Girl Genius XIX: Worth a Third of Your Grade

[Shining Wrath]

Now this is getting deep. It's one thing to murder someone, but kidnapping and leaving a fake corpse behind is devious even by GG standards.
And rare venom.
Martellus?

[SZbNAhL]

Now this is getting deep. It's one thing to murder someone, but kidnapping and leaving a fake corpse behind is devious even by GG standards.
And rare venom.
Martellus?

Always possible that he faked his own death. He was pretty paranoid (justifiably) about assassins, after all.

[Grif]

Always possible that he faked his own death. He was pretty paranoid (justifiably) about assassins, after all.

I think it was exactly this. He faked his own death to throw off assassins, then goes gallivanting off to do his own thing in peace. But of course, he didn't count on a Smoke Knight to be around...

[Darth Tom]

Now this is getting deep. It's one thing to murder someone, but kidnapping and leaving a fake corpse behind is devious even by GG standards.
And rare venom.
Martellus?

"Ghost spiders" sound like they could be the ones the Geisterdamen ride. This could get interesting (not that it doesn't always).

[Deliverance]

Now this is getting deep. It's one thing to murder someone, but kidnapping and leaving a fake corpse behind is devious even by GG standards.
And rare venom.
Martellus?

Strictly speaking they didn't leave a fake corpse behind.

[HandofShadows]

Does not "feel" like Tweedle to me. Also Uncle Tick Tock vanished some time ago and no could find him. It could be that he is faking his death, but it seems he would do a better job of it.

[eee]

Larana and Aldin are exchanging SIGNIFICANT looks, there...

I think it was exactly this. He faked his own death to throw off assassins, then goes gallivanting off to do his own thing in peace. But of course, he didn't count on a Smoke Knight to be around...

His niece the Smoke Knight.

Let us not forget, there's another body there. I doubt you could fake that blood splatter, so I would assume the girl was shot while alive, hit the wall, slid down, then died. I would further assume she or Eugene was another assassin, they made their play, Zardeliv somehow survived (just because he doesn't like playing the normal family 'games' doesn't mean he's not a competent fighter), and then...? Maybe he set this whole thing up so people would think he was dead and he could throw off all pursuit, since the Library had proven to be inadequate sanctuary. That would require, however, that he knew or thought he could find another way out of the Crypt.

Also, we don't know how many people were in his expedition.

[eschmenk]

It seems very likely that Zardeliv faked his own death. Since he didn't participate in murdering his relatives like most of his family, it seems a bit out of character that he would have simply murdered his companions unless they attacked him first. Being able to survive in his family probably means that he could defend himself and spot betrayal, so I think that's probably what happened. OTOH, it's not unusual for characters in GG to hide their true nature.

Zardeliv may intend to remain in the crypts for a while -- there could be a lot to learn there -- but perhaps he hopes to use Prende's lantern or something else to escape. Maybe he thinks he can sneak out using whatever smoke night skills he may have.

[Rogar Demonblud]

Or, depending on what the lantern does, he could just use it to freeze time and walk out the front door.

[Darth Tom]

I have a sneaking suspicion that Prende's lantern may be Gil's "Heterodyne device" / lightning sword power source / invisibility device.
- Heterodyne origin
- Bought in Paris (stolen from Corbetite crypts?)
- Could certainly be used to escape from a castle, whether the sun sets or not
- "It's NOT a lamp" just seems too much like tempting fate
- Plus we've been wondering about it for how long now? It has to be revealed at some point.
- Oh, and it looks like Gil is on his way to Paris on the tail of the Library people (was that the "raid" that was mentioned when Agatha and co arrived at the Library?)

Thoughts?

[eschmenk]

Thoughts?

Maybe, but I doubt it. The Heterodyne markings amount to pretty strong evidence against the idea, but there might be some sort of explanation for how they got there.

I actually wouldn't mind if we never see it again. I feel like we've moved on from things like it and Agatha's death rays quite a while ago. Although they were fun at the time, they were a bit OP. Anyway, I'm just not very enthusiastic about the idea, but I'm not particularly against it, either.

[geoduck]

My main objection plotwise to that gadget being the Lantern is that when last seen it was in Mechanicsburg, which means it's likely locked away somewhere inside the time-bubble. That would entail returning to the city and constructing a whole bunch more time-tunnels to get to it. I suppose that would give Gil something to do as Agatha goes off to England and parts unknown.

[Darth Tom]

Good points, but I just realised there's a bigger reason that's not Prende's lantern: it's a Storm King artefact rather than a Heterodyne one. Whoops!

[eee]

Good points, but I just realised there's a bigger reason that's not Prende's lantern: it's a Storm King artefact rather than a Heterodyne one. Whoops!

Yes. Actually a van Rijn artifact, but given to the Storm King.

In addition, as was pointed out at the time (not by me, I was behind the curve on this), we've seen another Heterodyne "not-a-lamp" elsewhere:

http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comi...3#.VyStt3rw-_c

Imagine the tubes gone, and what Agatha called 'the mind unit' looks familiar. Which raises the question, if the Beast was in this one, what or who is in the other?

[Darth Tom]

Imagine the tubes gone, and what Agatha called 'the mind unit' looks familiar. Which raises the question, if the Beast was in this one, what or who is in the other?

It really does look similar. Interesting that the Beast is now in a more "train-like" body. That does indeed make the other even more interesting. I clearly need to come here more often.

[eschmenk]

...but perhaps he hopes to use Prende's lantern...

Or, depending on what the lantern does, he could just use it to freeze time and walk out the front door.

The Heterodyne markings amount to pretty strong evidence against the idea...

Good points, but I just realised there's a bigger reason that's not Prende's lantern: it's a Storm King artefact rather than a Heterodyne one. Whoops!

Also, I know that sometimes my meaning isn't all that clear.

Yes, apparently not.

[Darth Tom]

Yes, apparently not.

It was more that I woke up and had a "facepalm" moment realising just how badly I'd misinterpreted it.

[eschmenk]

It was more that I woke up and had a "facepalm" moment realising just how badly I'd misinterpreted it.

Don't worry about it. I think we all miss stuff like that at times. I know I do.

BTW, I wouldn't put it past the Heterodynes to steal tech. I'm just not expecting that to be the case here.

[Ellen]

Ghost spiders sound like favorite riding beasties of the the Geisters . Larana looks an awful lot like a Geister and her father is clearly working for the Other (or someone else who thinks lots of revenants are a good idea [hey, you never know in this world]).

I'd like to point out that Larana's appearance makes perfect sense for a subgroup evolved to live underground. However, we don't see lots of people who look like her in her kingdom. It's possible her father allied with the Other, had a Geister queen and a revel rebel daughter.

And this somehow ties into whatever their real mission is.

Maybe Uncle Tick-Tick is being pursued by assassins who used ghost spider venom and realized he had a good chance to disguise his dead friend as him?

It seems like, whoever Violetta's aunt was working for, it's a different group than any Tick Tock could be associated with, since the information she had was incomplete and sent her to the wrong place. But, I can't tell who's working for which faction (or which faction is which) right now without a score card.

[eschmenk]

I'd like to point out that Larana's appearance makes perfect sense for a subgroup evolved to live underground. However, we don't see lots of people who look like her in her kingdom. It's possible her father allied with the Other, had a Geister queen and a revel daughter.

Did you mean "rebel daughter?" I'm guessing so; v is next to b, but I was scratching my head for a while before I thought of it.

Anyway, everyone who was representing the kingdom, or who had an official post did look like her (or looked like a monster). There were also a lot of non-monstrous people who didn't, but those were mostly supposed to be diplomatic representatives from elsewhere, as far as we know.

OTOH, maybe there is even more of connection between the Kingdom and the Geisters. Who knows?

It seems like, whoever Violetta's aunt was working for, it's a different group than any Tick Tock could be associated with, since the information she had was incomplete and sent her to the wrong place. But, I can't tell who's working for which faction (or which faction is which) right now without a score card.

I'm not so sure about that. The Librarians told Agatha the Lady Selnikov was working for them and they also were cooperating with Zardilev, so to some extent both were probably working for the library. That doesn't mean that they would have talked to each other, though. Also, when Lady Selnikov set out, she apparently didn't have the book yet. She might not have known that the book had the information that it did, so she might not have known to ask about Corbettite vaults before she left. She might have simply jumped to the wrong conclusion while out in the field, but could have gotten the information if she had asked.

Do we even know if Lady Selnikov and Zardilev were after the same thing? Agatha concluded that Lady Selnikov was after Prende's lantern based on very slim evidence from the notes, but was Agatha correct? I don't think we have any indication of what Zardilev was looking for. I think the only thing we were told was that he was hoping to escape from assassins in the vaults, but I'm sure there was more to it than that. For all we know, Zardilev might have been looking for the Heterodyne device that Agatha found in Van Rijn's hidden room or something else, unless I'm missing something.

[eee]

Ghost spiders sound like favorite riding beasties of the the Geisters . Larana looks an awful lot like a Geister and her father is clearly working for the Other (or someone else who thinks lots of revenants are a good idea [hey, you never know in this world]).

I'd like to point out that Larana's appearance makes perfect sense for a subgroup evolved to live underground. However, we don't see lots of people who look like her in her kingdom. It's possible her father allied with the Other, had a Geister queen and a revel daughter.

I don't think Geisters are technically human, or cross fertile with humans. Othar's Twitter indicates that's why he and Oslaka never had children.

Of course we don't know if the Argurons are technically human, or cross fertile with humans or Geisters, either.

It is confusing. :(

[Lethologica]

the bait is realllllllll

[Ellen]

Did you mean "rebel daughter?" I'm guessing so; v is next to b, but I was scratching my head for a while before I thought of it.

Oops. Fixed. Thanks.

Anyway, everyone who was representing the kingdom, or who had an official post did look like her (or looked like a monster). There were also a lot of non-monstrous people who didn't, but those were mostly supposed to be diplomatic representatives from elsewhere, as far as we know.

OTOH, maybe there is even more of connection between the Kingdom and the Geisters. Who knows?

Hmm, yes. I skimmed over some past ones quickly and mostly saw the monster attackers.

Side thing, but I was looking up info on animals that have adapted to live entirely in caves and read a bit about cave dwelling salamanders. They always assumed these dark pigmented ones with eyes had moved underground more recently than their nearly blind, unpigmented cousins, but genetic testing suggests otherwise.

I don't know what that can be made to say about anything Underground in GG. But, I'm sure there are sparky possibilities in there somewhere.

I'm not so sure about that. The Librarians told Agatha the Lady Selnikov was working for them and they also were cooperating with Zardilev, so to some extent both were probably working for the library. That doesn't mean that they would have talked to each other, though. Also, when Lady Selnikov set out, she apparently didn't have the book yet. She might not have known that the book had the information that it did, so she might not have known to ask about Corbettite vaults before she left. She might have simply jumped to the wrong conclusion while out in the field, but could have gotten the information if she had asked.

Do we even know if Lady Selnikov and Zardilev were after the same thing? Agatha concluded that Lady Selnikov was after Prende's lantern based on very slim evidence from the notes, but was Agatha correct? I don't think we have any indication of what Zardilev was looking for. I think the only thing we were told was that he was hoping to escape from assassins in the vaults, but I'm sure there was more to it than that. For all we know, Zardilev might have been looking for the Heterodyne device that Agatha found in Van Rijn's hidden room or something else, unless I'm missing something.

Like I said, I need a scorecard.

If I follow this, the Professor had people trying to kill him (reasons unknown [unless I missed them?]). He went into the deadly tunnels where the latest maguffin may also be hidden. HOWEVER, the library thought this maguffin was in different tunnels. The professor may or may not know it's there and may or may not be interested in getting it and he may or may not have misled the library as to its correct location.

My head hurts.

Geisters probably aren't normally interfertile with humans (according to Othar) but never discount SCIENCE! Or revel rebel daughters of evil overlords.

My head really hurts.

[wingnutx]

Girl Genius XX: Dere's A Lot Ov Biting

[eschmenk]

If I follow this, the Professor had people trying to kill him (reasons unknown [unless I missed them?]). He went into the deadly tunnels where the latest maguffin may also be hidden. HOWEVER, the library thought this maguffin was in different tunnels. The professor may or may not know it's there and may or may not be interested in getting it and he may or may not have misled the library as to its correct location.

Generally the characters assumed that the assassination attempts on Zardilev may have been intended to keep him from helping Gil free Mechanicsburg, but no one really knows. It's not clear that the library knew about the maguffin. They sent Lady Selnikov to get Van Rinn's notebook, which she stole from Martellus. They might not have known that it said anything about Prende's lantern because they hadn't read it yet. Meanwhile, we also don't know whether or not Zardilev is after the lantern, even though he may be in the correct vault for it. Basically, there are so many possibilities, we can't pin much down yet.

Monday's comic:

Heh, so there is a book by someone named Foglio in the library. That's an odd pose in the second panel. I guess Zardilev is looking to make sure that no one sees him before he takes the messenger's message? It's a bit odd that the messenger is holding the message out so openly.

And more guessing about what Zardilev may be up to. Come to think of it, this being GG, I couldn't even rule out Zardilev staging all of the assassination attempts.

Girl Genius XX: Dere's A Lot Ov Biting

If we do that one, I would prefer: Girl Genius XX: Mostly Dere's A Lot Ov Biting

That's the full phrase and I think it's a little funnier that way.

[eee]

It looks like something ALMOST got out of its cell, in the first panel. I'd be careful in case it's not completely dead.

RE panel two: F'tagin to Foglio. Lovecraft to Girl Genius. It fits! And the guy in the uniform: Seffie's courier? Colette's butler? Some unknown guy? And poor Eugene: Perhaps doomed because of a resemblance.

RE panel six: They're whispering secrets in a party that includes a Jager and a Smoke Knight, and two small devices with a habit of getting into unusual places, and Agatha, who has proven several times she is more aware than she seems. I don't think this is wise.

[Grey_Wolf_c]

RE panel six: They're whispering secrets in a party that includes a Jager and a Smoke Knight, and two small devices with a habit of getting into unusual places, and Agatha, who has proven several times she is more aware than she seems. I don't think this is wise.

Yes but, crucially, the character usually in charge of eavesdropping is gone. I was wondering why the Foglios had needed him gone, and I'm suspecting that allowing these two to scheme undetected while part of Agatha's entourage might be a big part of it.

By the way, am I the only one that can't access the Buck Godot collection? I was wanting to read it a while back, but all I get is 404s. Have they been moved elsewhere, or was it announced that they are permanently off line?

Thanks,

Grey Wolf

[eschmenk]

By the way, am I the only one that can't access the Buck Godot collection? I was wanting to read it a while back, but all I get is 404s. Have they been moved elsewhere, or was it announced that they are permanently off line?

It may be a bit painful, but it looks as if you could read it via the Wayback Machine. It looks as if 404 errors started in around March or April. I'm not aware of any announcements.

[Shining Wrath]

It looks like something ALMOST got out of its cell, in the first panel. I'd be careful in case it's not completely dead.

RE panel two: F'tagin to Foglio. Lovecraft to Girl Genius. It fits! And the guy in the uniform: Seffie's courier? Colette's butler? Some unknown guy? And poor Eugene: Perhaps doomed because of a resemblance.

RE panel six: They're whispering secrets in a party that includes a Jager and a Smoke Knight, and two small devices with a habit of getting into unusual places, and Agatha, who has proven several times she is more aware than she seems. I don't think this is wise.

My take, since the door is concave from our side, is someone almost got in. If something almost got out, why did it stop?

Guy in the uniform is clearly a courier, staying in the shadows (but why wear a uniform?), and Zardeliv to me looks more "What now?" than "sneaky" in panel 2.

Generally the characters assumed that the assassination attempts on Zardilev may have been intended to keep him from helping Gil free Mechanicsburg, but no one really knows. It's not clear that the library knew about the maguffin. They sent Lady Selnikov to get Van Rinn's notebook, which she stole from Martellus. They might not have known that it said anything about Prende's lantern because they hadn't read it yet. Meanwhile, we also don't know whether or not Zardilev is after the lantern, even though he may be in the correct vault for it. Basically, there are so many possibilities, we can't pin much down yet.

Monday's comic:

Heh, so there is a book by someone named Foglio in the library. That's an odd pose in the second panel. I guess Zardilev is looking to make sure that no one sees him before he takes the messenger's message? It's a bit odd that the messenger is holding the message out so openly.

And more guessing about what Zardilev may be up to. Come to think of it, this being GG, I couldn't even rule out Zardilev staging all of the assassination attempts.



If we do that one, I would prefer: Girl Genius XX: Mostly Dere's A Lot Ov Biting

That's the full phrase and I think it's a little funnier that way.

Girl Genius 20: Jager Shredding Machine.

Go the other way: he was manipulated into choosing Eugene by someone who intended to kidnap him. And we only have Larana's word for that, and she is being deliberately deceptive right now. OTOH, whispering to each other while less than 5' from a Jager AND a Spark is just plain dumb. Larana and Aldin are either incompetent secret agents or Agatha knowing they are up to something is not fatal to their plans (merely inconvenient).

[SZbNAhL]

Whispering to each other while less than 5' from a Jager AND a Spark is just plain dumb. Larana and Aldin are either incompetent secret agents or Agatha knowing they are up to something is not fatal to their plans (merely inconvenient).

Or maybe they actually want her to overhear, so that she will expect them to betray her and do something that she would otherwise be difficult to manipulate into doing. The old Kansas City Shuffle, as it were.