Commercial Break (Worm / Slut Life) (Borderline SFW)

[godzillahomer]

is this Tinker argument even relevant to the story at the moment? we only have a single Parahuman present and she's not a Tinker

and to be honest, mad science will easily out tinker tinkering, they're the ones who seek to take the laws of physics and paddle them like a naughty girl who's ratings slipped

 

[The Unicorn]

1) From the cite:
You were saying?

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As I said, Tinkers who enter fugue exist. That doesn't make "Tinker fugue" canon.

2) WoG is still canon.

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Debetable, but regardless, what makes Wildbow's posts infamous is partly that he's a troll, and partially the way people misrepresent or misinterpret his posts. See for example what you're doing.

3) Read the entire post by Wildbow again, he's explaining how and why some Tinkers go into a fugue state, which is basically that their Shards hijack them to make their projects work.

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No, he's explaining that Tinkers don't understand what their technology is, or why they need to go through all the steps. he also states that Tinkers who go into fugues exist but gives that as one example among several for how they work.

That said I'm reasonably sure at one point in canon Kid Win mentions unintentionally taking apart some of his earlier inventions to make something he was working on earlier in his 'career'.

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If you could find a cite for that I'd be interested in it.

 

[edale]

and partially the way people misrepresent or misinterpret his posts. See for example what you're doing.

Click to shrink...

No, he's explaining that Tinkers don't understand what their technology is, or why they need to go through all the steps. he also states that Tinkers who go into fugues exist but gives that as one example among several for how they work.

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From Wildbow's reddit post:

The shards are helping to put ideas in the tinker's head or round out ideas as the tinker has them, supplying blueprints or outlines, or giving them a 'feel' as to how easy it will be to put something together. When the tinker pulls out a tricorder-like device and scans a power signature, the shard helps supply the language and interpretation for the tinker. During the build process, the shard itself supplies a helping hand, or outright takes over at a given period of time, during which time the tinker isn't wholly there (blacked out, in the zone, lost in their work) and the shard is doing the work. Sometimes this is pronounced to the point that the tinker isn't wholly sure what they'll end up with.

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And I'll repeat (again), you were saying?

If you could find a cite for that I'd be interested in it.

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Not spending the hours it would take searching to find it. I'll try and make note the next time I reread Worm.

 

[Jonakhensu]

is this Tinker argument even relevant to the story at the moment? we only have a single Parahuman present and she's not a Tinker

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I agree, this isn't particularly relevant at the moment. Especially since I don't see any tinkers getting involved for quite a while, and when they do, I'm unlikely to be showing them working terribly often. Mostly because tinkertech is bullshit and has them doing things that shouldn't work without specific equipment they shouldn't have in an early workshop. Seriously, Bakuda mentioned it was odd Canary's collar used screws, so it couldn't be tinkertech.

That said I'm reasonably sure at one point in canon Kid Win mentions unintentionally taking apart some of his earlier inventions to make something he was working on earlier in his 'career'.

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If you could find a cite for that I'd be interested in it.

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I happened to remember where it is, so here you go. Let's see if I can get the formatting right... And my fist two times trying to make it work failed, so here's the link.

I can make something like this, which is brilliant, then I go and dismantle my fricking hoverboard to get parts for a project I never even finish. Idiot.

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Now, to end the argument: The real reason you'd want your tinker power perfected is so that it's not blackboxed and you can actually use your super science outside of a single (or a few related) specialty(ies).

Now, since I don't plan on picking what, if any, concessions Taylor will be getting until the time comes for her to do so, can we move on to something actually relevant to the current story? Or at least take the argument over to the "So what's really going on in Worm?" thread and get more input from others who have a more encyclopedic memory of things.

Thank you.

 

[edale]

I happened to remember where it is, so here you go. Let's see if I can get the formatting right... And my fist two times trying to make it work failed, so here's the link.

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Knew it was one of those single-line things and not a whole section, was why it was going to take so long for me to find, thanks for the quote!

Now, since I don't plan on picking what, if any, concessions Taylor will be getting until the time comes for her to do so, can we move on to something actually relevant to the current story?

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I'm surprised there hasn't been a single comment wondering who got railroaded (much much MUCH) worse than Taylor.

 

[The Unicorn]

Now, since I don't plan on picking what, if any, concessions Taylor will be getting until the time comes for her to do so, can we move on to something actually relevant to the current story? Or at least take the argument over to the "So what's really going on in Worm?" thread and get more input from others who have a more encyclopedic memory of things.

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Point, and replied there.

 

[january1may]

Violetta raised a hand placatingly. "We know," she said. "It was a mistake on the form. They should be letting her know that they've fixed that for her, along with a few other issues they found."

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...Wait. Does that mean that Taylor would end up getting some nice options that she thought she wasn't supposed to get?

(...Well, aside from the mansion, anyway.)

 

[godzillahomer]

ooh, here's a good question

what would happen if two contestants living on different planets both choose Tyrone as a roommate and owner? Does that mean there are Tyrone clones or is he a limited availability option?

 

[Jonakhensu]

...Wait. Does that mean that Taylor would end up getting some nice options that she thought she wasn't supposed to get?

(...Well, aside from the mansion, anyway.)

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Unless I'm forgetting something... Taylor doesn't actually know about her larger house (not mansion) yet. She should be getting a few of the more minor things she didn't have an option to pick up, yes. Keeping any kids she may have is just part of it.

ooh, here's a good question

what would happen if two contestants living on different planets both choose Tyrone as a roommate and owner? Does that mean there are Tyrone clones or is he a limited availability option?

Click to shrink...

It really depends on how they get scheduled and how far apart the two planets are. Remember, there's plenty of FTL options to get from one planet to another in less than half a week. Or there could be multiple Tyrones running around.

More likely, it's that he doesn't get picked that often in the first place.

 

[nemo1685]

It really depends on how they get scheduled and how far apart the two planets are. Remember, there's plenty of FTL options to get from one planet to another in less than half a week. Or there could be multiple Tyrones running around.

More likely, it's that he doesn't get picked that often in the first place.

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Tyrone is one. We are all Tyrone. Be one with Tyrone.

 

[january1may]

More likely, it's that he doesn't get picked that often in the first place.

Click to shrink...

I'm imagining it as a combination of "Tyrone hardly ever gets picked in the first place" and "well, we do have a few ideas, and if it ever comes up we'd probably ask him what he prefers".

(Very possibly, depending on how the placement process works, the answer would involve actively putting the two contestants who end up choosing Tyrone on the same planet.)

 

[edale]

Personally, I think Tyrone is more a court-assigned owner than one people pick themselves.

I could picture a contestant getting told this: "Hmmm... Well your contract seems to be in order, one thing we should inform you of, however, is that Tyrone is busy with a contract on another planet and won't be able to be your owner himself. Not to worry though, we do have Bubba available for cases like this, although as he's needed so rarely he may be a bit more... Pent up than you were expecting."

That said, outside of FTL travel and teleportation tech/magic, there's also temporal effects that could be used to have Tyrone at both places at the same time.

 

[january1may]

That said, outside of FTL travel and teleportation tech/magic, there's also temporal effects that could be used to have Tyrone at both places at the same time.

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...Darn, I should have thought of it. If they're returning the contestants back to their own time anyway, it shouldn't be too much of an extra hassle to get Tyrone a bit back in time to service another contestant in the extremely rare case of it ever coming up.

Mind you, the paradox prevention would probably be complicated enough that it might well actually be more convenient to just rig up a special interplanetary commute for him - or, for that matter, actually schedule both contestants on the same planet...

 

[edale]

Mind you, the paradox prevention would probably be complicated enough that it might well actually be more convenient to just rig up a special interplanetary commute for him - or, for that matter, actually schedule both contestants on the same planet...

Click to shrink...

Tyrone: "Tyrone once ran into a temporal paradox. The temporal paradox was much happier with itself after a week as Tyrone's prison bitch. Tyrone doesn't have any problems with temporal paradoxes anymore. Tyrone keeps telling people to read Tyrone's treatise on why you should be a prison bitch, but no one listens to Tyrone."

 

[Jonakhensu]

Preparation 2.10

---

Taylor awoke to the strange sounds of a small dragon being assaulted by an affectionate tentacle monster. It did take her a few moments to realize what the sounds were, as she wasn't used to having her animal companion around quite yet. She looked over and saw her mini-dragon attempting to ward off the tentacle monster with small puffs of pink flame. It wasn't very effective.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Taylor grumbled as she rolled out of bed, nearly stumbling when she didn't account for the low cot holding what was apparently a humanized biological supercomputer, and made her way to the desk where the two animals were wrestling. "Leave her alone," she demanded as she reached down to forcibly separate the tentacle monster from her dragon.

This proved to be a mistake, even as the maneuver accomplished its goal, as the little monster allowed itself to be removed from the pink dragon only to wrap its limbs around Taylor's arm. For her part, Taylor could only look on nonplussed as the tentacled menace began rubbing against her arm affectionately. Giving her arm a few experimental shakes, Taylor sighed and asked, "You're not going to let go, are you?"

"I don't think so," the magical girl on the cot replied. "She's lonely and likes hugs."

"Well, so long as that's all she wants," Taylor decided, "I guess she can stay there for now." Turning around, she looked over the purple clad girl. "So you're my power, right?"

The girl held up a hand and tilted it side to side. "Kind of," she replied. "There's a lot more to me than just that." She pouted and added, "I just have a lot of me locked down right now."

Taylor thought about that for a moment before commenting, "I think the scientists are going to want to talk to you about that. They might even be able to help you with that, right?"

The source of her powers smiled at that and cheered, "Yeah! That sounds like fun!" There was a soft grumbling noise and the girl flushed. "I think my stomach wants me to fill it. How weird is that? Ingesting material for caloric value rather than for base materials… kind of wasteful, isn't it?"

Taylor shrugged helplessly. "It's what we've got, though." Opening one of the desk drawers, she pulled out a pamphlet and asked, "Want to get room service?" The little girl rushed over to look over the menu. After a minor argument where Taylor had to convince the younger girl that they didn't need to order everything, they settled on getting a few sampler plates so that she could figure out what she liked without wasting as much food.

---

"I see you enjoyed breakfast," Cindy commented as she looked over the several empty trays arrayed around the room.

"We wanted to see…" Taylor trailed off before looking over to the other magical girl. "We really need come up with a name for you."

The girl pouted and huffed. "But I have a name. I just can't get it to translate into something you can understand."

"We still need something we can call you," Taylor insisted. "It's rude to talk about you like you're not there, and we'll need a way to address you."

"Preferably in a way that won't need either a recording or altered vocal chords," Cindy added dryly. "Is there anything you'd like to be called?"

The girl grumbled and stamped her foot. "I want to be called by my name, but it's not translating right."

Cindy pondered for a moment before suggesting, "Why don't we try to come up with a name to use now, and we can change it later once you figure out how to get the translation to work properly."

"I'm going to have a hard enough time figuring out a magical girl name for myself," Taylor noted. "I've got nothing for you."

"I'm admittedly not the most creative person with names, either," Cindy agreed. "Though I might know some people we could ask for suggestions."

Taylor grimaced. "We won't end up with with something like McSquirrelFace or something, right?"

"Ha, no," Cindy laughed. "They wouldn't do something stupid like that." She paused for a moment before adding, "Probably."

Taylor looked over the younger girl for a moment before saying, "There's no harm in asking, right? You might find a name you like. Worst case, we ignore their ideas and keep looking."

"I guess that's fine," the younger girl replied sullenly.

"Great," Cindy began, flexing her hand and bringing up her phone. "Now that that's settled, we've got a few things to take care today, and it'll take them a while to come up with some ideas."

"What's first?" Taylor asked.

"Well, you had mentioned wanting to test out your magic gun, so I've set up some time on the range for you," Cindy said.

Taylor perked up. "That sounds like it could be fun."

"Though you might have something of an audience," Cindy admitted ruefully. "A lot of people seem interested in seeing what you can do."

Taylor sighed. "I guess I'd better get used to people watching me, right?" she asked rhetorically. "Well, we might as well get going."

---

"I'm coming," Velma Platt called as she made her way out of the kitchen towards the front door. She had just been finishing breakfast when the doorbell rang, so she had left her dishes in the sink to take care of later. It wasn't like anyone else was around to complain about it if they sat there for a few minutes, after all.

Once she reached the door, she paused for a moment to take a calming breath before opening the door. "Um, hi," the girl on the other side said. Velma blinked as she quickly took in a few key details. The girl had green hair and square rimmed glasses. Horns rose from her temples and wings spread out behind her, along with a swishing tail. Watching the tail led her to a more important detail. There was a medium sized rolling suitcase sitting next to her on the porch.

"Oh, hello there," Velma greeted the girl standing on the doorstep. "Are you going to be living here as well?"

"Ah, yes, I am," the green haired girl said, fidgeting a little. "I'm She-Who-Always-Needs-Hugs-In-Large-Doses-Everyday, and I'm going to be one of Miss Hebert's owners."

Velma smiled. "It's good to meet you," she said. "I'm Velma Platt. I'm going to be another of Taylor's owners. If you don't mind me asking, which owner will you be? I'm a Cutie."

She-Who-Always-Needs-Hugs-In-Large-Doses-Everyday blushed slightly and hesitantly said, "I'm a Succubus."

Velma blinked. Some of the girl's features could be considered demonic, such as the wings, horns, and tail, but she had thought those were a stylistic choice. She'd seen weirder online, after all, and had even briefly considered getting a set of wings of her own. She still needed to do more research on which insect wings would be the most practical on a human frame before she made any decisions on that front. "Well, come on in," she finally said, gesturing into the house. "We've got a bunch of empty rooms, so I guess you can pick whichever one you want. We might have to change them later, but that's no reason to be uncomfortable in the meantime, right?"

"I guess," She-Who-Always-Needs-Hugs-In-Large-Doses-Everyday said as she stepped into the house, dragging the suitcase behind her. Looking around, she commented, "It's bigger than I was expecting."

"I know, right?" Velma agreed. "They told me we'd be in an apartment, so I was trying to psych myself up for sharing a room. That won't be an issue now, though." If she was being honest with herself, Velma had to admit she wasn't sure if she was happy about the change or not. On the one hand, she would now probably have a room to herself. On the other hand, she really had been looking forward to all of the sleepovers. Shaking herself, she asked, "So, succubuses eat lust, right?" Without giving She-Who-Always-Needs-Hugs-In-Large-Doses-Everyday time to answer, she followed up with another question, "You can eat normal food, too, right?"

It took She-Who-Always-Needs-Hugs-In-Large-Doses-Everyday a moment before she answered. "It's succubi, actually. And I can eat human food, too. It's not enough to sustain me, but it still tastes good." She paused for a moment before adding, "Er, why do you ask?"

"Well, I made some cookies last night," Velma replied, "and you're the first person to arrive after I did, so I wanted to see if you wanted any."

"Cookies?" She-Who-Always-Needs-Hugs-In-Large-Doses-Everyday exclaimed. "Sure, I'd love to try some!" With that said, the two girls made their way into the kitchen to enjoy a quick snack.

---

It had taken a while to get everything set up at the range. Apparently, one of the scientists had guessed their plans for the day and had insisted on having sensors hooked up to record everything from Taylor's accuracy to any exotic particles her magic might produce. All told, had been a full hour since the time they had arrived and she still hadn't been deemed ready to shoot. "Is this all really necessary?" she griped as a few last sensors were placed around her booth.

Professor Daniel Akkeman nodded vigorously. "Oh, yes, definitely," he said. "We had Doctor Zecora take readings while you were being modified, so we have a baseline for your original and new normal state, but we still need to gather information on you as a magical girl. We'd like to get a baseline of your new abilities before you have too much practice with them. That way, we'll be able to track your growth. The scientific study of magic is still a nascent field, after all."

Taylor sighed in defeat. "Fine, set up all the sensors you need."

"Oh, don't worry, we only have a few more to calibrate and you'll be ready to go," Akkeman said reassuringly. "Unless there's a computer glitch or something, we should be ready in fifteen minutes or so." He paused for a moment before adding, "And look at the bright side, you weren't here setting up for half the night."

Taylor winced. "What time did you start?" she asked out of morbid curiosity.

"Oh, around the time you were waking up, I believe," Akkeman replied. "It brought back memories of all nighters during college, it did. Oh how I don't miss those days."

"Well, in that case, I think I'll head over to the shop and have another cup of tea," Taylor decided. "Hopefully you'll be done when I get back."

"Go ahead," Akkeman replied, waving Taylor off. "We won't need you until the last calibration run, so you have some time."

"Thanks," Taylor called as she made her way over to the concession stand. "Can I get a tea and a small thing of fries?" she asked once she reached the counter.

"Sure, no problem," the clerk replied. "Just make sure you wash your hands before heading back to the range." He shuddered. "You do not want to see what Mr. LeGume will do if you try to shoot with greasy hands."

"I do take range safety and gun maintenance very seriously," Gaston agreed from behind Taylor. "It's bad enough that I have to allow those scientists to cover my beautiful range in their equipment." He sighed. "Still, it is good to know what you can do with your equipment before you try using it off of the range. And at least you're doing things correctly, unlike that other one."

"What do you mean?" Taylor asked, accepting her basket of fries and her drink from the counter clerk.

"Hi, Taylor!" an excited voice singsonged.

"Damn it, she's here..." Gaston groaned. He and Taylor turned to see Obsessive Rose making her way toward them, dragging a large case behind her. "Hello, again, Rose," Gaston said with obviously forced cordiality. "I take it you want to practice as well?"

"Of course!" Rose shouted enthusiastically. "I heard Taylor was going to be here, and I wanted to see how I'd do compared to her."

"So I'm not the first magical girl using a real gun?" Taylor asked, looking over the girl's gun case, which looked identical to the one Johnson kept his AWSM in.

"That depends on how you want to look at it," Rose said cheerfully. "The person who helped me with determining what kind of magical girl I wanted to be mentioned you. It sounded really neat, so I decided to try as well." Ruefully, she admitted, "I didn't have as much time to learn how it works, though, so she got me a real gun, so I wouldn't need to form all of the mechanical parts from memory."

"She also refuses to practice in her normal form," Gaston griped.

"I told you, it's contractually obligated," Rose said defensively. She poked her forefingers together and added, "And I don't actually know how to shoot properly without the magic helping."

"Which is why I want you to practice more without it," Gaston insisted.

Rose waved him off. "I will, I will," she said placatingly. "After my contract is up."

"I'll hold you to that, brat," Gaston stated. "Now, Taylor needs to finish her snack and wash her hands. I'll be getting the rifle for her to use before she transforms. If they're going to use my range to test her abilities, they're going to do it properly."

Taylor blinked and took a sip of her tea before placing the drink down on Rose's case, where it would be steady and not cause a mess. "Do I really need to use one of your rifles, though?" she asked Gaston. "I've got mine right here, right?" She held out a hand and concentrated.

Her audience of two watched as motes of lights formed in the air and coalesced in her hand, forming the long shape of a sniper rifle. "That's awesome!" the clerk from the concession stand exclaimed, startling the three in the group. Their attention had been riveted on the display of magical might.

Shaking himself, Gaston noted, "I'm sure the scientists will agree, but I want you to use that alongside a mundane rifle. It'll be interesting to see how a magically constructed weapon compares to a real one."

Taylor sighed. "Yeah, I'm not sure why I thought that wouldn't happen." Perking herself up, she added, "Well, they should be done setting up, so we might as well head over and ruin the scientists' day, right?"

"Might as well," Gaston agreed heartily. He paused for a moment before muttering, "I may need to speak to my therapist about lingering issues with intellectuals." Speaking louder, over Taylor's questions, he finished, "I'll go grab the rifle and meet you over there, alright?"

He quickly left, leaving Taylor staring after him. Rose, on the other hand was still staring at the gun in the older girl's hands. "Liana is going to flip when she hears about this. Or be unbearably smug." She tilted her head in thought. "Probably both."

"What was that?" Taylor asked.

"Oh, nothing much," Rose said quickly. "Don't worry about it."

---

"Cindy," the humanoid supercomputer whined, "why can't we watch Taylor?"

Cindy sighed. She was beginning to see the downsides of being around Obsessive magical girls. This was already the third time the girl had tried to convince her to let her watch Taylor's testing. "I already told you," she began, forcing herself to remain calm. "We wouldn't be able to see anything, since the range doesn't have a spectator section, and they like to keep the number of people around not firing down as much as possible."

"But I want to watch!" the purple clad girl griped.

"Again, they won't let us," Cindy repeated. "Besides, the people I have brainstorming names for you didn't take as long as I thought to come up with some names. Don't you want to pick one out? You can surprise Taylor with it," she weedled. Hopefully mentioning Taylor would be enough to sway the girl. If not, she wasn't sure what she'd do with her until Taylor finished at the range.

"I was hoping she'd help with it," the magical girl admitted.

Cindy sighed. She honestly hadn't expected that plan to work right away, but it had been worth a shot. "Why don't we go and listen to their ideas anyway?" she suggested. "That way you can think about them for a while. See if any of them feel better than the others. Then you can tell Taylor the ones you liked and she can help you determine which one is best."

The girl perked up, much to Cindy's relief. "I guess that could work," she said.

The redhead smiled. At least she wouldn't be trying to keep the girl out of the gun range for the next hour or so. "Come with me, we'll need a nice, private room for the discussion," she said, taking the magical girl's hand. Hopefully none of the suggestions would be too dumb, and hopefully one of them would be to the girl's liking. After all, she was getting tired of referring to the girl as 'the supercomputer,' 'the girl,' or other descriptive names. It was almost as bad as referring to her as 'hey you.'

---

"So, who's going to say it?" Lucy Lewd asked as she looked over the ritual room with Joy Cassidy and Hope Celandine.

Celandine looked over the ritual circle, now burned an inch into the floor. "I'll say it. What the hell did we just add to our team?"

Cassidy looked at the mana crystals still arrayed around the circle, two of which were completely drained while the rest were heavily depleted. "Whatever she is, I'm just glad she's on our side," she admitted. "Of course, the other question is how much of this is due to her being weird and how much is because we had a proper ritual circle with far more mana available than was even remotely reasonable?"

Lucy shrugged helplessly. "I don't think we're likely to find out until the next time we use the circle. And I don't think they'll let us try it again anytime soon."

"True enough," Celandine agreed. "That was a bit more… energetic… than I'd been expecting. I'm pretty sure they felt the mana wave it put off on Earth… or will in a few years. How fast do mana waves propagate again?" The others shrugged. "Well, I'm sure we'll find out eventually." She looked down at the circle again. "So, think we're going to be making this thing permanent?"

"I don't see why we shouldn't," Cassidy replied. "Taylor already did the hard part, carving out the symbols for us. We'll just need to fill them in with something permanent."

Celandine nodded. "And Taylor and I should probably supply some blood for it, using the Blood Rite. It'll make the whole thing more efficient and robust."

"Well," Cassidy said decisively, "it doesn't really change anything right now. Let's head back and get ready to answer any other questions Taylor has before the show starts. We'll also need a good way to keep any of the cameras out when we show her our civilian identities."

"True," Lucy agreed. "Even if people can probably figure mine out if they try." She looked at a clock on the wall. "And it's time for me to head out. I need to pick up the kids. I'll meet you at headquarters later, alright?"

"Sure, we'll see you there."

---

"Ah, good, you're back," Professor Akkeman said as Taylor approached. "Er," he began, pausing for a moment as he looked between the gun Taylor was holding and the case Gaston was carrying. Despite the large range instructor's strength, the scientist could still see the obvious heft of the case, which brought up an interesting question. "Where did you get that gun from?" he finally asked.

"It's my rifle," Taylor replied succinctly.

"When did you get a rifle of your own?" Akkeman asked in confusion. "And why don't you have a carrying case for it?"

"It's my magical rifle," Taylor said slowly, as though the answer should be obvious. "Should I have a case for it?"

"No, no, that's fine," Akkeman said hurriedly, waving the concern off. "I just wasn't expecting you to use it until after you transformed." He looked down at the spreadsheet he'd set up on his computer to record the test results and sighed. "I guess we can add a few more tests. We're going to want to see how your shooting compares with your gun and with a mundane weapon."

His subject shrugged. "We figured as much," she said. "Which did you want me to start with?"

Looking up from the new columns he was making, Akkeman made his decision, "We may as well start with the control, that is to say, the mundane rifle. It'll give us a better baseline for your abilities."

"Alright," Taylor replied before her weapon dissipated into a shower of multicolored sparks. "Looks like I'll need to borrow your gun again first, Gaston."

The man was already kneeling next to his open case, fitting his rifle together. Akkeman took a moment to savor working with competent assistants, rather than the useless undergrads he usually had to deal with. Once the rifle was assembled, he handed it off to Taylor, who took a moment to check it over before lying down in her stall. "Good," Gaston grunted approvingly.

Akkeman switched to another application on his laptop for a moment, looking over the data coming from the sensors. "Taylor, would you be able to scooch over two inches to your right?" he asked. "You're not quite in line with the sensors." Taylor scooted over. "That's perfect. We're ready for your first shot."

"Right," Taylor said. "Firing." A moment later there was a crack as she fired.

Akkeman nodded in satisfaction. "All of the sensors are reading well. Continue as you will and we'll establish a baseline."

"No problem," Taylor replied, lining up another shot. Four cracks later, she ejected the magazine, slotted another into place, and continued shooting. Once the second magazine was depleted, she asked, "Is that that enough to set up a base line, or do you want me to keep going?"

"Why not try a set while you use your insects for aiming?" Gaston suggested.

Akkeman looked up from his computer incredulously. "She can do that?" he demanded in surprise.

"It helps a little," Taylor admitted. "I still need to know what I'm doing, though." Akkeman noticed two gnats fly down and land on the rifle as Taylor switched out to a fresh magazine.

---

Florian Zilberschlag looked over his partner's shoulder. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"A few minutes ago, Professor Akkeman added some columns to that spreadsheet he's using to keep track of Miss Hebert's results," Vanna Zabala replied as she continued typing.

"That's not an answer," Florian complained.

"Fine," Vanna said, turning away from her console for a moment. "They're going to be doing a lot more tests than we're prepared for."

"So?" Florian asked. "Adding extra columns for the data should take care of that, right?"

Vanna shook her head sadly. "It might, depending on what they're testing and how much detail they want, but Miss Hebert is already up to fifteen shots, and hasn't even switched to her magical girl form." She turned back to the computer and resumed typing. "There's going to be a lot more data than we originally planned on, especially judging by the titles of those columns. And it's going to be us at fault when he doesn't have the data he wants."

"But shouldn't adding the extra columns fix the issue?" Florian asked.

Vanna growled in irritation. "Sure, if we only wanted to keep some simple data. Hell, he might even be able to handle it all if he adds enough columns to handle each, individual shot. He still oversimplified it to hell and made a mess out of the back end. Rather than deal with the mess he's bound to dump on us, I'm going to get this thing set up correctly now."

"Teacher's pet," Florian scoffed.

"Look, just because I actually care about my work," Vanna shouted, spinning in her chair. She took a deep breath to calm herself before saying, "No, arguing with you isn't worth it. Leave me alone and let me do my work in peace." She turned back to her computer and continued her coding.

---

Taylor was laying on the ground with her rifle snug against her shoulder. Considering she was currently in her magical girl form, and wearing a skirt, she was rather glad her outfit also contained a pair of shorts. Her younger age and loss of height made the weapon appear even longer, but that didn't seem to be causing her any difficulties.

They had just finished with her shooting mana bullets at the target, and it had taken her a few extra shots to get them back on target. Evidently, she was going to need to train with regular bullets and with mana bullets, as the mana bullets had significantly less drop than her Lupua rounds. It wasn't a significant difference, at least at the distances they were using for the test, but in the field it would definitely be something to keep note of.

"So, did you want me to try out some of my Rites, or are we done?" Taylor asked as she shifted to a kneeling position.

"What do you mean?" Akkeman asked. He was jostling his computer frantically. Based on comments he had made previously, Taylor suspected he had needed to modify his record keeping to keep track of all her shots. Apparently he wasn't expecting Gaston to insist on such thorough testing? It wasn't like he was going to allow the scientists to keep their gear set up on his range indefinitely, after all.

"Well, I've just been using mana bullets," the magical girl explained. "They're easy enough to produce and seem to be better than regular bullets, but it's just mana. I should be able to infuse them with actual Rites as well."

Akkeman stood silently for a moment, considering things. Finally he said, "That could prove valuable. Did you have anything particular in mind?"

"Before you get started," Gaston cut in, "I would like to request that you don't do anything too excessive. The range's backstop can only handle so much."

"Well," Taylor began, considering what she knew about her magical abilities. "I think Frost should be safe enough." Lying back down and taking careful aim, she said, "I'm preparing the shot."

Akkeman nodded. "We're ready to record the shot." A moment later there was a crack as Taylor fired, a bright blue light flashing from the muzzle of her rifle. Down range, the target grew an obvious coating of ice.

"Good to know that works," Taylor noted. "I think I may be able to make the mana bullets faster with Motion or hit harder with Blood. And, if things go the way I want, I should be able to shoot healing bullets with Life."

"Here, try this," Rose suggested, handing over a single cartridge.

"What should it do?" Taylor asked. She wasn't really concerned that the other girl would give her something dangerous, or at least more dangerous than she expected, but it'd be best to make sure before firing a magic bullet she didn't make.

"It should fix things up a bit," Rose replied. "If I did it right, at least." She paused for a moment and added, "At least, it shouldn't cause any more damage than a regular mana bullet would if I messed up."

"Gaston?" Taylor asked.

The man sighed. "You might as well go ahead."

"Professor?" Taylor asked again.

"Hm, yes," Akkeman replied. "It should be interesting to see how your magics interact."

"Right," Taylor said, slotting the cartridge into place. A moment later, there was a crack, followed by the target no longer being covered in ice. Taylor studied it for a moment and stated, "It looks like it did when we got here. I think it worked."

"Well, that certainly opens up some interesting possibilities," Akkeman noted.

"Yes!" Rose cheered. "Sniper buddies for the win! I can't wait to see what we can do with some time to prepare properly!"

"Not in my range, you won't!" Gaston snapped fearfully.

"We're gonna need a bigger range," Taylor noted, amused at being able to use a variant of the old movie line.

 

[Jonakhensu]

Unfortunately, this may be my last story post for a while. Real life has been sapping my writing time, and I've run out of buffer.

 

[nemo1685]

Unfortunately, this may be my last story post for a while. Real life has been sapping my writing time, and I've run out of buffer.

Click to shrink...

Sorry to hear that. Hope that pesky Real Life goes away soon.

 

[Jonn Wolfe]

Ugh, power testing. You just KNOW the PRT are going to want to do that too when she gets back.

Little Queenie is adorable.

Unfortunately, this may be my last story post for a while. Real life has been sapping my writing time, and I've run out of buffer.

Click to shrink...

Ooh, bummer. Hope the logistical juggling works itself out for you!

 

[D'znn-Xy'lll MetaChthonia]

[Space Economy]
[Space Economy]
[Space Economy]

Spoiler: Space Saver

. "I think my stomach wants me to fill it. How weird is that? Ingesting material for caloric value rather than for base materials… kind of wasteful, isn't it?"

Click to shrink...

That is pretty much what food is for. It is highly inefficient at extracting stuff though. Still better then fking Pandas and Koalas though.

Spoiler: Rant

Those two are carnivores instead of omnivores like real bears yet eat a purely herbivorous diet, koalas are always either High from the toxins in eucalyptus or asleep to digest to eucalyptus- they even need to literally eat dirt to supplement their diet! Koalas don't die from old age they die from starving to death. Their teeth get worn down by eating a plant whose entire Evolution has been to not be eaten by anything to the point that sand is literally more appetizing in everyway! Bamboo at least doesn't taste that bad even if it is just as nutrient deficient! It isn't even because they can't eat anything else! You try grinding the stuff into paste or rip it off a branch and koalas won't know what it is! You make them Sober and then you learn just why the Dropbear (Mythical flying koalas that are (ironically) purely Carnivorious) is a thing in Australia (it helps that eucalyptus trees have a habit of EXPLODING when the minerals they pull out of the group mix).

Pandas? They are incapable of reproduction, when they do they have a habit of eating their children or crushing them because they don't even realize they were pregnant and can't recognize their children, and when they do they ONLY feed the larger one and eat/starve the smaller. It isn't even because they can't recognize that they are suppose to be carnivores, they have been observed EATINT ANYTHING THAT COMES CLOSE. They are just that fking lazy that they would rather starve to death rather then use the muscle power that can drag them up bamboo shoots to catch a fish or get tactical and fall on animals from the top of bamboo (they already do that all the time anyway!).

Pandas are cute and all but it would probably be more effective use of Time and Resources to save something that actually doesn't actively want to go Extinct.

Taylor grimaced. "We won't end up with with something like McSquirrelFace or something, right?"

Click to shrink...

Nah they will pay homage to the great Boaty McBoatface and call you Girly McGirlBreasts... Perhaps Sluty McSlutface?

Velma Platt

Click to shrink...

This is the... Cutie?

She-Who-Always-Needs-Hugs-In-Large-Doses-Everyday

Click to shrink...

HUGGLES! Swanhilde.

insect wings would be the most practical on a human frame

Click to shrink...

None unless you have magic or Spacewhales. Insect wings max out at meganeura size.
Size Comparison (Human):

Spoiler: Image

Size Comparison (Modern. Not Pictured: Giant Isopod):

Spoiler: Image

Gaston agreed

Click to shrink...

Snrk... Pftt-heh...

Spoiler: Video

No one sets up Targets like Gaston!
No one shoots Targets like Gaston!
No one cares about Gun Safety like Gaston!

"And I don't actually know how to shoot properly without the magic helping."

Click to shrink...

If the Magic just acts a Force Multiplier then she might as well just try throwing rocks. It really isn't hard: line up sights, don't lean on gun but brace against Recoil, keep firm grip with limbs out of the way of kick back (including FACE), fire, repeat. Hopefully she bothers to follow Gun Safety? Ya'know; Don't point guns (even unloaded) at anything you don't intend to kill, make sure safety is on when not actively being fired, when not in use turn on safety and unload both the ammo in the gun and the barrel, don't point barrel at face EVER, etc?

I'm pretty sure they felt the mana wave it put off on Earth

Click to shrink...

Which one?

"I don't see why we shouldn't," Cassidy replied. "Taylor already did the hard part, carving out the symbols for us. We'll just need to fill them in with something permanent."

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Lead or Tantalum works. Platinum if you want to get Alchemical.

"True," Lucy agreed. "Even if people can probably figure mine out if they try." She looked at a clock on the wall. "And it's time for me to head out. I need to pick up the kids. I'll meet you at headquarters later, alright?"

Click to shrink...

How many eleven year old Nymphomaniac mothers are there after all?

"It's my rifle," Taylor replied succinctly.

Click to shrink...

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine.My rifle is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me, my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than my enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me.

 

[edale]

Little Queenie is adorable.

Click to shrink...

QA-tan is best girl.

Size Comparison (Human):

Spoiler: Image

Size Comparison (Modern. Not Pictured: Giant Isopod):

Spoiler: Image

undefined

Click to shrink...

You do know the insect wings on a human frame would be sized up to scale... So with that meganeura example, the wingspan on a human would be something like 12 feet (assuming the scale between man and bug in that pic is accurate).

If the Magic just acts a Force Multiplier then she might as well just try throwing rocks. It really isn't hard: line up sights, don't lean on gun but brace against Recoil, keep firm grip with limbs out of the way of kick back (including FACE), fire, repeat. Hopefully she bothers to follow Gun Safety? Ya'know; Don't point guns (even unloaded) at anything you don't intend to kill, make sure safety is on when not actively being fired, when not in use turn on safety and unload both the ammo in the gun and the barrel, don't point barrel at face EVER, etc?

Click to shrink...

There are very real reasons why Rose can't reveal her civilian ID (besides purely contractual), and if she can't go to the firing range in her civilian ID, there's literally no way for her to practice without her empowerments.

That said, she most certainly can and will learn basic gun safety while empowered.

Which one?

Click to shrink...

The mana wave from Taylor/QA-tan's empowerment.

How many eleven year old Nymphomaniac mothers are there after all?

Click to shrink...

She's only 11 while transformed... Not sure on her (physical) age while depowered.

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine.My rifle is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me, my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than my enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me.

Click to shrink...

You beat me to it... I actually wrote this as a note on the beta document as soon as I saw that line:

This is my magical rifle, there are many like it, but this one is mine. My magical rifle is my best friend, it is my life. I must master it like I must master my life. Without me my magical rifle is useless; without my magical rifle, I am useless. I must fire my magical rifle true. I must shoot straighter than my enemy that is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will. Before God I swear this creed: My magical rifle and myself are defenders of this planet. We are the masters of our enemy. We are the saviors of my life. So be it! Until there is no enemy but peace. Amen.

Click to shrink...

Gotta paraphrase slightly given Taylor's....unique situation, lol.

 

[MissileTeatime]

I apparently can't read the phrase "rifleman's creed" without thinking of this. Thanks, google! @yall, you're welcome I'm not sorry at all.

 

[Sarssol]

The mana wave from Taylor/QA-tan's empowerment.

Click to shrink...

I do believe he meant "Which Earth". There are so very many it could be, after all.

 

[D'znn-Xy'lll MetaChthonia]

You do know the insect wings on a human frame would be sized up to scale... So with that meganeura example, the wingspan on a human would be something like 12 feet (assuming the scale between man and bug in that pic is accurate).

Click to shrink...

There is something called "the Square-Cubed Law"*. Insect Wings are too delicate for something of the size and weight of a human. They would need to flap so fast that, due to their size, they would tear themselves apart but in order for them to be to even gain lift they would also need to be massive but that would mean more thrust which means more speed and if they were any more durable they would also be heavier. She would have better luck with Bat Wings or going with feathers. If she removed all her organs and hollowed her bones she would be light enough that she could use something that looks like Insect Wings but they would still not be Insect Wings.

*this is the same thing that says Godzilla would die if he stepped foot on land because his own organs would be too heavy to support themselves. It is also why throwing a mouse off the Empire State Building won't hurt it but throwing a human off would kill them and a Elephant goes splat.

The mana wave from Taylor/QA-tan's empowerment.

Click to shrink...

Which Earth.

 

[Jonn Wolfe]

She-Who-Always-Needs-Hugs-In-Large-Doses-Everyday

Click to shrink...

HUGGLES! Swanhilde.

Click to shrink...

Miss Huggles!

Or, Miss Karenza Sukutai

Name - Kerensa
Source - Scottish
Meaning - Affectionate
Gender - Girl

Name - Sukutai - Also good for innuendo
Source - African
Meaning - Hug
Gender - Girl

----

For Miss Queen Administrator, Zarina Bailee

Name - Zarina
Source - Indian
Meaning - Queen
Gender - Girl

Name - Bailee
Source - French
Meaning - Law enforcer; Administrator
Gender - Girl

This is the website I used.

Spoiler: Others

Basilia - Spanish - Queen - Girl
Ginette - French - Queen; Virgin - Girl
Ina - Polish - Queen - Girl
Tania - Indian - Fairy queen - Girl

 

[Ironau]

Drag not enough Swanhilde this episode. But I'm sure we will get more later.

 

[D'znn-Xy'lll MetaChthonia]

You beat me to it... I actually wrote this as a note on the beta document as soon as I saw that line:

Click to shrink...

Alternatively Unlimited Gun Works could have been used:

Spoiler: Space Saver

Spoiler: Image

Spoiler: Video

Spoiler: Idea

I am the Soul of my Gun
Plastic is my body
Slag is my blood
I have created over a thousand Firearms
Unknown to Death
Nor known to Life
Have withstood Suffering to acquire many weapons yet, those hands will never hold anything.
And so I pray...
Unlimited Gun Works!

 

[Jonakhensu]

11/13/18


First, I'd like to thank everyone for their concern about Real Life getting in the way. Unfortunately, as we're approaching holiday season, things are unlikely to change for a while. I'll still be trying to get more down, of course, and I think there's only two or three more chapters left to this arc. Four on the outside.

Ugh, power testing. You just KNOW the PRT are going to want to do that too when she gets back.

Click to shrink...

That is, of course, assuming she joins the Wards or the Protectorate… and lets them know about her magic at all.

That is pretty much what food is for. It is highly inefficient at extracting stuff though. Still better then fking Pandas and Koalas though.

Click to shrink...

QA-Tan is more used to using things closer to nuclear processes than digestion.

Taylor grimaced. "We won't end up with with something like McSquirrelFace or something, right?"

Click to shrink...

Nah they will pay homage to the great Boaty McBoatface and call you Girly McGirlBreasts... Perhaps Sluty McSlutface?

Click to shrink...

This is a call back to an actual planet Taylor heard about.

And the more likely name would be Shardy McShardface. The people Cindy is asking help from know more about what's going on than she does. Well… some of them do, at least.

No one sets up Targets like Gaston!
No one shoots Targets like Gaston!
No one cares about Gun Safety like Gaston!

Click to shrink...

Yes, Gaston is actually that Gaston… after quite a bit of therapy.

If the Magic just acts a Force Multiplier then she might as well just try throwing rocks. It really isn't hard: line up sights, don't lean on gun but brace against Recoil, keep firm grip with limbs out of the way of kick back (including FACE), fire, repeat. Hopefully she bothers to follow Gun Safety? Ya'know; Don't point guns (even unloaded) at anything you don't intend to kill, make sure safety is on when not actively being fired, when not in use turn on safety and unload both the ammo in the gun and the barrel, don't point barrel at face EVER, etc?

Click to shrink...

Rose's magic gives her two times a professional level of aiming, whatever that means. She could conceivably learn to be better when out of uniform and have it carry over, but she can't really work on it at the moment. It would also probably take a lot of effort to get much, if any, improvement.

Which one?

Click to shrink...

The one they share real-space with and where the magic can't use dimensional shenanigans to propagate faster.

Lead or Tantalum works. Platinum if you want to get Alchemical.

Click to shrink...

I was originally thinking Electrum, though I suppose a Gold/Tantalum alloy could be interesting.

How many eleven year old Nymphomaniac mothers are there after all?

Click to shrink...

Not terribly many. The age of consent (without parental permission) is 13, after all.

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine.My rifle is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me, my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than my enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me.

Click to shrink...

This always makes me think of the episode of Full Metal Panic Fumufu where Sousuke has to train the school's rugby team...

There are very real reasons why Rose can't reveal her civilian ID (besides purely contractual), and if she can't go to the firing range in her civilian ID, there's literally no way for her to practice without her empowerments.

That said, she most certainly can and will learn basic gun safety while empowered.

Click to shrink...

What are you talking about? I'm sure she's just being a brat. Or obsessing over the exact wording of her contract. Probably that second one.

She's only 11 while transformed... Not sure on her (physical) age while depowered.

Click to shrink...

I actually had to check to make sure and… yup, I haven't given all of the girls ages yet. Lewd Lucy is at least 21. She does have an 8-year-old daughter, after all.

There is something called "the Square-Cubed Law"*. Insect Wings are too delicate for something of the size and weight of a human.

Click to shrink...

You're assuming Velma wants actual insect wings, rather than artificial wings styled after insect wings. Antigrav and/or nanotech may be involved. Or magic. There's a lot of possibilities.

For Miss Queen Administrator, Zarina Bailee

Click to shrink...

One bright side of my running out of buffer material is that I haven't actually finalized QA-Tan's name yet. That's right! Some of the reader's suggestions may end up in the story.

Drag not enough Swanhilde this episode. But I'm sure we will get more later.

Click to shrink...

Don't worry, there will be more of her soon enough. Chapter-wise, at least. I can't guarantee time-wise.

Alternatively Unlimited Gun Works could have been used

Click to shrink...

Even before the spoiler opened, I was thinking "Oh, hello, Mami." I'd forgotten that Homura was probably worse.

 

[D'znn-Xy'lll MetaChthonia]

I was originally thinking Electrum, though I suppose a Gold/Tantalum alloy could be interesting.

Click to shrink...

Tantalum is suppose to be a ridiculously useful material. I t cases no immune response so it is used as prosthetics and it is used in electronics. It is also a replacement for Platinum in Science. Tantalum also is corrosive Resistant and nontoxic. Platinum, on the other hand, is suppose to be the Metal to represent God in Alchemy (the Philosphers Stone probably would be made from a mix of Platinum and Mercury).

So it would fit that a Magical Girl Empowerment Ring would be made of faux Platinum.

This always makes me think of the episode of Full Metal Panic Fumufu where Sousuke has to train the school's rugby team...

Click to shrink...

Ironically I used the Full Metal Jacket version.

You're assuming Velma wants actual insect wings, rather than artificial wings styled after insect wings. Antigrav and/or nanotech may be involved. Or magic. There's a lot of possibilities.

Click to shrink...

I did say originally "Magic or Spacewhales" so Technology probably would work. I also said some stuff about using other materials but they wouldn't be actual Insect Wings.

Even before the spoiler opened, I was thinking "Oh, hello, Mami." I'd forgotten that Homura was probably worse.

Click to shrink...

Given the way Unlimited Blade Works it is basically a fusion of Homura and her Shield and Mami's Moar Dakka but for sharp pointy weapons. Then again a version of EMIYA has guns so... Yeah. UBW just needs to Structural Analyse the weapon to get it in the Reality Marble and Homura just straight up steals it and puts it in her "Reality Marble". After that the user, just like Mami, can Project seemingly infinite copies (as long as the Magic holds out that is).

 

[KillingYouNicely]

Y'know, something just occurred to me - with such an expansive, multi-dimensional community available, The Incubator wouldn't be forced to rely on their magical girl -> witches cycle for escaping universal heat death, and therefore might be far more open and co-operative. After all, they certainly know that happy magical girls give the best results, so if subterfuge and resource limits no longer apply, why would they even bother? A contract with Slut Life!Kyubey would probably be way better than what Mami, Homura and the rest endured, and that's not even considering the possibility of the Law of Cycles, aka Madoka, giving you a second life after death with additional witch powers.

 

[Slith10]

Y'know, something just occurred to me - with such an expansive, multi-dimensional community available, The Incubator wouldn't be forced to rely on their magical girl -> witches cycle for escaping universal heat death, and therefore might be far more open and co-operative. After all, they certainly know that happy magical girls give the best results, so if subterfuge and resource limits no longer apply, why would they even bother? A contract with Slut Life!Kyubey would probably be way better than what Mami, Homura and the rest endured, and that's not even considering the possibility of the Law of Cycles, aka Madoka, giving you a second life after death with additional witch powers.

Click to shrink...

It's got to be incompatible with the original system or Kyuubes is going to try and run both magic systems at the same time to download more RAM get more energy.
He's an asshole like that.