Kernel of Insight: Twists and Turns

Once again, no new chapter...rest assured, I'm working on it.  I should have it done in a week or two.  I know, I know, I missed my deadline but April has been a hellish month for me.  Regardless, I HAVE kept writing, alongside work, looking for work, preparing for work, and relaxing from work(I'm so not clever XD) and I do have something for you this week.  So, let's take a look at plot twists...and how to hopefully not mess them up.

Kernel of Insight: Twists and Turns

            I want to talk for a moment about plot twists, in particular, surprise twists.  Why?  Well, we've had a drastic tonal shift since the last chapter and the next one isn't due out yet, which has some other twists of sorts, so...now seems like the perfect time.

            A plot twist, by definition, is just the changing of a plot's direction.  Usually a radical change for the purpose of revealing new information, altering the perception of a character, or furthering the plot in a way that the audience might not yet understand.  However, in recent memory the term "Twist" has become something of a dirty word in literature, video games, and film.  Why?  Because many people try to play the plot twist card to try and seem clever, raise the stakes, or alter the narrative in a way that people didn't expect in hopes of shocking them and thus becoming more memorable.  And most people are sick of it.  In truth, a twist ending or some plot twist that changes the way the audience views their chosen method of storytelling is not inherently bad...people may not like it but still...however, it can be incompetently handled or unnecessary.

            In my mind, you need to have two things for a plot twist to work in most situations.  The first is that it must be plausible within the world of the story.  For example, a contemporary fiction story that suddenly has a magician come in, wielding arcane spells to change things around, is a bit of a stretch.  This can be waved away by the second requirement, namely the planting of seeds.  You need to plant seeds that the possibility is actually possible or plant seeds to try and set future events into play that will build upon the twist.  A magician appearing for five minutes to give a character his romantic ending in a story with no magic is out of place.  A magician appearing in a story to change the perspective and let the audience know that YES, magic DOES exist is not necessarily bad.  If you foreshadow it properly, it will go down well.  However even if you don't, if your story can pick up the slack and you give some manner of explanation later, harvested from seeds you've planted, then that isn't so bad either.

            A plot twist is something we see in every reading, sometimes without realizing it because of how well it fits into the plot and flows.  Using my own story as an example, look at the section where Deminos accidentally teleports the girls to Draconia.  This IS a plot twist, because we go from the slice of life style story of Mina and the others learning about and understanding Aeon and his companions to a story of survival in an unknown and dangerous environment.  It takes the story in a different direction.  However, many people might not have even paid it much mind.  Why?  Well, teleportation magic is a thing in the world of Serano.  We've seen it in action with Aeon and Mina, it's been explained by other characters, and the device that Aeon uses for teleportation has been seen and used before.  We have a precedent.  This is physically possible within the context of the story.

            Now, look at some of the other things that led up to this moment.  We've had constant foreshadowing that Deminos was hiding something from the girls and anxious about it.  His rubbing of his arm, bravado, the fact that he wore bandages with it even during his exercises, all of those were signs that something about his arm was different and that he had a secret.  Thus, it is not entirely surprising when he does something unexpected, like attacking Yuka and using the teleportation relay, since there is some doubt about him.  From the girl's perspective, we've seen that they like Yuka, that Celine and Mina are both physically fit and capable of fighting, and that they have a low opinion of Deminos due to his personality.  The seeds are in place for them to fight after Deminos has attacked Yuka and meddled with the teleportation relay.  Couple that with the precedence itself, which plants seeds that the teleportation relay will be used again and this plot twist is viable.  Even expected for those paying attention.

            That's an interesting thing about a plot twist.  It is still a twist, even if the audience calls it before it happens.  It's meant to shift the plot in a different direction.  In the case of my previous example, for the sake of characterizing the girls and Deminos, explaining conjuration, introducing concepts to the plot such as Dragons, Aeon's human form, Deminos's arm, and Aeon's unusual power.  It plants more seeds while growing the characters and the plot.  The ultimate resolution of this plotline is that Mina wants to learn magic so that she won't be a burden, like when she was grabbed by a Dragon.  In a way, she has shown the audience that physically and emotionally, she can do a great deal, as she is able to conquer her fear and help Aeon out of the rubble he has been buried in.  However, she also is lacking in power, I.E. magic.  This creates a reason for her continued presence with Aeon, to learn magic, which also feeds into her own character growth and furthers the plot by leading to more interactions with the other characters. 

            The small seeds planted with each twist grow into trees that bear fruit, which the audience eats, spits out new seeds(their understanding of the character growth and excitement/speculation on what is to come,) which will grow into trees that bear fruit, etc. etc.

            However, for a twist to make sense, it needs to be possible and it needs to have seeds planted in some way or another.  Seeds do not have to be blatantly planted either.  Sometimes the audience learns more from what is NOT seen rather than what is.  Take note that Aeon is revealed to have a great deal of power during his battle with Denad and Belial.  But what don't we see a lot?  We don't see power on the scale of him fighting Belial much after that and we don't see that special power he used when fighting Rudra.  The seeds are planted that there is something about his ability and his full power that prevents him from using it freely, for one reason or another.  Could be simple apathy...could be that there's more here than meets the eye.  Perhaps a touch I like in particular is that Aeon shows no sign of real mercy to many of his enemies.  He could have saved Denad, but does not, showed no mercy towards Baran, only concern for Nerise, and no mercy towards any of the creatures that attacked Gesthal.  However, in Draconia, we know that Aeon can cut down the Dragons.  He's said he will cut them down if they attack...and yet he doesn't.  The act of not killing them, coupled with a few hints that Dragon killing is a MAJOR no no, kind of sets limits to what he will do based purely on his own wants/desires.  No matter how selfish or pitiless, Aeon won't cross that kind of line.  That plants more seeds as to how the character will act or change or be perceived later.

            When writing a plot twist, you kind of need to have some version of it in mind, because if you don't start preparing early, then your audience will call bullshit on you from the start.  You need to keep in mind what is and what isn't said.  What is and what isn't shown.  And if that, for you, would be enough to let the possibility of the twist exist.  If you pull something out of your ass...if a character or if an event happens that is completely unforeshadowed, the reader will roll their eyes and your flow, your characters, and your credibility as a narrator will be hurt.  If, for example, Rudra starts to attack but right before he kills everyone he stops because just then the, "Festival of Dragons" started and he had to go attend...the audience would be flabbergasted.  Horrified even at how stupid that kind of twist is.  They'd pick it apart in an instant.  Now, plot twists don't have to be perfect.  An audience member might still point out how that doesn't make sense, but if you prepare, you can at least say that it was planned...that you worked towards it...that you EARNED it.  That you didn't pull it out of thin air.

            Deus ex Machina is almost never a good idea.  In satire, you might be able to get away with it, but in a serious narrative, it can be the kiss of death for the plot, because the reader just wonders what the finger of god will come down on next.  No matter how strange a twist, how powerful a character, or how implausible an event, if you properly prepare and foreshadow, it will be more believable and the audience will roll with it, because they like the story and this is keeping it moving.

            The upcoming chapter has some minor twists, I think, because it upsets the norm in small ways.  Not unbelievable ways, but in subtle ones.  In ways the audience might be surprised by, might not, but still accept as possible, and probable.  It has seeds for future chapters laid out, if you're able to actually see them, and it will pay off on some seeds already planted.  Each chapter should build and the twists should help with that.  A twist should build, rather than tear down.  It layers the plot and makes it more stable, again if done right, rather than making it shakier and less believable.

            Anyway, all that being said, I hope you all like the next chapter.  I wonder what people will pick up, what they might speculate on, and what you will be right about.  Let's see, shall we?

Something Different: A little CyberPunk Horror

Still writing/rewriting the next chapter.  However, for a lark I decided I'd like to create the first chapter in a horror story I've thought about for a while, due to scary movies and internet shows I've watched recently.  It deals with lots of elements I've talked about in my Kernel of Insight series, on how things progress and how things are set up.  It's just a brief taste, really.  If I have any fans who read this, I'd love to hear what you think about it and possibly discuss your experience.  I might do more later, but this was just something I did for fun, to shake up my routine.  It's the first chapter in a larger story...will I finish it?  Who knows.

I am NOT giving up on Chronicles of the Frozen Shade, though.  That much I want to be clear.  Now, without further ado, let me introduce you to the first chapter of Arcology(title pending), a CyberPunk Survival Horror story.

Arcology

Stephen Rosebaugh-Nordan

Chapter 1:

            Ezekial opened his eyes with almost mechanical apathy.  Reaching up to his mouth with his left arm, he felt the soft, soiled linen wrapped around his mouth and nodded to himself. 

            Pushing back the blankets of his tiny cot, he reached over to his right and flipped his data terminal on.  Though he did not need the flickering light of the screen to see, Ezekial's eyes fell to the dull, copper metal that composed his right arm up to the shoulder.  He flexed his fingers, which gave the slightest creak as the familiar Thantolian crest of the arcology appeared on screen.

            Hesitating for just a moment, Ezekial turned away from the data terminal and reached into the battered wood of an old drawer next to his cot.  He pulled out a tiny oil can and administered a few drops to his fingers, until the creaking stopped and the gears moved as silently as a still winter's night.

            Once he was satisfied, Ezekial put the oil can back and pulled out a battered sheet of paper with a number of dates on it.  The spidery hand writing was clearly legible, despite dirt, grim, and creases on the paper.

Dates to remember

Engaged to Vie: October 29, 2345

Vie's diagnosis: December 22, 2345

Met Vie's Doctor, Melciah: January 21, 2346

Set up new home in Thanto Arcology: February 27, 2346

Vie cured: November 25, 2346

Outbreak: December 1, 2346

Quarantine: December 1, 2346

Human testing: June, 2352

Rebellion crushed: ? 2352

Escape: 2353

Purgatory: April 29, 2412, April 30, 2412, May 1, 2412...

            Ezekial read down the numbers, which continued, each one crossed off, until he reached the final date, squeezed into the margins at the bottom of the page.  It read: July 17, 2412.

            Laying the soiled paper next to his data terminal, Ezekial checked the remaining battery power before bringing up the machine's internal calendar.  The date read: July 18, 2412.  Ezekial nodded and pulled a pen and note pad out of his dresser drawer.  He crossed off the final date on his paper before copying all the other dates on his paper onto a fresh sheet.  His final entry was Purgatory:July 18, 2412.

            Gingerly, he laid the fresh sheet of paper down on the dresser drawer before crumpling the soiled paper into a ball and tossing it into a large pile in front of his bed.  Turning back to his data terminal, Ezekial used the touchpad at the base of the terminal to navigate his onscreen cursor over to a file labeled: Doing fine, Zeke.

            Clicking down on the file, it opened up a single picture of a woman with tanned skin, shoulder length black hair, and glasses.  She was clad in a hospital gown and seemed pale, despite the color of her skin.  However she was smiling, which revealed a set of bucked teeth.

            "How are you, Zeke?" a melodious voice echoed out of the terminal's tinny speakers.  "I'm so proud of you!  I heard you got promoted to the third tier in the Thantos Corporation.  Mandy tells me that's unheard of for an advertiser.  You must really sell their products, haha.  I've...been doing better.  I miss hearing you laugh with me while we watch our shows and your cooking...and just that feeling of your head against my arm when you feel snuggly, but I'm alright.  Dr. Melciah says that keeping my spirits up will improve my health, so I'm trying to smile at least once every day.  He's offered me trials in the transcendence program, but I told him I didn't want to leave this body...that is why you proposed, isn't it?  Haha, anyway..."

            Ezekial paused the audio track for a moment and placed his metal hand over his eyes.  He shook his head and quickly switched the data terminal off.  Even without the light, Ezekial could see every corner of his tiny cell.  It was cobbled together from what scraps remained in the residential district.  Ahriman called it a farm now and he couldn't go back anymore.  The drab metal walls had flaking wallpaper with a cherry blossom motif emblazoned upon them.  Ezekial got up from his bed, stepped over the pile of notes in front of it, and pressed the paper flat.

            Reaching into a tiny space that barely qualified as a closet, he pulled out a set of pants that were patched together from silver veined skin, layered on top of the original fabric until nothing else was visible.  He tied them tightly to his malnourished waist with a long strip of similarly silver skin and stalked off to his kitchen.

            Ezekial called it a kitchen, but in reality it was more of a work room.  On one side lay a cutting board, a large, jerry rigged peeler, and some dull knives while the other had a set of oils and drying racks, a thread and needle set, and rolls upon rolls of bandages, most very dingy.  The cutting board had a humanoid arm on it, with the bone still sticking out of the stump.  The skin had been peeled off the arm days before hand and now occupied a space on the drying rack.  It didn't look human.  It looked like a piece of sheet metal, with veins running up and down it like miniature hoses, while a few creases in the flesh seemed to expose circuitry instead of muscle.

            Drawing close to the arm, Ezekial saw several bulbous, green growths on the blackened skin.  The stench of rot wafted over Ezekial, but he had long since gotten used to it.  Tugging at his bandages, Ezekial pulled them down and sank his teeth into the hand, his sharp teeth snapping through bone and flesh alike and the juices in his mouth reducing them to a fine paste as they trickled down his gullet.  The flavor was hardly palatable, but Ezekial chomped through all five fingers and continued up the arm nonetheless.  Flavor didn't matter to him anymore.  There was little his stomach could not digest.  After he had finished grinding the last of the arm's bones into dust, he looked up and saw himself, reflected in a cracked mirror in front of the chopping board.  His teeth were long, curved, and sharp, and he lacked any lips to speak of.  His dirt brown hair stuck out at odd, spiky angles and his skin was greenish and rotted.  Lowering his eyes, Ezekial mouthed the words, "I am still human..." however no sound came out of his mouth.  Quickly re-bandaging his face, he stalked out of the kitchen, picked up the paper with his dates, and thrust it into his pocket.  Then, reaching back into his tiny closet, he pulled out a cloak with a hood, stitched together by multiple pieces of silvery skin and draped it around himself.

            Tying it closely to his body, so that his skin was covered, save for his hands and feet, Ezekial let out a tiny sigh.  He looked above him, to a tiny vent.  Pulling it open, he hoisted himself into it with practiced ease and began to crawl.  Ezekial made two lefts when the vent split, followed by a right.  The sound of a slight buzzing reached his ears and he froze in place.  Glancing behind him, Ezekial saw a few orange lights glowing in the darkness and flattened himself as best he could in the vent, curling his arms and legs under his cloak.

            The buzzing grew louder, however Ezekial paid it no mind.  He merely waited, patiently, for it to pass.  He spied a few dozen of the orange lights pass, but did not move.  Tiny legs crawled over his skin cloak, pressing and prodding to see if it needed an injection.  When they had determined that the subject was dead, they too moved on.  Ezekial continued to wait until he was sure they had passed.  Then, he followed after them.

            It was not hard to keep up with the buzzing.  Although the bees were fast, so was Ezekial.  Besides, they were preoccupied with finding people to "save."  He slowed when the light of a terminal from outside shone in through a vent.  Peeking his head around a corner, Ezekial saw that the bees had flown out of the vent.  Reaching out with his left hand, Ezekial hooked his cracked, greenish beige skin around the vent and lifted it up.  A piece of broken finger nail peeled off as he did so, and Ezekial was quick to pocket it before it could hit the vent's metal.

            Crawling out of the vent, Ezekial dropped a good fifty feet until he touched down on solid ground.  There was a slightly rustling of the metal debris around him and he flattened to the ground once again as, this time, a pair of spiderlike machines holding a human face in between their legs crawled over to his corpse.  He could feel their eyes examining him, red beams of light curling around the mass of silvery flesh before them.  Then...

            "Subject is designated deceased.  No usable parts for reconstruction detected." the cold hollow voice of Ahriman echoed out of the twisted metallic nightmares.  Their legs clicked against the metal and Ezekial laid still until the clicking vanished.  When silence surrounded him again, he rose from the ground and instinctively turned towards the tower, covered in screens, that permeated the center of the arcology.  Some had been there since as far back as Ezekial remembered, but some hadn't, and he could see the jerry rigging of these monitors, cannibalized from viewing stations and data terminals.  Each screen flashed the same message.

For the survival of the arcology population and the continued sanctity of the outside world, please cooperate with Ahriman.  Ahriman will keep you safe.  Ahriman will cure you.  Ahriman will save you.

            Shaking his head, Ezekial walked over to the railing in front of him and glanced down several hundred feet to the ground.  Save for the flashing messages and a few chittering machines here and there on the floors below him, all was silent.  Turning back, he started walking.  Ezekial passed stores with shattered windows.  A few skeletons remained slumped over desks or through said windows.  They were left because they weren't "useful."  A tiny machine crawled out of one store, with a monitor twice it's size balanced on its back.  Although roughly the size of a dog, it bore a blank metallic face that did not pay Ezekial any mind and two humanoid arms that it used to scurry about on.  Though the arms were split down the middle to give the little robot more stability, they were clearly human.  Ezekial almost followed after it, but the sound of buzzing a few hundred feet in the distance told him that was inadvisable.

            Instead, he broke into a run, easily vaulting the twenty foot break in the floor that had cut off the electronics district from the food.  There was nothing there now.  It had all been picked clean long ago.  Nevertheless, Ezekial continued running.  Behind him, he heard metallic clicking and what sounded like treads.  The metal began to vibrate under his feet and he turned a sharp right, leaping onto an overhanging electrical wire three feet in diameter that led to Ahriman's tower of screens.

            Familiar hand and footholds found Ezekial's hands and where there were none, Ezekial made more.  His metallic arch crunched the metal underneath it, while his rotting skin clung to the wire like a monkey.  Halfway across the wire, Ezekial leapt off, falling only a hundred feet before finding another gigantic wire to grab.  He paused only to make sure his clothes were tightly tied to his body before shimmying along the wire until he came across another vent.  Lifting it up, Ezekial swung himself inside and followed it until he dropped into a nondescript hallway.  Ahead of him was a tiny terminal with only a flicker of light coming off the top.  It bore only a single line of text.

Our first meeting:

            Ezekial pulled out his somewhat crumpled sheet of paper, smoothed it out, and typed January 21, 2346 into the terminal.  Ahead of him, the floors and wall rumbled briefly and he could see them slacken, ever so slightly.  When they ceased making noise, Ezekial crossed through the hallway and pushed a set of double doors open.  Once on the other side, he saw a set of guns tracking him.  Pulling down the hood of his cloak, Ezekial held out his hands to either side.  The guns retracted into the ceiling once he did this and a vault door at the far end of the corridor depressurized and swung open.  Ezekial headed inside, and waited in the tiny chamber with another locked vault door in front of him.  He waited for the door behind him to close and lock, then the one in front of him opened and he stepped foot into a well lit, clean, laboratory.  Vials of all manner of chemicals were arranged in neat rows, while a large tank and several smaller ones around it were laid out at the far end.  Desks, a tiny refrigerator, and even a bed were laid out near the door.

            "Were you followed?" Melciah crept out of a corner, wearing a white lab coat with his name monogrammed onto the front.  Though his skin bore a similar pallor to Ezekial's, he was dressed in a set of corduroy pants and a t-shirt underneath.  The man was a few inches shorter than Ezekial and had a balding spot in the center of his head, but otherwise still looked relatively young.  A set of five enormous talons jutted out of his lab coat, attached to black, leathery skin but his face, which frowned disapprovingly at Ezekial, still seemed human and his nose, which seemed to be held on with a heavy amount of tab, supported a pair of half moon spectacles.

            Melciah waited for Ezekial to shake his head before turning away from him.  "Good, good, I figured...still, it pays for us both to be cautious, eh?"

            Ezekial nodded.

            "You know, I can find some more suitable clothes for you," Melciah sighed, shaking his head and typing at a terminal.  Despite the size of his talons, the clicked on the keys so lightly that there was no damage to the machine.  "You don't need to walk around in rags you cannibalized from Ahriman's victims."

            Ezekial shook his head.

            "Ugh...how long must you continue like that?" Melciah shook his head.  "I can make a voice box for you."

            Walking over to a desk that paper and a pencil on it, Ezekial scribbled down, I don't want to sound like a machine when she wakes up, on a piece of paper and handed it to Melciah.  After a few seconds, he scribbled something else down and also handed that to Melciah.  It read: If she wakes up.

            "Yes...seems unlikely, after all these years, doesn't it?" Melciah grunted, his eyes darting towards a door in the back.  "Still, its not like we can count on Ahriman to cure either her or us."

            I did not mean to doubt you Ezekial scribbled before covering his face with his hands.

            Melciah watched him for a few seconds before sinking into a chair on wheels.  He turned back to his terminal and resumed typing.  "I wish you wouldn't torment yourself like that, Zeke.  It doesn't help anyone."

            Handing Melciah a piece of paper, Ezekial headed towards another vault door to the right.

            "It makes you feel human, eh?" Melciah let out a snort.  "Zeke, you don't have to remind yourself of what's lost to feel human.  Shit, the fact that you keep coming here is proof enough for me that you're human.  No machine or mutant would do something so pointless."

            Turning back to Melciah, Ezekial rolled his eyes, opened up the vault door and stepped inside.  Another tank lay within.  On either side of it were two speakers that seemed to be giving off a high frequency noise that made Ezekial's ears hurt.  He took a set of ear plugs next to the door and popped them in before taking a seat in front of the tank.

            A woman was floating in a mass of fluid.  The metal bands encircling the tube covered her privates, however Ezekial paid no mind to those anyway.  His eyes drifted up to her face.  The skin had turned a pallid color and the face was sunken somewhat.  Long, wiry black hair came from the woman's had, so long that it was almost below her feet in the tank.  However, a set of buck teeth remained jutting out of the woman's open mouth.

            Ezekial reached over to the tank and touched it for a moment before turning away.  He replaced his earplugs on the desk next to the door and headed outside.

            "I'll figure it out eventually, Zeke," Melciah said, without turning to face him.  He was furiously typing into the terminal in front of him.  "I am her doctor, after all."

            Ezekial nodded to himself and scribbled on his pad once again.  He handed it to Melciah who read it aloud.  "What am I working on?" the doctor straightened his glasses.  "Heh...the same thing I do every day, Zeke.  Try to take over the-"

            Ezekial buffeted Melciah in the arm and his shoulders shook with mirth for a moment.

            Melciah also laughed and shook his head.  "No...this time I'm trying to re-route my internal power systems to accommodate for changes in Ahriman's search protocols.  If my power gets cut or..." he stopped and Ezekial touched his shoulder.  "Either way, I can't find a cure without power to run my machines.  So, afraid I don't have anything new to report on that front."

            Ezekial nodded, took a moment to straighten his cloak and tucked the writing pad underneath it.  Melciah waved him off and Ezekial headed out through the two vault doors.  The machines protecting his longtime friend made no move to stop him as he left, climbing into an access hatch near the end of the hallway, and wriggling down through it.

            Ezekial felt his belly rumble ever so slightly.  He would need food soon if he was going to keep on surviving.  Crawling through the spaces the arcology's designers had left for maintenance, Ezekial managed to make his way down to the lower floors.  After dropping out of another access hatch, he put his ear to the ground and heard footsteps a little ways down the hall.  None of Ahriman's machines made footsteps.

            Tucking the notepad into his pants, Ezekial crept along the wall, careful to keep himself covered by his cloak.  Even in the unlit corridors on the rim of the arcology, his eyes saw as if it were clear as day.  Two creatures hunched over one of the fallen spider machines.  They were gnawing on the face that had been at the center of the legs, while three others lay dead beside them.  They too would become part of the meal eventually.  It would take time for Ahriman to dispatch more scouts and by the time they found the last signal the machine had given off, these creatures would be gone.

            A few scraps of clothing clung to their bodies, but they were covered in bulbous tumors.  Melciah had told Ezekial that the tumors were additions the virus created to those it infected in order to assist it.  They added extrasensory perception through changes in the atmosphere to the repertoire of these creatures who had once been human.  Ezekial never cared for the taste, but food was food.  Tugging at his bandages, he inched closer, however suddenly, a loud clanging echoed down the corridor.  The two humanoid creatures looked up, gazing at Ezekial through yellowed eyes and bearing skin that seemed more black and green than white.  Recognition dawned on their faces and they took off down the corridor, scooping the bodies of their fallen and what remained of the human face and carrying it with them.

            While tempted to go after them, Ezekial had not survived by acting recklessly.  He quickly leapt up to a nearby vent and began to crawl through it, towards the sound of the clanging.  He exited the vent and managed to keep a foothold on one of Ahriman's slick electrical cables.  Down below, he saw another black and green skinned humanoid on the ground, banging against the arcology's blast doors.  They were as immovable as ever.  However, the creature below him was not making the loud clanging.  It's fists only made dull thwops as they beat on the reinforced titanium doors.

            Another clanging, louder this time, reached Ezekial's ears and he drew his cloak tight to him.  Waiting patiently, he kept his eyes fixed to the door.  Minutes ticked by, and every so often another clanging would greet him.  Then, finally, something on the door sparked to life.  It passed around the door, a glowing pink light that cut through the metal in an oval shape.  The creature below him wisely backed off, right before something pushed the now glowing oval out from the door.

            A figure stepped through the hole, garbed in what looked to be a hazmat suit.  It was made of a tough, fibrous material that prevented anything, liquid or gaseous, from getting at the occupant.  Whether the figure was human or not was up to debate, as a gas mask covered its face.  From the build of the skintight suit, he could tell that it was a man.  Ezekial felt his muscles tense and his eyes bulge in his skull.  He could not remember the last time those doors had been open.  He itched to move towards them, to see if help had finally come, but he waited, patiently, as the infected pounced.

            The man's arm was up in an instant, and Ezekial noticed immediately that his hand was made of a metal.  It was a glowing golden and far more polished than Ezekial's, but it was unmistakable.  He was a cyborg too.  The man pushed the infected back and his arm split down the middle.  A chain blade shot out, but did not rev up and start spinning.  Instead, with a single swipe, it decapitated the infected, splattering the figure with its gore.

            Ezekial held its breath.  Infection could take place within seconds with that level of contact.  However, the figure seemed unperturbed and motioned for others to come in with him.  Others stepped through the hole, each dressed similarly to the man with the metal arm.  From the make of their bodies, Ezekial saw a team.  Several of them had guns, but others seemed to be carrying brief cases or other devices Ezekial didn't recognize.  Then, he saw a woman step through, with her gas mask emblazoned with the cybernetic skull of the Thantolian corporation.  The crests under the skull marked her as a tier 1 executive.  Intrigued, Ezekial made his way down, careful not to be spotted by the interlopers.  He stopped as soon as he was close enough to hear them.

            "What happened here, Lance?  I thought I gave explicit orders not to hurt any survivors until we knew what happened!"

            "Beg pardon, miss Ven, but the thing tried to eat my arm...I consider that self defense.  Sides...whatever made yer little distress call, it wasn't that thing.  That thing ain't even human any more."

            Ezekial felt his heart stop.  Distress call?  He knew full well that no one alive inside the arcology could make something like that.  He knew because they had already tried.

            "Regardless, we're to secure survivors, determine what happened, and try to recover the Ahriman core.  Try not to start making bodies until we can get some answers."

            "You really think anyone'd be alive in here?" Another figure, a woman with a gun, muttered, "It's been almost a hundred years since this place went dark...they'd have to all be dead or crazy by now."

            "Unlikely," a man with a shriller voice chimed in.  He was holding a briefcase.  "Arcology systems are designed to survive for decades, even centuries without support and the AI overseeing them has an overriding protocol to preserve human life.  We should be able to find at least someone within the corporate core systems."

            Preserving human life.  Ezekial felt his mouth twist into a scowl under his bandages.  He gripped the metal of a power cord so tightly that it crumpled under his flesh.

            "I'm going to let my superiors know we're in," the woman with the corporate crest, Ezekial remembered she had been called Ven, said.  "Come in, HQ.  This is Ven.  Repeat..." she tapped the side of her mask.  "HQ!  Can you read us?"

            "Trouble, miss?" the man with the metal arm sneered.

            "Something is blocking communications in here..." Ven murmured.  "I don't like this.  We should retreat for now and get further orders."

            "Miss Ven," the man with the shrill voice called, "The door is open and if necessary we can open it again.  I say we press on.  I'm eager to see what Ahriman has been up to over these last few decades."

            "Welcome." Ezekial turned his head so fast that it nearly popped something out of place.  The tower of screens in the center of the arcology had flashed blue and started to display something other than the usual drivel about Ahriman being god.  And it was talking.

            "Welcome to Thantolian Arcology.  I am designated Ahriman, the overseer."  Two semi humanoid mechs rumbled out from behind the tower.  They were carried forward on tank treads and though none could be seen, Ezekial knew they were loaded down with weapons.  He pulled out his pad of paper and began to scribble something down on it.

            "My name is Maria Ven, Ahriman," Ven said, stepping forward.  "We're here to secure survivors and to evacuate your core.  We would like you to stand down all mechanical units currently under your jurisdiction.  Access code: VGHA KLFS678HSK14ZLWERTPS45."

            The humanoid machines rumbled to a stop and Ezekial raised his eyes from his pad.  "Acc-acc-acc-access-ss-ss-ss code app-app-app-app..." Ahriman's voice sputtered as the monitor's flickered violently.  "Access code, denied.  Core protocol override.  Ensure survival of humanity is paramount.  Cannot shut off sentry or medical units."

            "I don't like this..." one of the woman murmured, as the treaded machines sprang back to life.

            "You have come in contact with infected humans.  Virus designation, Horus.  Key features.  Mutation.  Regression.  Death.  Operates under hive mentality rule.  Currently under quarantine.  Please come with me for proper treatment to ensure there has been no contamination."

            "Look!" the man held up his arm.  "I'm a cyborg...no contamination threats here.  Besides, these suits are sealed!"

            "Please.  It is for your own safety," the voice of Ahriman called out.

            Quickly tearing the paper from his notepade, Ezekial folded it into the form of a plan and gingerly set it adrift, floating down towards the assembled people.

            "We would like you to cooperate with us," Ven said.  "I have corporate authority to shut you down if you are noncompliant."

            "B-but miss Ven, think of the data we'd lose!" the shrill voiced man cried.

            Ven turned her head to glare at him, but the mirror face masks made that impossible.

            "I will comply once I have assured your safety and the safety of the other survivors," Ahriman said.

            Ezekial felt a cold steel weight form in his gut.  He leaned over the edge of the cable he was clinging to as the paper airplane landed right next to the man with the metal arm.

            "Eh?" he grunted, picking it up.

            "Alright," Ven nodded, "We understand one another, then.  Take us to your core systems."

            "Miss, wait!" the man with the cyborg arm called out.  He handed Ezekial's paper plane to Ven.

            "Don't trust Ahriman," Ven murmured.

            "Please, I must ensure your safety," Ahriman's machines started towards them again.  "I must preserve humanity."

            "Hey, back off!" one of the women holding guns shouted, as the treaded machines raised their arms and tried to grab her.

            "Everyone, fall back!  The situation is unknown!" Ven called, "Need further instructions and back up before-"

            "I said get off!" the woman from before called, pulling free of the machine that held her.  Raising her right arm, it split open, cloth and all, to reveal a device that glowed with pink light.  Energy gathered around the tip before discharging and liquidating the center of the humanoid tank that Ahriman had sent after them.

            The woman's arm folded back into its usual shape and silence overtook everyone for a few brief seconds.  Then, Ahriman's screens flashed red and all hell broke loose.

Character Spotlight 7: Deminos

Okay...to the few readers I have, I am eternally grateful for your patience...and to my shame, I'm going to have to ask for some more.  I've been going through a major flame out lately, with all my energy being poured into an exam I took recently for a certification, so...I've got almost nothing left.  I hope to be back writing at full speed within the next week, but for now, I'm kinda...dead.  I have managed to write up some character spotlights, cause it's just me putting into context what was already written and that's not too hard, but...well, look, the chapter's revisions have already started, I just need some time to finish and edit them.  Still shooting for this next one to be out by the end of April, so fingers crossed on that.  In the mean time, I am sorry.  But here.  Have an analysis of a character I quite enjoy writing for.

Character Spotlight 7: Deminos

            We talked about Daryl last time and how she became more than I intended, and Deminos is in many ways the same.  He was originally meant to be the butt of Gadius's abuse for being a bit waifish and with a feminine body, despite being a guy.  I'm kinda glad we toned that down and gave Deminos a bit more dimension, because he's a character I have grown to become quite fond of.

            Deminos Savant is a 16 year old boy with a very thin, frail, effeminate figure.  He predominantly wears crimson or orange clothes and a cloak which hides his rather frail body.  His right arm is covered in bandages which hides leathery black skin with thorny crags and his nails and fingers are akin to talons, giving his arm a demonic appearance.

            Deminos's frailty is largely due to him being the runt of the litter in his original family, which we'll get into later, and a lack of physical exercise.  Deminos, having a talent for academics, was shipped off to the Goetia Academy, where young men can be trained to conjur Goetians as well as learn the basics of magic.  However, Deminos had trouble with magic largely due to his weak body, because one thing I worry I never properly conveyed is that magic comes from both the world and from inside the body.  It's like using your muscles to lift a heavy item or what have you...you use stored up energy in order to get an effect.  Magic is the same way.    You have to be able to call upon your stored energy, and if you can't store that much, because you haven't exercised or used your body so that it can handle extra energy, then...you're out of luck.  Anyway, Deminos favors conjuration magic over regular elemental or holy magic for this reason...you can summon Goetians without as much energy because you've previously made a contract with them.  Some energy is required to call them across the boundaries of worlds, but it's possible without being too fit.

            Deminos has one large group of Goetians and two individuals under his direct control.  A group of satyrs with a moon crest and polearms, led by a larger, more heavily armed satyr, are both foot soldiers and assistants for Deminos, largely because he appreciates their work and rewards them for it.  He is also able to command Charybdis, a creature that is a gigantic leathery creature that consists of a huge mouth and tendrils which propel it through the soil, which it can swim through like water.  Deminos's final Goetian is Melchom, who is a paymaster, thusly very fond of gold and able to control it, alter its form, and use it to heal himself.  Deminos also has a powerful, dangerous Goetian sealed into his arm, however it is unusable for the most part, unless he removes the seals and accepts that the creature will likely kill him for its service.  However, because of his arm's deformity, Deminos's right arm is stronger, more durable, and less inclined to feeling pain, than a normal human arm.  Alongside those abilities, Deminos can also use basic holy and elemental magic.

            Deminos is best described as a person as insecure.  He has been cast out of most places he calls home, first shipped off to the academy by his family and then the academy dumped him on Aeon due to Deminos being a threat.  As such, he tends to be very critical of himself, fearing failure to such a degree that he will often act recklessly for the sake of proving his worth and not being abandoned again.  Because of his insecurity, Deminos tries to hide it behind arrogance and bravado, however this seldom ever works because of his frail form.  He cannot properly intimidate people and any of the three girls or Acacia's residents can subdue him when magic or Goetians are not involved.  Because Deminos has issues with trust and hides them behind an obnoxious persona, he does not often make friends.  He considers his Goetians friends because they continue to answer his call, even after his expulsion from the academy and they never judge or reprimand him.  They always come to his aid, regardless.  Because of this, Deminos can be very protective of his Goetians, to the point where if they are hurt, even if they are sent back to Goetia to recover, he can go into shock, just as if a regular person/friend were hurt.

            Deminos is ashamed of his actions that led to his arm being deformed and hides it at all cost from those who do not know the story behind it, often touching, stroking, or fidgeting with it when he feels no one is looking.  He fears being treated differently or being seen as a monster, because he has always been looked down on for being weak and does not wish for more reasons for others to hate him.  He isn't used to others accepting him for his flaws or errors, even though most of Acacia does not make a big deal out of it.  While Deminos does feign confidence, he is not a coward.  Deminos is not afraid of fighting or even risking his life if necessary for the few things that matter to him, largely his new friends, his Goetians, or a chance to cure his arm's affliction.  He tends to be a bit reckless in this regard.  In spite of being reckless, Deminos is not stupid and always tries to think his plans through and find the best way to get things done, even if they end up becoming more complicated than originally envisioned.

            Because of his adolescence, Deminos tends to be flippant to those he considers adults, or at least not close to him in age, and seems to not think in regards to how he speaks with others.  He can be respectful when the situation calls for it, however can take for granted those around him so he does not make a habit of being respectful.  Deminos is also very selfish, though this is largely due to his trust issues, making him trust only himself and his Goetians.  While he can empathize with the pains of others, and can even be self sacrificing at times, he sees many things in regard to how they affect him.  In fact, his self sacrifice could be considered part of his selfishness, as he does not want a world without said person/Goetian/etc. to exist.  While a very flawed individual, Deminos does want to open up to others, but has been so hurt and so isolated/ostracized from and by others of similar age to him that it is difficult for him.  I'd also like to add that, while not as apparent as other qualities, Deminos does have something akin to a sense of chivalry.  This is largely based on a principle I myself live by.  It's the, "no one did it for me, so I'll do it for them," idea.  Because he's been hurt so much, Deminos doesn't want others to feel that way, so he won't betray or abandon those who need him.

            One thing that I want to touch on in the future, and which has kinda been touched on, is the fact that Deminos, being 16, is very confused by sexuality, as indicated by his reactions to Kinana, where he is both embarrassed, but also attracted to her.  Deminos has been around a fair bit of women, namely Yuka and the three girls, and it's not just platonic.  Deminos wants to approach them, but is unsure of the best way and instead is working on being comfortable around them.  In the future, I would like to show that there is some attraction, not necessarily love but sexual tension as is common at that age, to further character growth.

            Deminos is conflicted about Aeon.  While Aeon has taught him many things and even helped him form a contract with Melchom, Aeon also puts Deminos through hellish training to help improve his skills.  In many ways, Deminos respects and admires Aeon, but in other ways he feels frustrated by the unrelenting workload and his own failures, so he acts flippantly around the lich.  Despite this, there is an undercurrent of gratitude and a desire to prove himself to Aeon.  Deminos wants to get stronger and to cure himself to prove that Aeon was right taking him in three years previously.  That's right, Deminos has only been with Acacia for three years, making him the youngest member there.  On the whole, Deminos has grown to trust Aeon greatly after the incident in Draconia.  He still doesn't always know how to handle him or if he will be allowed to stay in Acacia for good, but he will help Aeon when he can, follow orders, and try to make the lich proud.

            Apart from Aeon, Deminos's closest relationships on Acacia are Yuka and Vincent.  Yuka, having only recently gotten out of her own adolescence, sees Deminos as a little brother and, while prone to teasing him, also treats him with more respect and trust than most others have, so Deminos is fond of her.  She tends to dote on him a little, but is also more than happy to dish out corporal punishment if Deminos is stupid.  Deminos largely accepts all this because Yuka does not look at him with fear, revulsion or contempt.  She doesn't  care what he looks like or how he acts and just treats him normal...which is kinda what Deminos wants.  Deminos views Vincent as a friend of sorts, but he's more like an administrator or teacher.  Looking out for him, but a bit untouchable.  Deminos respects Vincent and often takes Aeon's orders through him.  Vincent treats Deminos in a kindly manner, however Demino's insecurity and Vincent's status as an overseer for Acacia have prevented them from growing too close.  They can work as a team when necessary and count on one another in times of crisis.

            Gadius, on the other hand, is kind of a polar opposite of Yuka and Vincent.  He's like the big brother who taunts and teases the little brother.  Gadius is in charge of Deminos's physical training to increase the amount of Leyline energy his body can handle and Deminos tends to think the jela-vey is a womanizing fool.  Gadius works Deminos hard and will often tease him, so Deminos bears many feelings of resentment towards the jela-vey.  However, at the same time, he is a little jealous, because of how well liked Gadius is, by the female population of Acacia in particular.  Gadius wishes to toughen up Deminos and does not care about how the boy feels, by and large.  Gadius does not see himself as cruel, but rather as trying to make Deminos strong enough to handle future trials.  Out of respect for Aeon, both will look out for the other, but neither is overtly fond of them.

            Deminos and Nerise have an unusual relationship.  Because Nerise acts as a child, she is more accepting and innocent and so Deminos feels fondness towards her, but also awkwardnes, because she isn't his age group.  Echidna has tried to be motherly towards Deminos, however he is in the stage of development where he's trying to establish his independence and self worth, so he does not interact with Echidna or Dakon much.  He and Dakon will have interaction later, as Dakon trains all members of Acacia in hand to hand combat at certain points so they are not helpless, but he has not been there long enough yet to begin training with Dakon.  Deminos feels more fond of them than Gadius, however, and bears no ill will towards them.  Deminos has had so little interaction with Weiss and Merkel that he doesn't have much of an opinion of either.  He is intimidated by Weiss and annoyed by Merkel's crotchety nature, but doesn't interact with either much, so it matters little to him.  Kinana is a bit of a sore spot for Deminos, as she teases him whenever she is around.  He doesn't hate her, as he is partly attracted to her, but is uncomfortable around her.

            Deminos is slowly growing very close to Celine, Daryl, and Mina.  While originally put off by Celine's rather brusque attitude and Daryl's somewhat elitist nature, he has seen the good sides in both of them.  Mina, while wary at first because of her fright with Aeon, is generally accepting of anyone, so she treats Deminos like a normal person and while Deminos has a hard time accepting that at first, it is what endears her to him.  On the flipside, while Celine has teased him or treated him roughly due to his mistakes or his actions, even attacking him at points, her devotion to her friends, including her unwillingness to leave anyone, even him, behind have won him over.  Daryl, though clearly uncomfortable in regards to his arm, has managed to work around some of her fears to accept Deminos for who he is, which is a start.  Her interest in conjuration and magic in general has also allowed Deminos to feel a bit of pride in his knowledge, so her and Mina's inquisitive nature gives them some common ground for discussion and camaraderie.  Perhaps some of the biggest influences in drawing these four together is the age issue.  The three girls are all 14, with varying degrees of age in between them, while Deminos is 16, so they are closer in age than most of Acacia, and none of them are out of adolescence, so there is room for kinship there.  He wants very much to get closer to all three.  Surviving near death experiences together can do that.

            Ultimately, I consider Deminos very similar to myself in terms of how he had to grow up, though his personality is much different.  He was hurt a great deal in his youth and never really got to feel accepted or loved until his adolescence, so that's warped his sense of self worth and has made him put up emotional barriers in the form of his flippancy or bravado.  Deminos is growth, much like Daryl.  However, where Daryl wants to grow by accepting others, despite their differences, Deminos wants to grow by being more able to accept himself and reach out to others as himself.  He doesn't want to be the smart ass or the flippant jerk or the frail kid who gets teased.  He wants to be okay with himself, hence his desire to cure his deformity, and wants others to see him and accept him.  I really like Deminos in this regard because it's kind of a feeling many of us can relate to, myself in particular.  I really enjoy writing for Deminos, though he can be a bit of an ass at times.  One thing though is you have to balance all your characters and give each big and small moments.  Deminos has a few small moments coming up, since he's already had some big ones.  I hope he grows on others the way he grew on me.

Character Spotlight 6: Daryl

Over 1000 views!!!  Yeah, only took me...what, a year and a half?  Well, anyway, I don't have much news right now.  I've started re-writing the next chapter, which is a cooldown chapter, after a big event we need some time to breathe.  However, I've been smashed by work and studying for an exam, not school related, work related, that I have this weekend.  So, not much writing going on at the moment.  I do have something for you, which I made before life came crashing down, but...this is gonna be a slow month.  Let me just throw that out there.

Sorry about that.  Anyway, without further ado, here's a character spotlight on Daryl.  And yes, I know the name sounds like a guy's -_-u  It's meant to be a homage to Darril from Final Fantasy 6, who was a woman and who, in the original release as Final Fantasy 3, which I played to death, I believe her name was spelled Daryl.  Darl is how I always pronounced it.  Might change that for the final release in book form if we get there.

Now, character spotlight

Character Spotlight 6: Daryl

            Daryl's probably the character who has gone through the most change from my original design.  I'd be hard pressed to pick a real inspiration for her, as she was originally meant to be far worse than she turned out to be.  I suppose you could say all the good people who broke my heart went into Daryl, as she's a good person, but tragically flawed.  However, that being said, she is rather fun to write for because she comes from a different place than almost any other character in the main cast.

            Daryl is a young woman with long purple hair, because this is my world so shut up, and who is training to join the clergy.  In this world, the clergy are actually a powerful organization who rule the theocratic Lucaria.  Being a clergy member means that you will have access to greater educational tools, but also that you will be able to have more choice in your life.  Being a teacher, a doctor, a warrior, politician or just someone who spreads the word of Shanadia and the lord prophet, are all options.  It's a common path for rich, talented children because it allows them upward mobility with only scholastic effort and magic training being the major determiners of their future.  Daryl follows this path because it was easy and she had a knack for it.

            If that last description didn't make it clear, Daryl is a rich child.  She grew up the daughter of a merchant who made his home in Gesthal and both she and her mother are supported by her father while he is away, selling wares.  He is able to purchase books on apocra, magic, history, anything to help Daryl improve her chances at being accepted into the clergy.  As such, Daryl is a good mouthpiece for certain types of information in the story.  She can give good practical information, but can also be useful for spouting misinformation other characters need to either correct or add to.  However, I'd say it's fair that all three girls act as surrogates for the audience, so this isn't too shocking.  Mina knows some things about the races and Telnumbra, Celine knows of neeg, apocra, and living on the road, and Daryl knows about history, magic, legends, and the like.

            On the surface, Daryl is a snob.  She is elitist, bigoted, prejudiced, and happens to think she knows everything.  She lives for praise and will sometimes overstep her boundaries because she believes she's above consequence.  This is often why she antagonizes Celine, though since they have known each other for so long it has become more akin to their way of expressing affection than true snobbery.  Hence the two nicknames they spit out at each other.  Daryl is a very intelligent young woman, however her vast stores of knowledge are somewhat hindered by her lack of practical experience.  She has lived her whole life in Gesthal and never seen the sights that Mina or Celine have, so she tends to not know how to handle new situations.

            In the original draft, Daryl was going to be far more frightened, bigoted, and dubious about Aeon than even in this one.  More important than all that in this version, however was her status as friends with Mina and Celine.  Not just friends, but very close friends.  So, she's actually pretty dependable when it comes down to it.  More than that, they help temper her bigotry, prejudices, and misconceptions, so Daryl's more honest nature shines through.

            Underneath all the arrogance and clergical dogma that she has absorbed through her readings and her training with Angelo and the other priests, Daryl tends to be a very honest girl.  She won't hide her emotions, be they disgust or concern, and can overlook a fierce exterior if she knows there's more to that.  There also exists a great thirst for knowledge within her, so she will do what she needs to in order to expand her information, both so she can advance in her chosen life path, but also for her own sake.  Daryl, despite being a whiner, a wimp, and a coward, also stands by her friends till the bitter end, which helps with Nerise as she proves to be quite loyal, despite the fright the little girl gave to her.

            Even though Daryl has been pampered, there is also an undercurrent of stress and obligation to her character.  She fears failure and thrives on praise.  However this means that she is like a college student at the finish line to graduation.  It's do or die for her and failure is worse than death.  She's not afraid to work, as she's trained hard with Angelo and the others to the detriment of her social life, basically only having Mina and Celine stick with her up till the current point, however she tries to hide her fear with bravado, and often ends up as the socially awkward one of the group because of it.

            In spite of her status as the "smart one" in Gesthal, Daryl doesn't have many friends, due to her toxic personality and her heavy work constraints.  If her time in Acacia weren't informing her almost as much as her readings, she probably wouldn't be able to continue her visits.  Daryl hasn't had time to think about friends, but is slowly realizing their value not just through Mina and Celine, but through Nerise and the others.

            I want to show change through Daryl, because she is kind of like the baseline for Lucaria.  Perhaps not as fanatically against Telnumbran's as some, but still fearful and prejudiced.  However, not above change, either.  Daryl is a character who has slowly opened up, gotten less haughty, save for when she's with Celine, and learned that sometimes...the absolute truth you knew isn't as solid as you thought it was.

            Daryl is also a mage, for those not paying attention.  She hasn't been focusing her training on elemental magic, so Mina is better at it than her, but she can do a great deal more with holy magic.  Daryl can heal, create weak barriers out of Leyline energy, and conjure up light.  She is very good at channeling Leyline energy and giving it form, making her an interesting contrast to Mina, who struggles with her own training, but is better at elemental magic, while Daryl is able to use holy magic with ease, but cannot use elemental magic readily.

            Daryl's relationship with Mina is probably the deepest she's had.  It's not as deep as Mina and Celine's but Daryl has known Mina even longer than Celine.  She saved Daryl from getting hit by a patron of Kano's bar, while Daryl's former friends, who she lost due to her workload, did nothing.  This taking place after Daryl had played the Holier than Thou card on her.  That deeply affected her and puts Mina on a pedestal to Daryl.  She hasn't been able to get as close as Celine, due to her workload, but Mina has always been there to talk when Daryl needs it or listen and has always put up with Daryl's abrasive personality...so she values Mina deeply and tries to be as understanding as her friend.

            Despite friction with Celine due to their nearly polar opposite social stations, Daryl and Celine grew closer thanks to Mina, who didn't want her two friends to fight.  They still do, but after the years they've known each other, it is less hurtful and more out of habit and a strange form of affection.  Daryl and Celine each look down on the other to a degree, but understand when the time for pettiness is over and they need to be there for the other.  In many ways, Daryl envies Celine for her closeness to Mina and for her cool head during crises.  They do truly care for one another.

            Daryl has a healthy respect for the clergy, especially Angelo and his men, who have taken time out of their usual duties to train her in holy magic.  They are not necessarily friends, but more like a strict teacher and a sycophantic student.  Each knows the other has value, so they are respectful on the surface, but that is as far as it goes.  They are like a commodity to one another, in a sense.  This means that if that value ever disappears, either would be in trouble, so there is some concern on both sides for that, but it is largely self serving.

            Daryl doesn't have much of a baseline for a lot of the crew of Acacia.  Dakon and Echidna are frightening to her and she tends to keep them at arms length because of their status as Telnumbrans.  In spite of this, she at least knows her manners around those who have power, as evidenced by her submissive nature to Angelo and the other clergy, so she treats them with respect, especially since Echidna is kind to her.  She relies on Mina and Celine to get through many of these confrontations. 

            Aeon she only knows to be a lich and is naturally very scared, but also knows him for having saved her from many perils, so she is willing to look past that.  I would say she has a kind of respect for him, but doubts they can ever be friends. 

            Vincent and Daryl have a strained relationship.  While he is polite to her and her to him, his status as a teythen scares Daryl and she is wary of him.  Likewise, Vincent does not wish to antagonize her, as he recognizes her fear, so he does not try as hard to engage her as with the other girls.

            Daryl's affinity for Gadius is purely superficial.  He is like a more charming version of Angelo.  Very attractive, very in tune with nature and magic, very Lucarian.  She feels comfortable around him because he is something she believes she understands, both from her books and because he is Lucarian.  Aside from that, they don't have many interactions.

             

            Yuka and Daryl have a more cordial relationship, far more so than Celine and Yuka had at the beginning.  Daryl has no fear of neeg, though she does consider them somewhat second class.  However, she wants to know more about Yuka's devices, as she has a thirst for knowledge, so is polite enough and Yuka is always ready to engage a curiosity seeker.  Because neeg are part of Lucaria as well as Telnumbra, there is no tension between them and she is able to speak with her on a level close to an equal.  I would say that Daryl likes Yuka, but has no great interest in knowing her any further than she does.  The two are comfortable around one another, but not really friends.

            At first, Daryl and Deminos had a very antagonistic relationship, as she saw him as a layabout, squandering the gift of Gadius and Aeon's tutelage, which was very valuable.  She, as an aspiring mage herself, looked down on him for that.  However, after seeing Deminos's true nature, the stress he's been under, the fears he's been dealing with, I'd say they are far friendlier.  They are very parallel in their fears.  Deminos fears failure because it means expulsion from Acacia and from what friends he has, while Daryl fears it because it means all her ambitions will come to naught.  In a way, she sees her own future failure through Deminos...a possible future she doesn't want to let happen.  Because of that, however, and because she sees how hard he does work and is willing to go to cure himself of his affliction, she gains a respect for him that could almost be called friendship.  He is still Telnumbran and a bit unusual for her, but she has learned not to look down on him.

            Daryl is closest to Nerise.  She is very fond of the girl's childlike nature and how, despite being Telnumbran, she acts with such carefree, child like abandon that she doesn't seem either Lucarian or Telnumbran.  Nerise is merely Nerise.  Daryl was originally drawn to her because of her knowledge of void magic, as learning how to use it and counter it could be valuable to her, however over the course of their many discussions, which Nerise is always happy to give, she has grown fond of the little girl.  Nerise, in turn, has helped Daryl come out of her shell a little by introducing friends, teaching her not to fear the undead so much, and doing activities not related to magic, like baking.  The two are fast friends and Daryl sees both her superior, scholastically, and a little sister figure in Nerise.  She both looks up to Nerise, but also wants to set a good example for her.  She knows little of Nerise's past, but doesn't want to see her cry, so she holds Nerise's emotions in high regard and will work to help her find the good in life if she is ever sad.

            Along those same lines, Daryl started off in a strained relationship with Weiss and Kinana, as each was unusual and scary to her.  Goetians are typically called upon by Telnumbrans, so Daryl was immediately wary of Kinana and Weiss, as one of the first children, is a source of both awe and terror for her.  However, due to their connections to Nerise, she has grown closer to the two.  Kinana is like a big sister/mother figure to Nerise, so Daryl tries to respect her because of that and Weiss is her oldest friend and faithful ally, so she puts aside her awe and fear to not interrupt their friendship.

            Daryl also, as a more religious member of the group, has awe for anything she considers sacred.  The Dragons, as first children, are sources of awe and terror for her and she looks to Seran, the All-father, as an almost godlike figure, worthy of fear and respect.  The same could be said for other nihilons, like Granny.

            Daryl was originally meant to be a mouthpiece for the dogma of the clergy of Lucaria, to help flesh out the two sides of Serano, the disparity between Lucaria and Telnumbra.  She was going to be the disliked character, the one who tagged along, but who you couldn't exactly count on.  However, over the course of writing, she has evolved into a more realized and fleshed out character.  I'd have to say, I really like her because in spite of her flaws, she IS a good person and IS trying to be better.  She only has a few friends, is good scholastically and a hard worker, but her personality flaws sometimes make it hard for others to see the good in her.  Haha, in many ways, it's like me.  I suppose I see in Daryl the side of me that people don't look for.  There is a side to me that is elitist, but it's not my public face.  No, I see in Daryl the person who wants to be accepted for who she is, warts and all, but who can't because of some toxic mannerisms.  That being said, she does find friends she can rely on, so Daryl does mimic me in that regard as well.

            Daryl's one of my favorite characters to write for.  Mina's probably still my favorite character, period, but Daryl has evolved and grown so much.  I wanted Mina to be the center of the story and she's grown and changed in many ways, from being purely fearful, to being more outgoing, friendly, and even pro active, in spite of being a bit nervous and jittery around Aeon, however, I have to hand it to Daryl.  She's become much more than I originally intended for her.