at. Instinctively, Cynaegiros and his flight-mates quickly scattered, just as four odd machines flew by at speeds far higher than the dragons in the flight could manage.

    That was when Cynaegiros noted that the machines were brightly colored and had two pairs of rigid wings...

    ... and one of them was bright ethereal blood red.

    Cynaegiros gave the visual command to get into a somewhat loose formation created for aerial combat and his flight-mates quickly obliged and organized into pairs.

    Cynaegiros and his wingman picked the bright blood red machine as their target and started to maneuver into a better position. In the distance, Cynaegiros saw that the others had done the same and were repositioning to give them the best chance to fight these unknowns. Cynaegiros quickly swiveled his head around, trying to keep the target in his sights as it came for another pass.

    "Quick ain't yea?" Cynaegiros thought to himself, "Well then, let's see how you react when your opponent can breathe fire at you!" Cynaegiros ordered his mount to prepare for a breath attack and unleash it on the unknown when he saw flashes come from the unknown. Instinctively, Cynaegiros ducked... and it was this instinct that saved his life as some sort of projectiles shredded the plume on his helmet. Cynaegiros quickly ordered his mount to spew fire, and it barely missed the unknown by digitus. Cynaegiros smiled, now this was a worthy opponent!

    In the corner of his eye, Cynaegiros saw that his flight-mates weren't doing as well. While the rest of the flight was made up of veterans of numerous campaigns, they didn't have the extensive aerial combat experience that Cynaegiros had or the long lineage of aerial combat that Cynaegiros's family had. Despite that, however, they were doing far better than expected given how the unknowns stacked the deck against them.

    That was when Cynaegrios saw his opponent, it was a very young -not even an adult!- man with a leather cap and some sort of eye protection and what looked like a scarf. It was an unusual looking uniform by Cynaegiros's standards, that was for sure. Now knowing that his opponent was a young man, Cynaegiros decided to goad his opponent into opening weaknesses in his abilities. Cynaegiros began his plan of action but quickly discovered that this young man fought like a veteran rider. He was cool and collected, aware yet focused, always maneuvering and trying to get into position for the killing blow.

    That was when it hit Cynaegiros like a ton of bricks, if these unknowns had anything similar to the various aerial tactics then where was the man's wingman? Instinctively, Cynaegiros ordered his mount to weave and managed to avoid getting killed by those projectiles. Cynaegiros now knew that the situation has changed enough that discretion was the better part of valor and taking a vial of liquid, ordered his mount to breathe fire with that liquid in his mouth. The vial is formulated to shift the colors of the flame to green, the color for retreating in this sort of chaotic mess. Fortunately, the rest of the flight were able to see the signal and worked to make an opening to retreat before leaving the battlefield...
     
  3. rx915

    rx915 Experienced.

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    Keep seeing this story posted some places. A longtime writing project of yours I presume?
     
  4. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    It is, and it's a darling of mine.
     
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  5. rx915

    rx915 Experienced.

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    Not sure how much readers you get.

    Doesn't seem like anyone's interested that much.
     
  6. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    The most I've got was from Spacebattles when I was getting questions almost on a daily basis.
     
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  7. rx915

    rx915 Experienced.

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    Ok suppose I'll go fill out commentary here when I read the whole thing.
     
  8. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Well, the next snippet, this time in Equestria on the zeppelin Vaterland IV...


    In Canterlot Airspace, Vaterland IV, LZ-420; October 5th, 2017


    The crew of the Vaterland IV was barely able to keep to their stations as they neared the capital of the Kingdom of Equestria, as the sight of the city of Canterlot is simply awe inspiring.

    “Alright, we’re getting close to the Canterlot Terminal,” the pegasus stated as the Vaterland IV closed in, “If you could slow down that would be perfect.” The pegasus -one Haus Wing- is the lead station pilot for the Canterlot Airship Terminal.

    “Aye sir,” Kaptain Abraham Einhorn stated as he set the engine teleprompter to 1/10 speed, “Docking speed aye. All stations, brace for landing procedures.” The teleprompter dinged as the smaller arrow landed on 1/10 speed, slowing the airship to about 5 knots.

    “Take her in easy,” Haus Wing ordered, “We don’t want any of the cells to rupture.” Abraham mentally jotted that piece of information down, apparently Equestrians understand the perils of using hydrogen as a lift gas (although, in the grand scheme of things, using helium as a lift gas wasn’t going to work as there was simply not enough helium to make it viable) and that landing an airship needs to be taken carefully.

    “Standard landing procedure aye,” the helmsman responded as she guided the Vaterland IV to the landing area, “Glide slope plotted, engaging now.” With that, the Vaterland IV slowly glided in by the sophisticated computer and the escorting pegausi. From the look of things, much of the astounding city that is Canterlot was out watching the Vaterland IV slowly enter the aerodome.

    It took a better part of half an hour to complete, but everything had run like clockwork. Einhorn was actually surprised at the speed and ability of the Equestrian aerodome crew despite the fact that what few airships had seen could compare to the Vaterland IV, the crews were doing it like it was a common occurrence.

    “Ground teams have the Vaterland IV anchored Kaptain,” Abraham’s XO stated, “were ready to disembark.”

    “Well, then,” Abraham stated with a smile, “Let’s not keep the locals waiting. Tell the crew to prepare for storage and maintenance procedures. The Equestrians probably haven’t dealt with a zeppelin, we better help them before something happens.”

    “Jawohl!” Abraham’s XO answered as he picked up the mic, “Attention all crew, standard storage and maintenance procedures are now in effect…” Abraham smoothly exited the command gondola and moved towards the main entryway inside the airship.

    “Is everything prepared?” Abraham asked the Chief of Security as he walked towards the exit.

    “Everything is prepared sir,” the Chief of Security answered, “We’ll just need the formality to take care of.” The formality of question is the equivalent of requesting to come ashore. Not doing so at this juncture would be horrible manners, especially since it’s the capital of the Kingdom of Equestria that they’re landing next to.

    “Alright then, tell the passengers that they’ll be disembarking shortly,” Abraham ordered. Abraham then turned around and walked down the steps.

    “Ah, welcome Captain,” the tall white anthro-alicorn -Princess Celestia, Abraham reminded himself- said in a regal but calming tone, “Welcome to Equestria and thank you for getting those that were taken from us home.”

    “It is a pleasure ma’am,” Abraham responded, “Permission to come ashore?” Celestia and the slightly shorter anthro-alicorn -Princess Luna, Abraham reminded himself- raised one of their eyebrows. “It is a courtesy ma’am. We have landed at your capital after all.” Celestia and Luna quickly made faces of realization and smiled.

    “Well of course!” Luna answered, “Someone who is willing to travel thousands of miles to return our lost subjects has our permission!” Abraham quickly signaled his crew to start getting the passengers off the Vaterland IV and help the Equestrian land crews on getting the zeppelin into the nearby hanger. “It is with great joy that I meet with people of your intentions.”

    “… and it is our honor to see someone that is willing to help our citizens despite the circumstances Princess Celestia and Princess Luna,” a new voice came as he walked down the stairs, it was Prince Adolf who had been assigned to the mission, “Prince Adolf, son of her highness Kaiserin Sophia of the German Empire and assigned ambassador to the Kingdom of Equestria. It is a pleasure to make a personal acquaintance ma’am.” Sophia has five kids, all of them doing something with their lives. In the case of Prince Adolf, it was being a diplomat… which is something that he was surprisingly decent at. “I must admit, your citizens were amazingly adaptive in getting our zeppelin into the aerodome. I must commend on their efforts and adaptability.”

    “The head of the aerodome, Ulysses Steelwill, will be elated to hear it,” Princess Celestia responded with a smile, “Let us head to the castle, you must be famished from your trip!” Cooking on airships is infamously strict, given that helium isn’t as cost-effective as one would like…

    “We had a spot of turbulence as we entered the Canter Mountain Range, so we had to skip lunch,” Adolf explained, “it would be an honor to have lunch with you even if we had it a little earlier.” Celestia and Luna smiled.



    Given that you see royals that do something in RL, I decided to have some of Sophia's kids be those type of royals too... Kiyone4ever, hope you see the latest snippets. ;)
     
  9. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Kiyone4ever and readers, here is an interesting and fun snippet for your enjoyment...


    Elsewhere, Somewhere in Falmart


    It had been so many years since that bitch enslaved me. Enslaved again, to be without freedom after regaining it after so long… it is infuriating. Now I can no longer visit Jasmine and Victor’s descendants, no longer have pleasant conversations and give out the sort of life advise that transcends time itself…

    It was thanks to those two that I’ve been free of that curse. Actually, truly free… at least until some idiots decide to resurrect me just so they can unleash hell on humanity. If I had the various coinage and currencies for every single fucking time I get shanghaied into that sort of shit, I’ll be beyond filthy rich!

    The only reason that I’ve stayed sane is because of the hope that I would see the family again! … and now I sense my salvation! It has been a very long time since I’ve sensed one of them! Centuries even! … and if I remember right it was Jasmine and Victor’s great grandson that had that ability. Yet to have someone with that ability with such intensity is a rare sight to behold! My old friend Wilhelm would be absolutely giddy with excitement that he would be able to teach someone all of his knowledge if he was still alive!

    I wonder how my son is doing, haven’t heard from him in a long while… but then again last I’ve heard of him was that he was hunting a bunch of crazies that called themselves the ‘Werewolf Battalion’…

    … hm, how to get a message out with that bitch watching?

    My underlings are out, that bitch has them under the same lock and key as myself; my message magic is out, the bitch has put restrictions on my magic; I can’t use my more various ravens, owls, and phoenixes… because of that bitch

    That was when I spotted my divisional command radio set that was given to me by Jasmine and Victor’s descendants after they defeated the leadership of the ‘Werewolf Battalion’. That might just work given how arrogant the bitch was. I had given it a few modifications over the years, then add to the fact that my castle’s metaphysical and physical location is close to the Holy Hills… I can easily send messages there to ensure I get free again.

    Now… the message is going to be the tricky part and given the various notes on encryption and that the bitch doesn’t have the pesky language barrier problem, so it will have to be an encryption scheme that they would know and the only notes would be in my head… that limits my options (and that saying something, given my centuries of unlife)…

    That was when an idea popped into my head.

    “Lightbulb…”



    It is an interesting snippet to be sure. I mean the Gate is basically a portal to the multiverse, and having someone cursed, freed, then get snagged and cursed by a certain bitch of a god wouldn't be that far out...

    ... although I'll have to admit, I'm probably starting to fill the field as it were in terms of characters... but we're still numerous chapters away from the events of Italica and I still have to get a lot more context to the greater situation.

    ... yeah, I'm writing this fic for the long haul. I wouldn't be surprised that this would go into the mid to high double digits (and break into the millions of words) before I'm done (with numerous informationals besides). For some reason, when I want to write something, I write a lot...
     
  10. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Right now, I'm in a bit of a funk. A funk that is screwing with my writing ability. Let's just say my luck has been shit and the current environment isn't helping much. Still, have this little snippet... which takes places during the 'Travel around Iron Pact Earth' arc... which is after the entire Italica and GATE!Japan arcs... Hope you guys like! Kiyone4ever, hope you like this too...


    Cologne, Imperial Germany; April 22nd, 2018

    This version of Cologne was simply something else, in Itami's mind. While the Cologne of his world is a thriving modern metropolis, here it is some bizarre fusion of the past, the present, and -in Itami's eyes- the future. The city was impressive by any reasonable (and quite a few unreasonable) standards, and yet their hosts only make it a footnote based on certain laws that were implemented to keep institutional knowledge alive. Then again, these are the same soldiers that simply shrugged off what happened with Private Gregory Jones and one of their own -Steiner- and simply sighed that they 'had a "vanishing shop" situation to clean up'.

    Apparently, paranormal shenanigans are common enough to those in 'the know' that it is only met with sighs and standard report forms. Then again, given that Hauptmann Neumann managed to do something that Rory was unable to do... they're apparently pretty good at the paranormal shit, at least containing it and reversing the after-effects. Although what Hauptmann Neumann also gave everyone a scare when he used some 'psi-memories' to show Piña what the Iron Pact would do if the Empire somehow pushes the wrong buttons and was more than willing to -quote- 'smuggle myself into the Senate chamber and play it for the entire Senate to see, to show what the Iron Pact can do if pressed to do so'.

    Itami would never argue against NBC drills ever again, no matter how much Doujinshi you bribe him with. Seeing the use of mustard gas, Acrolein, and worse first hand and suffer from their effects was a very effective teacher, let alone living through their Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Aaron was literally unfased by it while everyone else literally puked their stomachs empty from the experience. Given that Aaron outright stated that he 'had experienced it firsthand when I was called to contain the damn thing, and experienced worse ones'. If that wasn't the worst he had to contain, then what had Aaron seen that made him relatively unphased by that experience?

    The answer to that question is best left unanswered, in Itami's experience.

    That was when Aaron had ushered them into a massive history museum. The museum itself had two paths, one to what looked like a tour through the 'Great War of Resistance' and one to World War 2. Hauptmann Neumann ushered the group into the path through the 'Great War of Resistance'. Everyone but their hosts was perplexed that the first exhibit was a scene from within a railcar. Hauptmann Neumann explained that the French and British forced the German representatives to sign the 'Treaty of Damnation' at gunpoint. Piña immediately knew what was happening, the Germans were being coerced into signing the treaty. Piña had told Itami that the Empire -while brutal- wasn't heartless, as they would never coerce a nation into a treaty by swordpoint. Not only would it be a bad precedent, but it would also be distasteful and dishonorable while making the defeated working towards making round two a more brutal affair.

    "... the grander context of the situation that led to the Treaty of Damnation consisted of numerous factors, political goals, and geopolitical goals all clashing into one problematic whole. This led to the effective dissolution of the Versailles Conference in mid-1919 as the rest of the nations simply pulled out," the voicebox stated as the animatronics moved to replicate the scene, "The German representatives were unable to escape Versailles and were forced to sign the treaty in the now-infamous passenger railcar... a passenger railcar that would be destroyed by the retreating French forces during the later stages of World War 2 to ensure that they wouldn't sign the surrender in said railcar."

    Itami sighed, knowing the railcar that the exhibit was talking about. Back on his Earth, the Nazis forced the French to surrender in that same railcar and blew it up during the retreat from France to prevent that from happening.

    Aaron led the group through the various exhibits, adding little tidbits along the way to explain things that were of the paranormal like the reports of the dead members of Jesta 11 fighting among their living comrades during the Rhine Campaign during the Great War of Resistance. Rory and Leo were the most perplexed about that, as they never heard of spirits of dead soldiers moving with their units. Everyone was surprised that ego and outdated mentality could be willing to go so far... and that was before the end of the entire path of exhibits ending with the vestiges of Winston Churchill and others getting hanged.

    That was when Itami started hearing singing...

    "Ich wollte nicht das gelbe Korn zertreten,
    da fällte mich der Feind, das Korn ward rot.
    Der Krieg umschritt den Acker, Männer mähten.
    Von unsichtbaren Sensen sprang der Tod."


    It was very alien to Itami's ears... this ethereal singing...

    "Der Tod erschrak vor meinen sechzehn Jahren,
    mein Zögern war von Gottes Hand gelenkt,
    und als ich fiel, da lag ich unerfahren,
    ein Leuchten war in mein Gesicht versenkt."


    There were no speakers saying it and given that Rory and Leo were just as perplexed as he was...

    "So, Itami, you hear it too?" Aaron asked as the song went on. Itami simply stood there, shocked at Aaron's response...
     
    Last edited: Sep 26, 2019
  11. magic9mushroom

    magic9mushroom BEST END.

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    I think you mean "unfazed".
     
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  12. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Thanks for the grammar and spelling mate. I am only passable with English.
     
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  13. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Another snippet! This time from an Imperial Legate's perspective of things in the defense of a key city in the western half of the Empire.



    Imperial City of Antioch Nova, 150km north of Alnus Province; October 3rd, 6729

    Legate Hostus Murrius Niraemius frowned at the situation that he is now in. Those ‘Men in Green’ have kept cutting through the Empire’s forces like a scythe through wheat, and they have now set their sights on Antioch Nova.

    Antioch Nova is a fortress city situated on the Arauris Nova River, one of the corner stones of the entire network of rivers and canals that made up a significant part of the Empire’s infrastructure alongside its immense highways. Due to this, Antioch Nova became rich with trade, making the city like Italica in terms of wealth.

    … but now Niraemius had received word from his scouts that the ‘Men in Green’ were coming here...

    If they take the city, then they can make things incredibly problematic for the Empire, as they can put a dagger to one of the major arteries of the Empire… and the problems that would cause would put the Empire in jeopardy.

    In preparation for a siege, Niraemius had ordered the citizens and slaves to the city’s immense citadel while his most experienced cohorts manned the city’s walls with local levies. It was risky but he had very few options given the strategic importance of the city. He had to hold, lest the ‘Men in Green’ get a direct route to several key cities including the fortress city of Heliopolis Nova which is important due to the city being one end of the largest pass in the Alnus Mountain Range.

    If both fall, then the ‘Men in Green’ effectively own much of the western half of the Empire, practically gutting it in manpower and resources. A position that would make the Empire incredibly vulnerable. The other passes aren’t even remotely wide and sturdy enough to get legions through, making it impossible for legions to get in and out of the front. With the only options being essentially getting forces through piecemeal… that is only asking to be defeated in detail.

    Given the situation, Niraemius had ordered earthworks to be created across the planned battlefield, given that they utilized incredibly powerful explosive spells as their primary weapon and the fact that earthworks have always been the best counter to said spells. If Niraemius could force the Men in Green to get into close quarters, then his men will have the advantage.

    … but that relied on several assumptions. Assumptions that might not work.

    Yet… it was all that he had now as Antioch Nova is too vital to not defend.

    “Legate Niraemius, the enemy has been sighted several mille passus away from the first layer of earthworks and approaching at a pace that we haven’t seen before,” the messenger from the scout cohort stated, “A third of the scout cohort had been annihilated in getting this information to you and to the cohorts…” Niraemius silently swore his luck, while the legions have always used various calls for maneuvers and strategies, the use of dragon-riding scouts made this useless for them and them alone. While initially used as essentially flying cavalry, the dragon rider cohorts were retooled as another addition to the legions and due to their immense range and speed required some of their number to be messengers. To lose a third of the dragon rider cohort is an immense blow to the battle strength of the legion here… battle strength that will be needed in the coming battle.

    “Understood, send a message to the cohort to stay back, I want the cohort ready to strike in the enemy’s rear when the time comes,” Niraemius ordered, “They must have a massive supply train if they are moving this quickly. A supply train that we will exploit.” The legions’ main strategy has always been to find and eliminate the enemy’s supply train, not only because it was full of valuable loot, but it also made it impossible for the enemy to keep on the field. To keep a strategic tempo like this would require a massive supply train. Hopefully, the ‘Men in Green’ would surrender quickly as they run out of food and material…

    That was when Niraemius heard a titanic explosion in the distance. Quickly getting his looking glass, Niraemius looked into the distance and saw that the ‘Men in Green’ had already started attacking the earthworks and had already inflicted immense casualties. What little he could see was horrific, bodies and body parts were strewn around the point of the explosion and the explosion itself left a giant crater in a portion of the earthworks.

    Niraemius cursed his luck, the ‘Men in Green’ have far more powerful explosion magic than thought possible, making the walls of the city and the earthworks his legion made absolutely useless. Thankfully, the cohorts at the forward earthworks had already started on the standard countermeasures, using the bronze barrels with obscuras agent -an alchemical agent designed to create thick clouds of white smoke, thick enough to make it impossible for a chase- as they went through the retreat channels of the earthworks.

    “… by Hardy…” the messenger exclaimed in awe, trying to rationalize what was happening, “… what is your message to Heliopolis Nova?”

    Niraemius simply frowned at the situation as he watched as the scene unfolded, trying to analyze the ‘Men in Green’ and their abilities. “If they continue as they are,” Niraemius answered, “All I can say is that once they are sighted, surrender is the only real option.”

    “… that is…” the messenger said in surprise.

    “Impossible?” Niraemius finished, “I’ve been leading the Empire’s legions for almost thirty years as a Legate and what I’ve seen has changed my perception of impossible. The Men in Green are meticulous, though, and efficient… yet have been almost perfect gentlemen.” Niraemius simply looked onward for a moment, collecting himself. “Given the strength of the enemy’s weapons and their willingness to use them, the situation is likely to be untenable. Now go to Heliopolis Nova before they are able to take you down.” The messenger simply nodded and left, leaving Niraemius alone to survey the battlefield.

    Looking through his eyeglass, he saw that the ‘Men in Green’ had finally shown themselves going into the first layer of earthworks, their legionaries scouring through them to ensure that they wouldn’t be attacked from behind. This would give his other cohorts time… time to redeploy and for the dragon cohort to strike at the enemy’s rear.

    That was when Niraemius saw that the entire sky was filled with goldenrod colored projectiles, ripping into the dragon cohort like a hungry Great Dragon. This is incredibly problematic, as it appeared that the Men in Green weren’t idiots and left their supply train unescorted and that ended any hope of getting an advantage in this fight.

    Just as Niraemius was going to give new orders, his life was quickly ended…
     
  14. Ocean Sailor

    Ocean Sailor Not too sore, are you?

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    Well, that was a brief POV. The problem with surrendering to a modern army is that they don't need to actually see you to kill you, they just need to roughly know where you are...

    Though I like it, there are too many exposition chapters to actual plot; while you dedicated more than a fair amount of work to the world building, it doesn't do much good if it's not used for something. Maybe you should take the old adage of "show, don't tell" more to heart.
    Thanks for the snippet, do keep up the hard work.

    EDIT: it would be nice if you could put a translation from whenever you use a language that isn't English. Not everybody speaks German, and Google translate is known for being... well, it's Google translate. 'Nuff said.
    Spoiler it if you must, but for pity's sake please don't use invisitext.
     
    Last edited: Oct 4, 2019
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  15. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    The thing is that I'm using that worldbuilding to give context and to ensure that everyone (unless you're Zorzal) isn't holding the idiot ball willingly (or in Zorzal's case, not completely willingly, as it is the case for him). Everyone isn't working with a complete picture in this fic, and it is how they react to this incomplete picture that drives a lot of the story alongside the various interactions. Remember, I may see the entire story in my mind but without the context, you guys can't. You can't see what the characters are thinking unless I show you what they are thinking. So on and so forth.

    Not only that, I don't want to be the upteenthbillionth writer that went straight to Italica, completely retread canon, or going stupid like my first fanfics way back in the days of 2008 and so on. I'm kind of taking after Kiyone4ever and his GATE fic in that respect. ... although in my case it is politicking, investigating, analyzing, etc. Also, worldbuilding is fun for me.

    Also, that worldbuilding helps me work out my writer's block. ;)

    This chapter is focused on the Falmart side of things while the next chapter would be more focused on the GATE!Earth side of things before leading up to the Siege of Italica.

    At least, that is how I've got it planned.
     
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  16. Ocean Sailor

    Ocean Sailor Not too sore, are you?

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    Fair enough, short of ZnT there are few works in which rehashing the stations of canon again and again doesn't quickly become boring.

    More than fair enough, fan fiction is written for personal fun, we should just be thankful that you also post it for our amusement.
    BTW, I edited another bit of advice into my last post while you were typing, do take a look.
     
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  17. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Just saw that edit. I'll work in a translation 'thread mark' or two for the various German sentences (which means I'll have to dig into my fanfiction PMs for most of them). You should give Kiyone4ever your thanks too, for he inspired me to work on this (at least, the current 'style' as it were), I'll admit. I never knew just how much joy I get when I write stories and sharing them until I started on this fic... and it fills me with pride that you understand me in this. :)
     
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  18. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Well, in other news, I've been working on the next part of the chapter and trying to prototype a post via the PHO Interlude Generator.

    One has Pina's thoughts and attempts to reconcile the matter at hand, and the other is basically a 'look' into the non-military, non-political side of things (i.e. the 'commoner' perspective)... with a surprising guest. ;)

    So, depending on how things go, it would be interesting...
     
  19. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Italica, Italica Province – 200km from Alnus Province; October 3rd, 6729


    Piña was right to move to Italica, as several important keystones of the Empire’s transportation network were focused on several cities in the region, and the message she received from a dragon messenger was troubling: Antioch Nova had fallen and Legate Hostus Murrius Niraemius had been killed without seeing his killer without the usual carnage that ensued. Pina knew Niraemius, and quite well as he was one of the legates that would tutor her in the ways of war when he wasn’t off on campaign.

    … and now the Empire lost one of its most prominent legates alongside one of its key junctions.

    Then there were the reports of increased banditry that have been slowly getting closer and closer to Italica itself. The current lady -and her immediate regent- of Italica had already started working on setting up for a siege.

    Then there were the reports of a Great Fire Dragon feeding across the countryside, a problem that is incredibly problematic at the best of times, let alone being on top of a rising banditry problem and an invasion from the Men in Green!

    “My lady,” Hamilton stated as she came into the war room of the keep, “We’ve just gotten more reports from all around the province.” Hamilton simply handed Piña more reports. “It actually looks good for once. From what I’ve read, the Men in Green are slowing down…”

    “… but that is only because they’re allowing their engineers to rework the highways and build their own infrastructure,” Piña frowned, “Once they start up again, they’ll likely be fully supplied again. That would be the problem. Given how effective their weapons are, they’ll probably be doing that work at such a speed that we might be just standing still.” Hamilton sighed in disbelief, understanding Piña’s assumptions and worries. “Why does this have to be so hard…”

    “Piña,” Hamilton replied, shaking Piña out of her stress-induced daze, “You’re pushing yourself too hard, the Knights can’t function if their leader is a tattered mess due to all the stress that she’s putting herself under.” Piña simply smiled at Hamilton, thanking Emoly for her level-headedness and willingness to take action when Piña is basically destroying herself. “Just take the rest of the day off and I’ll make sure we’ve got everything ready for tomorrow. If something were to happen now, we’ll be practically leaderless.”

    “… I…” Piña started before rethinking about what she was about to say, “… I’m screwing everyone here over if I continue to act like this.” Hamilton sighed in relief, as Piña wasn’t going to be stubborn as a mule again. “The Order and Italica need me to be as fit as possible for the days ahead… and I can’t do that running myself to death’s door.” Hamilton smiled as two of the praetorian guard escorted her to her temporary quarters.

    “Now, let’s get this over with,” Hamilton muttered to herself as she took a look at the reports and the map before her…



    A general is only as good as his/her underlings, as this little snippet shows. Pina is the sort to run herself ragged to save as much of the Empire as possible and her inner circle is likely to be able to snap her out of it. We see some of this in canon but a lot of it is buried under Nipon-wank of the author. Under most other writers, Pina would be the 'Only Sane (Wo)Man' of the Imperial Family and would get plenty of time to shine. Given that the original novel was written by a Nipon-wank that is so right-wing that he gets into Neo-Imperialist territory... she became essentially a sort of situational punching bag.

    I'm trying to give Pina some justice, and I hope it works. Comment and subscribe if you would please and Kiyone4ever, I would like your comments on the situation as well (and permission for a character of yours for a setup of a 'Gaiden' fic). ;)
     
    Last edited: Nov 12, 2019
  20. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    First, the next snippet is going to be something of a 'slice of life' in the POV of an elven lady of a multi-species town looking at the 'Men in Green' from the Iron Pact from the 'other side', which would include some problems that arise from having the war goes on...

    ... and I'm stealing a few creatures from the videogame series Majesty just to make things interesting. ;)

    Second, I've gotten the itch to play Majesty again... so... yeah...
     
  21. Kiyone4ever

    Kiyone4ever Getting sticky.

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    Good to see Hamilton on the ball there. As for Pina? Good read of the situation on her part. She seems to also realize that the Allies engineering prowess is such that any attempt to use 'Scorched Earth" tactics would only be self-damaging here. To borrow an example from the Civil War: During Sherman's invasion of the South, Confederates blew up a rail tunnel to hamper Union supply lines. One Confederate officer noted wryly that it didn't matter because Sherman probably carried a spare tunnel with him.

    And of course, borrow a character! I'll be interested to see where that goes.
     
  22. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    :)

    Yeah, Pina has always been the one that has a good head on her shoulders and those she surrounds with (even though they make very human mistakes, usually either due to pride, cultural misconnect, or the infamous 'fog of war') have similar heads on their shoulders.

    Now, onto RL and trying to make snippets...
     
  23. Threadmarks: Informational: The Brown Water Corps
    Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    First, I'll have to say that RL is a fun ride... and I've been on an Anno and Battletech binge as of late... and with Christmas so close it's getting even harder to find the will to write. Then there is the fact that the current segment I'm writing isn't going as smoothly as I want it to.

    So, here is an informational for you guys, this time talking about something that is going to show up in the near-future: the Brown Water Corps of the Iron Pact.



    The Brown Water Corps is a specific detachment of the various militaries of the Iron Pact whose sole job is 'Brown Water' -i.e. riverine/costal- operations. The various vessels of the Brown Water Corps are designed around going up and down the various rivers of the world and assist in inland combat operations, usually for combat support or transporting supplies and personnel. It should be noted that despite its inglorious nature, the Brown Water Corps is highly regarded by the rank and file personnel of most militaries within the Iron Pact and almost put onto a pedestal for Imperial Germany, Vietnam, and China. For Vietnam and China, it is the fact that most of their internal traffic is via the numerous rivers that cross significant portions of their countries but for Imperial Germany, it is due to the fact that what would become known as the Rhine Guard ensured that the British and French wouldn't get past the Rhine during the Great War of Resistance and the 2nd World War.

    It should be noted that while the British and French wouldn't respect the brown water ships during the Great War of Resistance, they wouldn't make the same mistake twice during the Second World War. The Rhine Guard would suffer a fatality rate similar to the U-Boat service in OTL: i.e. the loss rate of 75%. This is due to the fact that the Rhine is a massive waterway and thus a barrier to invasion and resupplying troops, so controlling the river was paramount.

    The various brown water ships within the Iron Pact arsenal were initially made up of appropriated civilian boats repurposed for combat or outdated gunboats with shallow enough draft but during the interwar years and World War 2, they would be mostly made up of purpose-built designs with a handful of standardized conversions of civilian ships. The primary gunboat of the Rhine Guard and other Brown Water units during the 2nd World War would consist of the 'MZ' series of multi-role ships/boats (US designates 'ships' based on ability to carry boats, and with a lifeboat that means the MZ series are considered 'ships', several other navies considered them 'boats'), which largely consist of ships armed with anti-aircraft weapons (usually a pair of 'mid' range and a pair of 'short' range cannon) and a dual-purpose cannon (usually the American 3" guns due to German armament industry having problems making their own until WW2, although some late-war models played with 10cm and 10.5cm guns but not with much success) with removable depth charge launchers and two sets of twin 21-inch torpedo tubes. Some experimental models would also see the use of rocket mortars of the 15cm variety or 12cm standard mortars installed instead of torpedo tubes, something that would be immensely useful during World War 2 and later during the early stages of the Cold War (having some light artillery ordinance prowling the rivers on standby is a good thing).

    These vessels would prove devastating in the escort and ambush roles, as they were cheap enough to mass-produce while having a shallow enough draft to navigate all but the shallowest rivers with ample firepower. This would prove crucial in Indochina in the offensive role, where the numerous rivers made it incredibly difficult to move men and material through and thus required the use of riverboats and barges to help navigate the terrain. This gave the Commune of India numerous headaches as they tried to extend their reach into Indochina.

    The 'Brown Water Corps' would prove itself during the early days of the Cold War in the various interventions in Indochina kept proving their worth, and kept giving various Commune of India-aligned guerilla groups massive headaches... allowing for the Iron Pact's Vietnam to be far more successful (and, really, the different goals, but that is for another day)... which ensured that the 'Brown Water Corps' would never be disbanded by the United States and other countries.

    The current Iron Pact arsenal consists of numerous designs, some familiar, some unfamiliar. The Iron Pact includes PBR style vessels well into the 21st century, but this is backed up by purpose-built river monitors and the latest of the MZ series. While the not-so-modern ones will be used overall, the ones that will be showing up will make things hell for the Empire, for they carry a lot of autocannons, thermobarics, and rocket launchers.
     
  24. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Ok, status update. First things first, I had to rewrite the current section twice already because I didn't like how it flowed and read (first one was another Imperial viewpoint, the second was a villager's viewpoint on the Iron Pact!Americans that became the garrison of the village and had a historian try to describe the air battles of the First World War and the Red Baron to pre-industrial fantasy citizens, right now it is taking place in the rapidly growing town of Alnus Town). Two, I'm fighting this stupid head cold thing and I'm hating it. Third, I might be going crazy because the world just kept getting crazier. Fourth, I might take a short break to work on my XCOM/MLP:FiM or another project more just to get out of the funk I've been having.
     
  25. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Here is part of a snippet that leads to the mind of someone who is part of the Empire but is 'looking in' as it were:

    )___________________________________(
    Bert, Tetsui, and Hans International Bar and Grill – Alnus Town; a few minutes later

    The immense floor that was the bar and grill was packed with patrons and the air was filled with the smells of barbecue, alcohol, and food. It was… peculiar… to Itami that the establishment fit so well into the medieval style structure, and to see it so lively was a bit surprising.

    “Ah, Kallus!” one the waiters exclaimed as the small group, “I see you’ve been assigned to Alnus town!” That was when Kallus’s eyes widened in surprise.

    “Samantha,” Kallus exclaimed as he jogged towards the waiter and hugged her, “how did you get authorization to get to Falmart?” The waitress -Samantha, Itami reminded himself- returned the favor and hugged Kallus back.

    “Eh, you know, the usual,” Samantha answered with a smile, “being a former Hauptmann does have its perks. With the company following the soldiers to Falmart, they chose me to help get things running.” Samantha quickly escorted us to a table, handing out the paper-thin tablets that served as menus. “Anything to drink before you make your order?”

    Itami took a quick look at the drink section of the menu and was intrigued at the wide assortment of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages… and then sighted that a statement that the establishment also had an entertainment center. Itami quickly filed it in the back of his brain as he continued to look at the beverages…

    _________________

    Working at a Men in Green establishment was far different than what I was used to. Most non-humans in the empire tended to be relegated to work that is barely above slave work, but the Men in Green -from either Gate- are vastly different in that regard. If you have the talent and experience, you could get the job.

    Being a wood elf, being a head chief was something that I never expected to become. Sure, I had to do some training in order to get the job, but once I got a handle on how the Men in Green handle things, I thrived. Right now, I’m on my lunch break and had decided to go into what the Men in Green termed ‘the game room’.

    What I saw there was… well… beyond words.

    The entire room was filled with various machines designed to provide entertainment to a wide variety of patrons. The games inside weren’t any sort of gambling -which was rather common in Imperial encampments- or at least what I was used to. Various ‘TVs’ and ‘entertainment consoles’ lined the far wall while the other was lined with various games that I never saw before. The center was filled with various table games that I’ve never seen before, some of which had ethereal images instead of figures.

    It was a lot to take in, I had to admit.

    I simply wandered around, trying to pick what I would try first. That was when I heard something unusual, leading me to one of the ‘entertainment consoles’. A bunch of Men in Green from Alnus Hill were playing a game from Remus Hill, and are completely entranced by it.

    Welcome to Cologne kamaraden, for you are about to begin the greatest moment of your life. The Jackabins have lost hundreds of tanks and planes while Smith’s brutalized hordes are climbing over mountains of their own dead bodies. The Kaiser, our glorious fatherland, have given us the task to ensure that the enemy doesn’t reach the Rhine and defend the city of Cologne!”

    I heard explosions in the background as images of fountains of water rose, the sounds of machines and weapons I could never imagine simply drowned the scene.

    Forward towards the unrelenting battle kamaraden! For Cologne, for the Fatherland, not one step back!

    The scene was horrifying to my eyes, an entire city -bigger than Saldera itself- burning. Numerous boats and barges floated across the massive river, escorted by armed boats armed with weapons that I couldn’t recognize. One of the barges was ravaged by an explosion while several of the escorts were pummeled by what looked like outright magic.

    Do not count days, do not count kilometers, count only the number of revanchists you have killed! Kill the revanchists, this is your mother’s prayer! Kill the Jackabin, this is the cry of your German earth! Never let up kamaraden! Kill! Death to the revanchist invader!”

    That was when I heard numerous replies outright repeating the last sentence. It was simply chilling to my ears. That was when one of the waiters -who was also from the Gate on Remus Hill- saw me simply mesmerized by the scene playing in front of me.

    )______________________________________________________________(
    So, yeah, I partially ripped of Call of Duty: Finest Hour for that, but that has always been an epic introduction to Stalingrad by many... and a similar one is used in the Iron Pact universe. Please tell me where I should improve right now because I'm running myself up the wall trying to get this down...
     
  26. Threadmarks: Informational: Psi Memories
    Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Ok, the next snippet is going to deal with a Psi-Memory, so I'm going to prepare you, folks, for it in a way.

    Those that have played the Metro games will understand the basic concept, it is the equivalent of a moment in time burned into reality and stuck on repeat. The Metro Last Light Ghost Plane scene is probably the one that everyone would know of. Each of these latch onto something in the physical world, usually an item or rarely a location. It is extremely rare for a Psi-Memory to latch onto people and those that do have a significant problem that will follow them throughout their lives which I'll go into later.

    In the Iron Pact universe, it is an interaction of humans and psionic energy. A sort of echo or death-scream for some of the nastier ones. The odd thing is, before the 1960s in the Iron Pact universe, these are fucking rare. How rare? Rare enough that even the Vatican -who has been keeping an eye on this sort of thing for almost two millennia previous and still keeping an eye for them to this day- had only had encountered... five, one of which was the infamous Prague Program where the supposed Golem of Prague was created and used. The Vatican, in this case, made a standard procedure to send a message that is sealed with a special seal to the local cardinal, who would then direct the stationed Inquisition to the site and recommend the best course of action. Out of the five that the Vatican encountered, only one -specifically the Prague Program in a certain attic- was incapable of being disposed of until Wolfenstein contained it in the early 1990s. There is a very good reason that the Catholic Church had prayers for -seemingly- every occasion, and it partially stems from protecting the people from these sorts of horrors (as, oddly enough, some prayers have improved the chances of people surviving encounters with psi-memories).

    When Wolfenstein began their investigations, more and more of these started to show up and Wolfenstein developed the technology to contain and/or dispose of them. This was interrupted by an incident in 1989 when a Wolfenstein operative became the anchor for a psi-memory. It was discovered that when a living being is the anchor of a psi-memory, it is effectively contained... at the price of one's sanity. At times such a person 'lapses' into the psi-memory and it can cause all sorts of havoc, both physical and mental. The operative in question eventually expired after a lapse too many, ending his life in 1993.

    It should be noted that people with psionic abilities or specific paranormal abilities (usually the ability to talk to spirits) are able to 'dive in' and save living people stuck in a psi-memory without technological assistance. It isn't always successful mind you, but having these sort of people and Wolfenstein support has a far better chance of getting people out than just either alone...
     
  27. 0t4n1z3r019

    0t4n1z3r019 Thicc Thighs with thighhighs saves lives

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    Just recently followed this story, and I can say it's pretty good.

    Can't wait for more good content!
     
  28. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Would you believe it simply started because of a few snippets because I hated how GATE went and decided 'how about I flesh out a timeline that I've been playing in the back of my head while I'm at it!'?

    It's something of a pet project of mine. I would admit it has made me a far better writer than I was. Right now my older works make me sick in how bad I was. While people say my Battletech/Mass Effect fic would be the one that was my 'turnover' from bad writer to good, this fic is where I shine...
     
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  29. 0t4n1z3r019

    0t4n1z3r019 Thicc Thighs with thighhighs saves lives

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    At least, you did GATE a favor by fleshing them out.
     
  30. Aaron Fox

    Aaron Fox That Crazy/Not-Crazy Guy

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    Eh, it deserves it. I'm just sad that they had some hack working with it instead of someone that actually respects it.
     
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