Girl Genius XXIV: Ask Vit a Bit More Terror

[geoduck]

Not her swords? or clothes?

She lost her swords in Mechanicsburg, and (any remaining) clothes in Paris. All that's left apart from her own body tissues is the head-amulet.

[HandofShadows]

Well there is another sample source for Skif "artifacts" (tissue samples), though only one person in England knows it.

[lord_khaine]

Well there is another sample source for Skif "artifacts" (tissue samples), though only one person in England knows it.

Lets say 1½? :P

And its not certain organic samples can be used. Actually its likely they cant. Or else a few hair should have been both enough, and easy to get.

[Lethologica]

Apropos of nothing, it is worth noting that the only Skifander artifact of Zeetha's in England is her head charm, which in the hands of some low ranked servant at the moment. That's gotta be a lucky break for Steelgarder, don't you think? Just the kind of artifact she's looking for, without having to fight a warrior princess, apocalypse level Spark, or surprisingly competent smoke knight.

I think she'll have her prize and be out in short order.

Steelgarter could have done that from the beginning, were she inclined to think of it, but she's still very much a British noblewoman. It's just gauche to notice the help. Unless they're servants of the family, then you can build close personal bonds and so on.

[Shining Wrath]

Steelgarter could have done that from the beginning, were she inclined to think of it, but she's still very much a British noblewoman. It's just gauche to notice the help. Unless they're servants of the family, then you can build close personal bonds and so on.

It's also possible she doesn't realize that Zeetha's head charm is of Skifanderian origin. But what if she gets back to the museum and somehow learns that Gil is Skifanderian? Then she tries to capture Gil and put him in her presumably destructive vibration measurement device, and Trelawny has to save Gil.

Well, actually, I'd expect Gil to go all "Vole: I demand respect!" on her but it's more dramatic if T.T. saves him.

[Leewei]

Spoiler: Deranged Lunatic Rantings

Show

The overall plot of Girl Genius seems to involve monkeying with time. Agatha herself has seen "windows" open up to reveal people including herself looking at her personal history.

Baron Klaus Wulfenbach himself is familiar with these windows, and was very much interested in Agatha as a result - until he discovered her "passenger".

The Baron also has the distinction of being one of few people to have been to Skifander. The other would be Zeetha; perhaps Gilgamesh as well.

Zeetha herself seems very similar in outlook to a Jaeger, and has commented on Jaegers reminding her of her own people. Interestingly, Gilgamesh had no unforeseen complications from using Battle-draught. Mamma Gkika chalked it up to Klaus knowing Heterodyne secrets.

Tin foil "Schmot Guy" hat time. Gil is at least partly Jaeger due to being born in Skifander. So is Zeetha, and so are all the others from that nation.

Jaegerbrau is made from the waters of the Dyne, which would mean that Skifander would also need to be on that river. But if this is the case, why is it so hard to reach?

This brings me back to the time windows and Klaus's knowledge of what they are. Skifander is, in fact, the same location as Mechnicsburg, albeit at a very different point in history. No record remains of Skifander; the water's effects are far more subtle (depleted?) than in present day. Due to these reasons, I believe Skifander is in the distant future, perhaps post-(sparky-)apocalypse. Returning home will require one of the mirrors.

[TaRix]

It's also possible she doesn't realize that Zeetha's head charm is of Skifanderian origin. But what if she gets back to the museum and somehow learns that Gil is Skifanderian? Then she tries to capture Gil and put him in her presumably destructive vibration measurement device, and Trelawny has to save Gil.

Well, actually, I'd expect Gil to go all "Vole: I demand respect!" on her but it's more dramatic if T.T. saves him.

Zeetha's head-band charm is in the hands of Higgs, who probably hasn't shown it to partygoers. She still has the band, but not the copycat face.

[factotum]

Spoiler: Deranged Lunatic Rantings

Show

The overall plot of Girl Genius seems to involve monkeying with time. Agatha herself has seen "windows" open up to reveal people including herself looking at her personal history.

Baron Klaus Wulfenbach himself is familiar with these windows, and was very much interested in Agatha as a result - until he discovered her "passenger".

The Baron also has the distinction of being one of few people to have been to Skifander. The other would be Zeetha; perhaps Gilgamesh as well.

Zeetha herself seems very similar in outlook to a Jaeger, and has commented on Jaegers reminding her of her own people. Interestingly, Gilgamesh had no unforeseen complications from using Battle-draught. Mamma Gkika chalked it up to Klaus knowing Heterodyne secrets.

Tin foil "Schmot Guy" hat time. Gil is at least partly Jaeger due to being born in Skifander. So is Zeetha, and so are all the others from that nation.

Jaegerbrau is made from the waters of the Dyne, which would mean that Skifander would also need to be on that river. But if this is the case, why is it so hard to reach?

This brings me back to the time windows and Klaus's knowledge of what they are. Skifander is, in fact, the same location as Mechnicsburg, albeit at a very different point in history. No record remains of Skifander; the water's effects are far more subtle (depleted?) than in present day. Due to these reasons, I believe Skifander is in the distant future, perhaps post-(sparky-)apocalypse. Returning home will require one of the mirrors.

It's an interesting proposition, but I think falls down on one point (no idea why you spoilered it, but will do so for my reply as well):

Spoiler

Show

How did Zeetha get captured by pirates and brought back in what looked like a regular airship? If pirates have the ability to time travel and the major powers of the world do not, something very odd is going on!

[keybounce]

Maybe a wild time portal appeared?

[SZbNAhL]

Maybe a wild time portal appeared?

It would have to have appeared twice, since Prof. Consolmagno made it most of the way back as well.

[Rockphed]

It would have to have appeared twice, since Prof. Consolmagno made it most of the way back as well.

It could be a steady state portal that Consolmagno figured out the location of.

[Sean Mirrsen]

Or it could be that the Dyne is a river that flows from an underground source, and has essentially two "outlets" - one in Skifander, one in Mechanicsburg. The Skifander outlet could be a further distance from the source, thus the lessened effects.

And in order to get from Mechanicsburg to Skifander, one would merely have to be crazy enough to try and go "upstream" through the Dyne.

[Celestia]

Spoiler: Deranged Lunatic Rantings

Show

The overall plot of Girl Genius seems to involve monkeying with time. Agatha herself has seen "windows" open up to reveal people including herself looking at her personal history.

Baron Klaus Wulfenbach himself is familiar with these windows, and was very much interested in Agatha as a result - until he discovered her "passenger".

The Baron also has the distinction of being one of few people to have been to Skifander. The other would be Zeetha; perhaps Gilgamesh as well.

Zeetha herself seems very similar in outlook to a Jaeger, and has commented on Jaegers reminding her of her own people. Interestingly, Gilgamesh had no unforeseen complications from using Battle-draught. Mamma Gkika chalked it up to Klaus knowing Heterodyne secrets.

Tin foil "Schmot Guy" hat time. Gil is at least partly Jaeger due to being born in Skifander. So is Zeetha, and so are all the others from that nation.

Jaegerbrau is made from the waters of the Dyne, which would mean that Skifander would also need to be on that river. But if this is the case, why is it so hard to reach?

This brings me back to the time windows and Klaus's knowledge of what they are. Skifander is, in fact, the same location as Mechnicsburg, albeit at a very different point in history. No record remains of Skifander; the water's effects are far more subtle (depleted?) than in present day. Due to these reasons, I believe Skifander is in the distant future, perhaps post-(sparky-)apocalypse. Returning home will require one of the mirrors.

That's almost exactly the sort of plot twist I would write. I'm not sure how likely it is for this story, though.

[Leewei]

It's an interesting proposition, but I think falls down on one point (no idea why you spoilered it, but will do so for my reply as well):

Spoiler

Show

How did Zeetha get captured by pirates and brought back in what looked like a regular airship? If pirates have the ability to time travel and the major powers of the world do not, something very odd is going on!

Spoiler

Show

At some point in the future, Agatha gains access to this technology (we see her in the time windows). She is the one responsible (maybe by the request of future Zeetha) for getting Zeetha to the present day, and the journey strains her so much that she ends up delirious for a while afterward.

[Manga Shoggoth]

Except...

Spoiler: Skifander

Show

The number of people in the plot who have been to Skifander or at least know how to get there is ... surprisingly large.

People we know who are directly stated to have been there in the current day: Prof. Consolmagno and Zeetha (obviously), and the Professor took an airship, which Zeetha returned on - no portals mentioned in the story.

People who know about it: The Heterodyne Boys (Barry, at least, told Agatha at least one story about it). The Baron speaks Skif, and identified Zeetha as a possible threat to Gil. The Geisterdamen (at least, one of them) recognizes Zeetha's fighting style. It is implied that Lucrecia knew about Skifander because that's where the Baron was sent.

I'm not sure Gil himself really counts - he was too young to remember...

But that's a rather large pool for a country that is supposed to have such a complex way of getting to it. The lost city in the jungle-type explanation seems a little more straightforward.

[SZbNAhL]

It is implied that Lucrecia knew about Skifander because that's where the Baron was sent.

She's at least familiar enough to recognise Skiffandrians by sight.

[Manga Shoggoth]

She's at least familiar enough to recognise Skiffandrians by sight.

Yes indeed. I'd forgotten that one!

[Fyraltari]

Zeetha did call herself a Royal princess Guardian of Skifander just before, so not necessarily by sight. But she knows them.

[Ellen]

I really don't trust Rakethorn. He's trying way too hard.

Now, will the math be protected or not? Is Agatha going to have to invent time travel just so she can go back in time to read the math about time travel before it's erased (which may seem redundant, but I'm betting it seems completely logical to a spark on a mission).

[geoduck]

I really don't trust Rakethorn. He's trying way too hard.

You're still giving him any sort of benefit of the doubt? He made it explicitly clear in his conversation with Wooster that he's trying to seduce her into staying in England.

[Celestia]

I really don't trust Rakethorn. He's trying way too hard.

Now, will the math be protected or not? Is Agatha going to have to invent time travel just so she can go back in time to read the math about time travel before it's erased (which may seem redundant, but I'm betting it seems completely logical to a spark on a mission).

Do you really doubt that the Foglios would pass up any opportunity to add extra drama and extend the story by another 80 pages? Clearly, everything Agatha needs will be conveniently missing and/or destroyed. This is the story that never ends.

[Onyavar]

Well, the way to many a lady's heart goes through her stomach.

Rakethorn will be a wonderful butler in Gil's, Tarvek's and Agatha's household.

[Fyraltari]

Oh no, that man thwarted Agatha! Truly, he must be the comic's greatest vilain.

[Alandra]

Clearly, Rakethorn is prime minion material!

[Shining Wrath]

Rakethorn just stepped in it, big time. Agatha's grateful, since she's starving. Tarvek, on the other hand, just turned his suspicious dial to "11", and the one thing Rakethorn can't stand is Tarvek taking a close look at him.

[datalaughing]

Oh no, that man thwarted Agatha! Truly, he must be the comic's greatest vilain.

Such a gutsy response the man makes too. "Are you trying to thwart me?" "Um... Yes?" No shame at all from this monster.

It's cute that Albia and co. think that the handsome multi-talented accommodating roguish assistant will seduce Agatha into anything. She's a nice enough person, which is why she makes this response to the food, but from her super-spark perspective, he's the help and not worth much more notice than what she gives him here. If they want to get her, he's going to need to prove Tarvek or Gil level of intelligence to be of actual interest to the Mistress.

[PraetorDragoon]

I really don't trust Rakethorn. He's trying way too hard.

What? You don't trust the character who was introduced and instructed specifically to seduce Agatha? Good heavens!

[Rogar Demonblud]

Rakethorn just stepped in it, big time. Agatha's grateful, since she's starving. Tarvek, on the other hand, just turned his suspicious dial to "11", and the one thing Rakethorn can't stand is Tarvek taking a close look at him.

I'm pretty sure Tarvek was born with that dial on '13'. It'd take differential calculus equations to express where he's at now.

[Lethologica]

I'm pretty sure Tarvek was born with that dial on '13'. It'd take differential calculus equations to express where he's at now.

I would recommend up-arrow notation, myself. Or perhaps a nice Ackermann function.

[PraetorDragoon]

I'm pretty sure Tarvek was born with that dial on '13'. It'd take differential calculus equations to express where he's at now.

You have to be as a Sturmvorous. You'll get assassinated in the womb otherwise.