[2982] "It's not like Omega can kidnap them ALL..."

[imaginaryfriend]

It might take her a while to kidnap everybody useful but I don't see anything stopping her.

[edit]Also: Type-o in panel 5. I think that should read "how to access the ether" or "accessing the ether."[/edit]

[TBeholder]

“Stratagem: The Ransom of Red Chief”?

[imaginaryfriend]

My suspicion is that Omega isn't babysitting the people she has/will kidnap. She's probably just stranding them somewhere they have trouble getting back from. I'm not sure she can monitor everyone constantly in the distortion. In the case of the Donlans, Omega probably also took the opportunity to misinform them about what's going on and maybe set them on a useless/counterproductive task.

[arf]

I assume this is about having Kat access the Ether?

I wonder where Omega is taking them?
(Interesting that the link I grabbed contains an answer.)

[rafk]

I look forward to Omega's kidnap victims giving Omega her very own laser cows moment.

[aggadahGothic]

Our speculation that Antimony and Kat might use a code or second language to communicate seems to have been for nought. The ether is essential. This is thematically sensible, but the practical stakes have not been entirely clear.

Perhaps we will see Red and Ayilu this chapter. It could be somewhat interesting to revisit the schism between Red and Antimony, especially as the readership has always been rather conflicted over it. The fairies may not even be inclined to help, given both this animosity and the looming question of whether they too are content to live in the wondrous city of Omegalas. Antimony and Kat may find themselves at their very lowest point if they do not argue their case convincingly.

Aug 19, 2024 8:00:04 GMT arf said:

I wonder where Omega is taking them?
(Interesting that the link I grabbed contains an answer.)

Was only Kat able to see the blinker stone message? It's possible everyone in the room could, and so it would not help in avoiding Omega's eye. (If you are suggesting they use a blinker stone, that is.)

[hoob]

The students in Foley are proficient with data and the ether. Ether-encryption might not be off the table

[morrahadesigns]

HOW HAVE YOU LIVED IN THE COURT THIS LONG AND NOT LEARNED TO NEVER GIVE VOICE TO THE THING YOU DON'T WANT TO HAPPEN?!?!??!

Come on Annie! Even us normies know not to do that!!!!

[ctso74]

Aug 19, 2024 7:27:03 GMT imaginaryfriend said:

My suspicion is that Omega isn't babysitting the people she has/will kidnap. She's probably just stranding them somewhere they have trouble getting back from. I'm not sure she can monitor everyone constantly in the distortion. In the case of the Donlans, Omega probably also took the opportunity to misinform them about what's going on and maybe set them on a useless/counterproductive task.

Or set them on a useful/productive task? We may not be fully aware of her plans. Meg may be hedging her bets and making a non-distortion body for herself. Or there could be another project, that she thinks is needed to push the Court into their constructed singularity.

[Gemminie]

Small establishing frame of Kat's lab with flowers in the foreground, then we see Shadow asking for confirmation about the whole Omega eavesdropping thing and how they have to talk in the Ether. He's holding Robopillar. Then we see that Annie and Kat are sitting at a table at Kat's workshop, which is where Kat said they were going to go at the end of the previous page. Renard is standing nearby.

Shadow brings up the idea of consulting the former Forest creatures, as they were always talking and doing stuff in the Ether during class. He mentions that their work was integrated into the Court in some way. Kat thinks it's worth asking them for ideas. Annie doesn't think it likely that Omega can kidnap all of them, but Renard thinks she shouldn't say such things (Tom's comment: "Don't jinx it!").

We haven't seen the former Forest creatures (the Foley students) for a while! I wonder how the distortion has affected them. Maybe we're about to find out. Frankly I wonder how the Court's revelation of its plan to escape to another world has affected them. What about the Forest creatures Annie freed from beneath the Forest?

I'm starting to think that the chapter title may have something to do with the idea that Annie and Kat will get from talking to them.

[TBeholder]

Aug 19, 2024 7:27:03 GMT imaginaryfriend said:

My suspicion is that Omega isn't babysitting the people she has/will kidnap. She's probably just stranding them somewhere they have trouble getting back from. I'm not sure she can monitor everyone constantly in the distortion.

For Meg, Ether is a complete black box, exposed to her only as a single tool, however powerful.
While the Foleys live and breathe it.
If she runs into them, will they let her do as she pleases?

[Gemini Jim]

"It's not like Omega can kidnap them ALL..."

** cue up the Candle Jack episode of Freakazoid **


But seriously, talking to the former fairies might be interesting. They've been jerks in the past.

[Corvo]

"It's not like she can cover me with money, which is secretly my only weakness."

[shadow3]

Kat accessing the Ether out of necessity might be what turns her into a true goddess on par with Coyote, because she is always upgrading her kit.

[pyradonis]

Aug 19, 2024 13:51:09 GMT ctso74 said:

Aug 19, 2024 7:27:03 GMT imaginaryfriend said:

My suspicion is that Omega isn't babysitting the people she has/will kidnap. She's probably just stranding them somewhere they have trouble getting back from. I'm not sure she can monitor everyone constantly in the distortion. In the case of the Donlans, Omega probably also took the opportunity to misinform them about what's going on and maybe set them on a useless/counterproductive task.

Or set them on a useful/productive task? We may not be fully aware of her plans. Meg may be hedging her bets and making a non-distortion body for herself. Or there could be another project, that she thinks is needed to push the Court into their constructed singularity.

Heh. "I need to keep the Zimmy-brand distortion going until my new body is finished!" worked out so well last time.

[blahzor]

is giving a techgawd access to the ether a good idea? It's not like she will reverse engineer it to the point she can jump universes and set it up so that Annie lives in this one and program a Robot with angel wings called S13 to set things in motion for her rebirth in this new universe years earlier than average

[blahzor]

Aug 19, 2024 12:57:16 GMT hoob said:

The students in Foley are proficient with data and the ether. Ether-encryption might not be off the table

well not the boys so much

[imaginaryfriend]

Aug 19, 2024 13:51:09 GMT ctso74 said:

Aug 19, 2024 7:27:03 GMT imaginaryfriend said:

My suspicion is that Omega isn't babysitting the people she has/will kidnap. She's probably just stranding them somewhere they have trouble getting back from. I'm not sure she can monitor everyone constantly in the distortion. In the case of the Donlans, Omega probably also took the opportunity to misinform them about what's going on and maybe set them on a useless/counterproductive task.

Or set them on a useful/productive task?

Useful to Omega and/or counterproductive to Antimony if possible, if not then something that will keep them burning time and energy uselessly and not learning or thinking about things Omega doesn't want them to.

Aug 19, 2024 13:51:09 GMT ctso74 said:

We may not be fully aware of her plans. Meg may be hedging her bets and making a non-distortion body for herself. Or there could be another project, that she thinks is needed to push the Court into their constructed singularity.

Omega does want to help the Court though she's probably prioritizing her own concerns. Her best bet for a new body is with Kat... but she seems to have forgone that in favor of whatever she's currently doing. I think that means she isn't aware Kat would be her best choice because some things about Kat are opaque to her for etheric reasons, or possibly because she's seen something in the causal chain that makes Kat not an option.

Or, maybe Omega thinks Kat is a chump and she (Omega) can screw with Antimony and Kat as much as she wants and Kat will still give her a new body eventually.

Aug 19, 2024 15:21:22 GMT TBeholder said:

For Meg, Ether is a complete black box, exposed to her only as a single tool, however powerful. While the Foleys live and breathe it. If she runs into them, will they let her do as she pleases?

If they don't know they should stop her, then maybe. Omega's manipulative and they've been trained to comply (at least as far as what their bodies are doing) so if she presents herself as an authority figure or ally she may well be able to maneuver them around, at least for a while.

Probably the most limiting factors for Omega are her lack of ability to bwip on her own and her Noob body. The former would make this like a game of chess. Unless it was a misdirect Omega took Anthony into someplace deep in the Court. From there she could only bwip to places and people Anthony was connected to (the Donlans, Antimony). Omega could gain more pieces there... but the latter (being a Noob) would be tough to explain to the Court higher-ups... but potentially she could inform them what Antimony (and Kat) have been up to and the necessity to keep the distortion going. Whatever happened, her next move was to the Donlans. She probably bwipped them somewhere deep in the Court also but not necessarily. The most effective thing she could've done would be to bwip Kat away but it appears that would escalate this whimsical game of tag to violence; that doesn't mean Omega won't, it just means she doesn't have to do it yet. Bwipping Foleys is limited because they aren't deeply connected to many areas in the Court; sure, she can bwip them into Gillite of the present or past but bwipping herself back would be risky.

Kat could probably outmaneuver her and win this game but it may be faster to just end the distortion. Or if she still has access to Omega's systems, just sedate the organic components. Or turn life support off.

[blahzor]

www.gunnerkrigg.com/?p=1686

this page might be mighty useful as Kat wasn't around for this talk

[fia]

I just have to note I am (pleasantly) surprised that Kat doesn't immediately have a solution to this problem because she's a technical wizard and demigoddess and they have to ask new people to help.

In retrospect I see Tom has been doing this in his writing fairly often and I underestimated him (ex: Annie needing Donald's or Anja's help; her consulting Jones or other even calling on Eglamore when in trouble; contacting Jack and Jenny to get a hold of Zimmy).

The most deus-ex-machina we've had is, to my current recollection: (i) Zimmy un-splicing Annie, which wasn't hard-won even though she was stuck that way for a long time (but to Tom's credit, it was a good surprise because we thought she'd have to convince Loup to undo it); and (ii) the Tik-Tok time travel thing, which I think many fans were disappointed by, but at the same time, it makes sense within the odd and quirky etheric rules (or nonsense) of Gunnerkrigg. And in a way it is another example of Kat not achieving everything by herself and her own genius. The miracle of the New People consciousness transfer, for example, did rely on Juliet's expertise too, and she had the help of Tony also in designing some parts of the bodies.

Anyway, I'm really excited we get to visit the Foley students / former fairies! I hope they're still a little bit bananas.

[blahzor]

while there might be a time where Kat could know anything she's more like Coyoto who CAN know anything but chooses not to. Kat while a technowizard not great with biology b/c she never looked towards biology until Paz (the the ugly bird), Tony's work on his hand/surgery, juliet. Kat's mind is a ocean that needs someone to point to some land off in the distance and she'll get there one way or the other

[TBeholder]

Aug 19, 2024 16:14:46 GMT Corvo said:

"It's not like she can cover me with money, which is secretly my only weakness."

Right, of course.
“Stratagem: Briar Patch” as well.

[maxptc]

Not shown is Omega preparing a comically oversized butterfly net.

[drmemory]

I doubt if Omega could kidnap the fairies, much less confine them. It would be fun to watch her try though!

[Corvo]

Aug 19, 2024 20:31:34 GMT TBeholder said:

Aug 19, 2024 16:14:46 GMT Corvo said:

"It's not like she can cover me with money, which is secretly my only weakness."

Right, of course.
“Stratagem: Briar Patch” as well.

Br'er Rabbit stopped using that after he found out the briar patch was Coyote, too.

[TBeholder]

Aug 20, 2024 2:04:22 GMT Corvo said:

Br'er Rabbit stopped using that after he found out the briar patch was Coyote, too.

Always possible, but in this case it’s another advantage. In that Meg is the one who gets to mess around and find out, maybe close contact of an unexpected kind with Coyote will make her easier to deal with.

[Sky Schemer]

Aug 19, 2024 15:49:58 GMT Gemini Jim said:

But seriously, talking to the former fairies might be interesting. They've been jerks in the past.

Well, yes, they have. But Omega is the ultimate mega-jerk, exceeding the jerk levels of even the fairies by hundreds of kilo-jerks, so they may be on board with it.

[TBeholder]

Aug 19, 2024 15:49:58 GMT Gemini Jim said:

But seriously, talking to the former fairies might be interesting. They've been jerks in the past.

They are rather nice people. Just… not too nice to wang tomatoes at those who annoy them.

[Runningflame]

Ah Renard, ever the voice of wisdom and/or superstition.