Doing it right...

[GlytchMeister]

If nothing else, we can label the different contributions according to the writer(s). That way, the audience knows where everything is coming from.

[GlytchMeister]

Glytch closed his laptop and yawned, stretched expansively, and slouched in his chair, still sweating.
Nodaki was trying to enlist Blackhats... Glytch had managed to convince them not to sign on.
By intercepting Nodaki's wire transfers.
Heh heh heh heh...

Mr. Meadows received a notification from the orphanage's bank account... He had to read the email five times to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Apparently, several hundred thousand dollars had been anonymously donated.
"Wow..."

Glytch went upstairs and made his way to Aeternia's room - He figured that was where he was most likely to find Phix. He listened at the door and heard her speaking in a soft voice in a language he didn't understand... He couldn't even recognize it based on the structure or the pronunciation.
He waited until she stopped speaking, then counted to sixty before lightly tapping on the door with one fingertip.
He heard Phix approaching and stepped back from the door before she slowly opened it and slid out of the room. "Thank you for waiting... I would have had you put her to bed if you'd woken her."
Glytch gulped, not wanting to find out how difficult it was to make a baby Sphinx go to bed. "I'm, uh, glad I had that foresight."
Phix's lips twitched with a hint of an amused smile. "So, what did you come to me about?"
"I need to go pick up some formalwear for the wedding... But that's all at my apartment. Nudge brought me here through the... Uh... Library... Spacey-wacey hallway..."
"The portal system?"
"Yeah! The problem is, I don't know how to get in from here."
"I'll have Nudge come and get you. Glytch, right? What is it you've been doing here?"
"Well, I was brought in to decrypt that hard drive, to let you all know what you were up against." Glytch began counting the rest off on his fingers. "Since then, I've been doing online intelligence as well as counter-intelligence, chatter monitoring, I worked with Stan on the whole security setup here as well as beef up the tech security here... I also just finished making sure Nodaki wouldn't be able to employ any Blackhats... And then there was the recon trip to the A-Mill..." Glytch paused before adding, "and moral support."
Phix's eyebrows rose slightly. "Blackhats?"
"Criminal hackers, crackers, and infiltrators. I'm a whitehat, I get paid by companies to test their security and tell them what needs improving. Nodaki currently has the reputation of a total deadbeat in the hacking community."
"You blocked his payments, didn't you? Doubtlessly easier than fighting everyone he would have hired."
"I don't have a chance against some of those slimy bastards... And I didn't so much as block as I did... alter. Atsali's orphanage just got a few hundred thousand dollars in anonymous donations today."
Phix openly smiled at this. "How sweet. I'll be sure to have Nudge behave, kid."
"Thanks... From what I hear, she can be a headache and a handful."
"She's much worse than that on a good day." Phix snarled slightly before refocusing. "When do you want to go?"
"At least 5 hours before the wedding so I can get it all cleaned up and get the creases out... It's all been sitting in a box under my bed for about a year."
"I'll see what I can do," Phix chuckled. "If you'll excuse me, I have to take care of a few things."
"Yeah, sure. Thanks."

Glytch was almost back to the office when everything suddenly went dark. He immediately froze and closed his eyes to force them to adjust to the darkness faster, listening intently.
Nothing.
He felt the floor through his shoes... Perfectly smooth. Definitely not wood, like the floor in the Manor.
Then he heard the rustle of fur and the soft clopping of two rubbery goat hooves.
Nudge.
Suddenly remembering Phix's comment, Glytch dropped into a lower stance and opened his eyes.
He was back in the Portal hallway.
"Hey, there, übergeek!" Nudge was walking toward him, grinning a little too mischievously at Glytch.
"Hello, Nudge. Phix works fast."
"Heh, well, it seems you've made an impression on her. She's got a surprise in store for you." She turned and led Glytch down the hallway.
Glytch felt a strong urge to run away... He'd picked up bits and pieces of Al's visit to the Library. It didn't sound like a barrel of laughs. Still, he found himself following close behind Nudge.
"Ah, I think I know what that surprise is... Eheh... I'm pretty sure I'm not cut out for..." He fell silent as the hallway gave way to an atrium like nothing Glytch had ever seen. It was a towering structure, well beyond the limits of current human engineering and construction techniques and materials. Balconies rose eternally up into what appeared at first glance to be the sky... But upon more careful inspection, Glytch found it was in fact a geodesic hemispherical ceiling.
"Woah..."

"I smell a human..." Phix's voice echoed through the structure. Glytch instinctively crouched into a full stance, ready to spring into a dead run. He was sweating, and his muscles were vibrating as his blood flooded with adrenaline.
Keep your wits about you... Don't be prey, it might fire up her instincts...
"Hey, I just wanted to pi-"
THUMP
Two massive, clawed hands landed on either side of Glytch. He couldn't restrain himself any longer as his brain was overcome by instinct.
Time seemed to slow down to Glytch as his body was pumped full of adrenaline.
Can't jump sideways, claws. Can't jump forward, threat expects it, teeth. Can't jump up, teeth. Must jump backwards.
Glytch leaned back and drove his legs into the floor, rocketing him backwards, underneath Phix's body. He skidded to a halt just under her stomach, tucked and somersaulted to his feet, and leapt sideways. He was immediately smacked in the face by a wing and grabbed onto as many feathers as he could. Phix growled and snarled, and her wing twitched upward. The motion, small to her, was enough to fling Glytch twenty feet up and out. He tumbled backwards midair before sighting the ground and curled up, forcing his body to rotate faster before straightening out and landing hands-first, rolling diagonally forward and right. His inertia was too great to keep standing, so he pitched forward and planted hand on the ground again, twisting his spine and hips and spreading his legs to disperse angular momentum before flipping onto his feet, facing a fully feral Phix. He was visibly shaking with terror, but he didn't take another step back.
Thank the French for Parkour...
Phix blinked, not expecting the young, nerdy human to be so acrobatic... Nor was she expecting him to jump under her.
"You have a choice to make... Leave, or answer my riddle. Answer correctly, and the Library is open to you. Answer incorrectly, however, and I get to have you for a snack."
Glytch remained rooted to the floor and took a long moment to answer. "I recommend you cook me over mesquite, and flavor me with some barbecue sauce. I've heard humans taste like pork... Though we are a fair bit crunchier."
Phix cocked her head to one side, smiling slightly. "Well... That hasn't happened in a while. I take that as an acceptance to my challenge?"
"Well, I wouldn't be giving ya tips on how best to prepare me if I didn't think ya might need them, now would I?" Glytch forced himself to come out of his stance and stood up straight.
Phix chuckled and sat, furling her wings and curling her spiked tail around her like a cat. "I've never seen your face, yet I kiss it every day. You can see me all around you, in the treetops where I play."
Glytch smiled before replying: "You cannot be seen, cannot be felt, cannot be heard, cannot be smelt. You lie behind stars and under hills, And empty holes you fill. You come first and follow after, end life, kill laughter."
Phix broke out in a wide smile. "Welcome to the Library, Glytch."
Glytch inclined his head and touched the rim of his hood. "Thank you for letting me in, Librarian, though I'll have to do my exploring some other time. Can I go home and get my clothes now?"
"Very well," Phix chuckled. "Nudge?"
"Yeah, yeah... Follow me, hotshot."

Phix stared after the young human. A riddle for an answer. That hasn't happened in a while either... Nor have I gotten that particular answer in quite some time. Darkness... Hmm...

[FreeFlier]

Now that is class.

--FreeFlier

[GlytchMeister]

Now that is class.

--FreeFlier

*blink blink*

It is? What... Uh, what was so classy?

[Just Old Al]

The fact that you have to ask why it's classy makes it even classier. Class comes from the soul...and is not a put-upon air that's thought out but one that is just you.

Bravo.

On another note, Phix really needs to work out a "Friends and family" mode...

[Just Old Al]

I've noticed that as well- to the best of my knowledge, I have never used first person in any of these narratives. Joe almost always does, and Al has gotten into the habit.

WIth my bits where you see first person it was done deliberately for the POV change. Should this be an issue it can easily be rescripted - I've done that more than once writing a bit that I felt required one or the other. I'm not overly wedded to the third person POV, and sometimes it's easier to explain a scene frrom within than without.

Horses for courses - it can be changed to suit what's needed.

[jwhouk]

Are you guys eventually going to put all of this into a PDF file? If so, you might run into a slight problem... I noticed that jwhouk has been, at times using the first person singular in the narrative (I went, I did, I saw, etc.) But if I'm not mistaken (and I'm not going to take the time to go look, just now) he has not been the only one. I think Sarge and Al may have done the same at times. If that is the case, you will need to rewrite some of the stuff, so that it's clear who is doing what in the story...

Whaddya mean, "eventually"? My only problem is work at the moment.

I figured a way to differentiate authors in the body. It can be a bit tedious, but heck, this thing's already 26 chapters and 300+ pages...

EDIT: Linky further down page.

[DinkyInky]

The fact that you have to ask why it's classy makes it even classier. Class comes from the soul...and is not a put-upon air that's thought out but one that is just you.

Bravo.

On another note, Phix really needs to work out a "Friends and family" mode...

I agree. I like his introduction to the library, very elegantly executed.
She is a Sphinx. She must ask the riddles to weed out those unworthy, even be they friend or foe.

I would assume the library hardwired that into their duties.

[Sgt. Howard]

Glytch, you have certainly out-sphinxed the sphinx! That is indeed class! Neil whupped her ass- YOU smacked her mind!

[Sgt. Howard]

Are you guys eventually going to put all of this into a PDF file? If so, you might run into a slight problem... I noticed that jwhouk has been, at times using the first person singular in the narrative (I went, I did, I saw, etc.) But if I'm not mistaken (and I'm not going to take the time to go look, just now) he has not been the only one. I think Sarge and Al may have done the same at times. If that is the case, you will need to rewrite some of the stuff, so that it's clear who is doing what in the story...

Whaddya mean, "eventually"? My only problem is work at the moment.

I figured a way to differentiate authors in the body. It can be a bit tedious, but heck, this thing's already 26 chapters and 300+ pages...

Joe, our tireless 'Editor-in-chief', deserves sincere recognition for his (mostly) thankless task- that we are 300+ pages is hardly surprising. The only effort that saw MORE pandemonium was the 'Wapsiholics Anonymous" segment when Paul moved.

Just remember- this all started when Justin asked Brian Wahnee for his daughter's hand in marriage- he wanted to 'do this right'...

[Dave]

I figured a way to differentiate authors in the body. It can be a bit tedious, but heck, this thing's already 26 chapters and 300+ pages...

One way would be to assign each author an individual style of lettering. Visually it would be a bit like having an individual tone of voice for each author. There are probably enough styles and shapes in use in current PDF systems to allow each of you a personal styling. You'll each need to figure out what style best represents your authorial character.

Diinkyinky, for example, probably deserves lettering with a calligraphic flavor... some hand-lettered curlicues... to go with the slightly archaic speech patterns of her drow characters.

Check with the Library. If there's any authority which can put you on the path to the font of Al wisdoms, it's the Library.

[Just Old Al]

If there's any authority which can put you on the path to the font of Al wisdoms, it's the Library.

No wisdoms here...next window, please....

Al

As far as fonts go, Al would need a nice serif font...something classically booklike, as he's more a product of the library (small L) than of the computer era - though hardly illiterate in any and all technologies (witness his now-defunct back lab).

Glytch needs OCR-A. Hey, if it was good enough for Michael Crichton...

[Sgt. Howard]

Shirley Phelps-Roper, in conference with her sister Rebekah Phelps-Davis, was busy laying out the logistics for the event to other members of the congregation.
"Layers of warm clothing... we might even have to shovel where we protest, I don't know. I have a printout of the area in question- you can see the one street that allows a good view of the building also borders the river... there will probably be helicopter coverage if the weather permits. THAT kind of visibility will always grab the headlines,"
"Logistically, we can use the same tactics that have worked in the past- reversible jackets, so that once we drop off the signs we can use whatever services avail without being recognized easily. Yes, being refused service expands the protest, but I like having a hot cup of coffee served from time to time," her sister added, "be sure the bullhorns have fresh batteries, that is not something I want to see a repeat of,"
"Key words are, 'trollop', 'adulterer', 'tramp'- 'slut' and 'whore' are likely to get bleeped... not sure about 'skank',"


"Forty?!? FORTY?!? This white-ass cracker snuffs TWO black kids an' we can only raise FORTY protesters?!?"
"Al, it's too close to Christmas- nobody wants to be away from family at that time,"
The Reverend Al Sharpton was clearly disappointed- the protests up to now have been in the hundreds over Officer Epimethus' involvement in the deaths- even when Officer Keeshan's body cam footage was released, the protests were strong. Sharpton hired three 'experts' who 'explained' how the 'footage' was altered... that held quite a bit of weight until FOX news uncovered the criminal background of the three in question, and pointed out that their 'expertise' in the matter was fabricated. The whole messy affair had gone back and forth month after month until the public got weary of it... more accurately, got weary of Sharpton and BLM for refusing to accept the truth. Even the black community had soured on it... LaMar Jefferson was a well-known meth dealer in the area, and most were glad to be rid of him. The death of Russell Williams had nothing to do with the two cops- had they been there sooner, Russell might still be alive. This was well-known regardless of the endless bleating of Sharpton and BLM.
Only Sally Laval, Williams' neighbor in the complex, insisted a more sinister scenario... and that was clearly due to her clearly visible lack of common sense. The woman demonstrated a low level of intelligence every time she opened her mouth- it got to the point that using her opinion to inflame the public was painfully embarrassing- problem was, FOX couldn't get enough of her and she loved being the center of attention... and didn't have the mother wit to realize she had basically become a one-woman minstrel show.

[GlytchMeister]

Ooh, is OCR-A easily available for you, jwhouk? If not, Lucidia Console looks kind of computer...y...



The problem is, I'm writing stuff on both Glytch and John... And John doesn't really fit the theme that OCR-A would imply.

Size 13.5 Perpetua is my personal favorite.

Maybe John could be Perpetua and Glytch could be OCR-A? *shrug*

[GlytchMeister]

Glytch, you have certainly out-sphinxed the sphinx! That is indeed class! Neil whupped her ass- YOU smacked her mind!

Woah, woah, woah! Glytch didn't stump her, y'know... He just thought of his answer and remembered one of Gollum's riddles.

None of you recognize that one?

[Hansontoons]

Glytch, you have certainly out-sphinxed the sphinx! That is indeed class! Neil whupped her ass- YOU smacked her mind!

Woah, woah, woah! Glytch didn't stump her, y'know... He just thought of his answer and remembered one of Gollum's riddles.

None of you recognize that one?

So that's why it was familiar! It's been a while since I've re-re-re-read The Hobbit.

[DinkyInky]

Glytch, you have certainly out-sphinxed the sphinx! That is indeed class! Neil whupped her ass- YOU smacked her mind!

Woah, woah, woah! Glytch didn't stump her, y'know... He just thought of his answer and remembered one of Gollum's riddles.

None of you recognize that one?

I did, which is why I said it was an elegant execution.

[GlytchMeister]

John dropped off his bag of clothes from Prescott's and immediately stripped and put on his cloak, threw open his window, and jumped out. He landed with a roll, making the snow sizzle and boil away before he ever touched it. Breathing deep and fast, he took a few steps before setting off an explosion below his feet, thrusting him up and forward, into a 50-meter leap. Again, he landed with a roll, skidding and carving into the frozen ground with a growl before leaping again.
He kept going, making sure to stay well away from the section of forest the elves seemed to stick around, until he found a steep clay bluff. His eyes burning bright, John enveloped his fist in explosive heat, drew it back, and set off an explosion just behind his elbow, driving his arm forward, deep into the frigid clay, where the prepped explosive energy around his fist was set off, blasting a beach-ball-sized hole out of the bluff. Again and again he beat on the bluff until a huge section of clay, now unsupported, broke free and fell on top of John.

The forest was silent for a moment...

Then, with a bellow, John blew apart the landslide on top of him, showering the area with clay and dirt. He stood, hunched and panting, surrounded by a heat haze, for several long minutes.

Once his eyes had extinguished, he slowly crossed his legs and sat down, breathing deep and slow.
"Got it out of your system yet?" Brandi's voice sounded from behind him.
"No... I just had to vent some frustration. I... I hate how I've forgotten so much."
"So that's what it was. At least it wasn't stress from shopping." Brandi stepped forward and inspected the hole in the cliff.
"That... Contributed. But it wasn't what set me off... Even if I control the fire, my damned words have just as much potential to burn people."
Brandi was silent for a moment. "It's probably not a good idea to stay focused on this the way you are. Maybe you should keep yourself occupied. Give yourself a goal and keep working toward it.
John nodded. "No point in wallowing. Yeah." He slowly got up, shaking his cloak clean. "Prepare for the wedding battle... And work on not being an asshole on the side. Once the world doesn't need saving from a rogue golem, I can focus on being nice to people. Until then, I guess everyone will just have to deal with me."
"Prioritizing. That's a good idea... So, what's your next step for preparing?" Brandi began to lead the way back to the Manor.
"I... Don't know." John shook his head as he followed behind. "I can't think of anything else I'll need."
"Normal weaponry." Brandi said over her shoulder. "You can't just immediately start throwing fireballs... Giving you some normal weapons will give everyone the time they need to herd the more vulnerable and the unaware into a safer location."
"And once they're all taken care of, we will have a little more... Freedom." John mused. "But so will Nodaki."
Brandi stopped in her tracks. "Are you suggesting we use human shields?"
"What? No! I'm just saying, that will be a point of escalation. Wherever we have room to strut, so will Nodaki and his allies. So whe-"
*poit*
"-re... Uh..." John wobbled on his feet, which were suddenly standing on a floor. "What? Oh. Bedroom. Got it."
"Get dressed, Billens is waiting."
"Billens?" John struggled to keep up. "Waiting... what?"
"Get dressed."
"Fine, ok!" John went through his pile of new clothes and picked out a pair of dark jeans, a plain grey long-sleeved shirt, and a black leather jacket. The moment he opened the door, Brandi poited the two of them again.
"You know, some warning would be nice!" John growled.
"The faster you can recover from a teleportation, the faster you can recover from any other disorientation." Billens spoke behind John, who shot Brandi a quick glare before turning to see Billens equipped with safety glasses and earmuffs as well as holding out one of each for John. "Time to find your weapon."
Behind Billens was the entire shooting gallery. Every pit had a different handgun and three sets of ammo each - they were all a standard black matte finish. John guessed they came from MIB.
John raised an eyebrow at the safety equipment. "Really?"
Billens fixed John in a flat stare. "Yes. Put them on. We'll start small and work our way up," Brandi turned toward the first pit, smiling a little, "I doubt you'll be happy with a .22 snub-nose, but it's better to be safe than sorry."
John rolled his eyes and picked up the first gun... He couldn't even hold the thing correctly, it was so small for him. They skipped a few before coming to a standard-issue police Glock. John picked up the gun and held it at arm's length with one hand, and was immediately reprimanded by Billens.
"No, hold it with both hands, keep your feet shoulder-width apart, knees and elbows always bent..."
"At least he didn't turn the gun sideways." Brandi muttered, smirking.
"Guys, holding this little thing with both hands is a joke... It barely fits one hand. I feel like I'm trying to cram all of my fingers into a baby teacup handle."
Billens narrowed his eyes. "Just cup your right hand with your left to support it."
John did so, and allowed Billens to coach him the rest of the way into a proper stance.
"Ok, good. Le-"
*CRACK*
"HEY HEY HEY! NO!" Billens shouted, arresting the gun with practiced ease, flipping the safety on. "ALWAYS let everyone know you're about to fire before you do so!"
"I kinda figured you were, y'know, expecting me to shoot?"
Billens stared up at the apparent novice. "Has anyone taught you proper gun etiquette?"
John shrugged. "I was taught never to point a gun at someone I didn't want dead."
The agent drew a hand down over his face. "Ahhrg..." Taking a deep breath, he took the gun, cleared it of all ammo, and brushed past John, holding a whispered conversation with his Director.
"This idiot is dangerous enough as it is... Giving him a gun without drilling some sense into that thick skull of his is likely to get someone killed."
"Do you want to train him?"
"I'd rather not take on a project like this... I think we both know who would be the better choice."
"Greg." they both broke into a vicious grin before Brandi disappeared with a *poit.*

[DinkyInky]

"This idiot is dangerous enough as it is... Giving him a gun without drilling some sense into that thick skull of his is likely to get someone killed."
"Do you want to train him?"
"I'd rather not take on a project like this... I think we both know who would be the better choice."
"Greg." they both broke into a vicious grin before Brandi disappeared with a *poit.*

Ruh-roh.

[Sgt. Howard]

"This idiot is dangerous enough as it is... Giving him a gun without drilling some sense into that thick skull of his is likely to get someone killed."
"Do you want to train him?"
"I'd rather not take on a project like this... I think we both know who would be the better choice."
"Greg." they both broke into a vicious grin before Brandi disappeared with a *poit.*

Ruh-roh.

Deep within the confines of Castle Alexander, the lowly Sergeant felt his ears twitching... and a sense of foreboding crept over him...
"... musta been sumpin' I ate... " he muttered to himself...