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Shadowfist fiction - Two Fisted Tales: Ascended frame
Now, we get into the TFT story itself. As far as I know, this is the first time any of it has actually been put into public view.
This is because it was kind of ambitious. Structurally, it was going to be five main pulp stories, glued together with some framing, leading into one big finale. I was to write the frames, the finale, and one of the other stories. Dave farmed one of the stories out to a friend, and was tackling some or all of the others himself. (I think we discussed getting somebody else to write another, but never did.)
In retrospect, this was a mistake. With another person firmly signed on, we could've possibly pulled it off, but it still would've taken too long. With just me and Dave, not a chance, especially since I'd never before committed to writing major bits of story, and I think Dave was getting burned out on all things Shadowfist by then.
Dave's friend wrote most or all of his piece. Dave wrote most of one of the others. I wrote one of the two frames and the finale. I never started the other major story, and the second frame is the first thing I'm going to need to decide whether I want to actually finish it.
Here are the events of the Two-Fisted Tales story, as seen by the Ascended:
Clearance: Lodge Operations Ring 0
Attn: Unspoken Name
Date: December 25
Juncture: 1934
I have contacted the Lodge of this juncture, and made a preliminary assessment.
The situation is more dire than we imagined it could be. We knew the Lodge of this era were weak and unstable, but this is beyond compehension.
The Name appears to be utterly ineffectual, and my attempts to speak with him directly have met only with excuses and runarounds.
The council is paralyzed by infighting. Most of them do not seem to take me seriously, due to my gender, my bloodline, or a combination of the two.
Despite all this, it could be far worse. None of our enemies yet have a significant foothold in this juncture, and the Lodge still wields enormous power. The head of the Jackal family, Vincent Benilli, appears to understand the gravity of the situation, and has offered me his full cooperation. I am sure he seeks to use us to increase his own influence, but we could do far worse.
- Raven Li
Clearance: Lodge Operations Ring 0
Attn: Unspoken Name
Date: February 13
Juncture: 1935
I recieved grudging permission to speak to the Name of this juncture.
We will recieve no cooperation from him. The evidence is right before his eyes. He knows the portals to the Netherworld are open. And he does nothing.
Kinoshita at least had the will to act. Our difficulties with him were purely differences of policy. This one is worse than carrion. Not only will he not act, but he will not allow us to do so. He fears losing what power he has, so he chooses a course that will not only cost him that power, but will drag us down with him.
Benilli does what he can, but he is battling the rest of the council nearly every step of the way.
- Raven Li
Clearance: Lodge Operations Ring 0
Attn: Unspoken Name
Date: April 17
Juncture: 1935
Not only are this juncture's Lodge willfully incompetent, but I fear they are being betrayed from within.
There has been a steady loss of operatives and feng shui sites. This is being blamed on the intrusions from the Netherworld, but this overlooks one critical fact:
They began many months before the portals opened.
Certainly, the losses have become worse since then, but even in the greater noise, I can discern the actions of a single, well-organized enemy. None of the other factions have had the time to become so organized, so it must be our own.
There is an adventurer and so-called "hero" who I suspect is involved with the betrayers. He has interfered in their operations time and again. I believe him to be a Lodge renegade. His documented feats are beyond the abilities of mere humans. He even flaunts his origins in the name he uses: "John Fenris".
However, I have been assured that he is not one of us. Supposedly, he does not exist in any of the geneologies. But then, as far as this Lodge's best researchers can tell, he simply sprang into existence out of the Egyptian desert twenty years ago.
- Raven Li
Clearance: Lodge Operations Ring 0
Attn: Unspoken Name
Date: June 23
Juncture: 1935
I am returning to you a failure. I can do nothing to aid our cause here. No, that is untrue - I could do a great deal, but I am allowed to do nothing. Coordination with Benilli does not require my presence. In fact, he may have more freedom to act if he is less seen as our puppet.
If this juncture's Name and the rest of its Council were eliminated, Benilli would easily be able to seize power.
This is the only solution I see to our problems, and it is anathema.
- Raven Li
It was originally going to be interleaved with the big stories and the bits of the other frame, but that obviously can't happen.
This is because it was kind of ambitious. Structurally, it was going to be five main pulp stories, glued together with some framing, leading into one big finale. I was to write the frames, the finale, and one of the other stories. Dave farmed one of the stories out to a friend, and was tackling some or all of the others himself. (I think we discussed getting somebody else to write another, but never did.)
In retrospect, this was a mistake. With another person firmly signed on, we could've possibly pulled it off, but it still would've taken too long. With just me and Dave, not a chance, especially since I'd never before committed to writing major bits of story, and I think Dave was getting burned out on all things Shadowfist by then.
Dave's friend wrote most or all of his piece. Dave wrote most of one of the others. I wrote one of the two frames and the finale. I never started the other major story, and the second frame is the first thing I'm going to need to decide whether I want to actually finish it.
Here are the events of the Two-Fisted Tales story, as seen by the Ascended:
Clearance: Lodge Operations Ring 0Attn: Unspoken Name
Date: December 25
Juncture: 1934
I have contacted the Lodge of this juncture, and made a preliminary assessment.
The situation is more dire than we imagined it could be. We knew the Lodge of this era were weak and unstable, but this is beyond compehension.
The Name appears to be utterly ineffectual, and my attempts to speak with him directly have met only with excuses and runarounds.
The council is paralyzed by infighting. Most of them do not seem to take me seriously, due to my gender, my bloodline, or a combination of the two.
Despite all this, it could be far worse. None of our enemies yet have a significant foothold in this juncture, and the Lodge still wields enormous power. The head of the Jackal family, Vincent Benilli, appears to understand the gravity of the situation, and has offered me his full cooperation. I am sure he seeks to use us to increase his own influence, but we could do far worse.- Raven Li
Clearance: Lodge Operations Ring 0
Attn: Unspoken Name
Date: February 13
Juncture: 1935
I recieved grudging permission to speak to the Name of this juncture.
We will recieve no cooperation from him. The evidence is right before his eyes. He knows the portals to the Netherworld are open. And he does nothing.
Kinoshita at least had the will to act. Our difficulties with him were purely differences of policy. This one is worse than carrion. Not only will he not act, but he will not allow us to do so. He fears losing what power he has, so he chooses a course that will not only cost him that power, but will drag us down with him.
Benilli does what he can, but he is battling the rest of the council nearly every step of the way.
- Raven Li
Clearance: Lodge Operations Ring 0
Attn: Unspoken Name
Date: April 17
Juncture: 1935
Not only are this juncture's Lodge willfully incompetent, but I fear they are being betrayed from within.
There has been a steady loss of operatives and feng shui sites. This is being blamed on the intrusions from the Netherworld, but this overlooks one critical fact:
They began many months before the portals opened.
Certainly, the losses have become worse since then, but even in the greater noise, I can discern the actions of a single, well-organized enemy. None of the other factions have had the time to become so organized, so it must be our own.
There is an adventurer and so-called "hero" who I suspect is involved with the betrayers. He has interfered in their operations time and again. I believe him to be a Lodge renegade. His documented feats are beyond the abilities of mere humans. He even flaunts his origins in the name he uses: "John Fenris".However, I have been assured that he is not one of us. Supposedly, he does not exist in any of the geneologies. But then, as far as this Lodge's best researchers can tell, he simply sprang into existence out of the Egyptian desert twenty years ago.
- Raven Li
Clearance: Lodge Operations Ring 0
Attn: Unspoken Name
Date: June 23
Juncture: 1935
I am returning to you a failure. I can do nothing to aid our cause here. No, that is untrue - I could do a great deal, but I am allowed to do nothing. Coordination with Benilli does not require my presence. In fact, he may have more freedom to act if he is less seen as our puppet.
If this juncture's Name and the rest of its Council were eliminated, Benilli would easily be able to seize power.
This is the only solution I see to our problems, and it is anathema.
- Raven Li
It was originally going to be interleaved with the big stories and the bits of the other frame, but that obviously can't happen.
no subject
And yeah, burnout had started to set in during the making of 2FT.
As for the piece of fiction that Mike wrote, it was good, but it felt like the first act of a story, rather than a full story. I asked him to write more, but since we weren't actually compensating him for it, he didn't really have much incentive to do so.
no subject