Author: Krixwell Jace

A doofus.
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Since our PoV character for this chapter is Weld, that adds a new dimension to the jokes about metal detectors he was glad not to have to endure.

Hah, yeah! That line makes a lot more sense now.

…I wonder if Hookwolf had trouble getting through airport security pre-Buzz. Unlike Weld, his metal biology isn’t immediately apparent on sight, and he presumably used to have a secret identity (wait, did he wear any sort of mask when we last saw him? I don’t remember, but that was also after his identity went public anyway). He couldn’t exactly reveal his secret to the security staff, either, being a known murderous villain.

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“There’s people going fucking crazy out there, and you’re talking training.” This reminded me of Allen Iverson’s rant about basketball practice. It’s on YouTube, and you should look it up. (I’d link it, but I don’t know how asks handle links.) 

“we talkin’ about practice, man”

Hah, yeah, I can absolutely see why the line reminds you of this. 😛

(For the record, Tumblr won’t let you send anything it recognizes as a link through an ask. However, sending links with the dots replaced with spaces or asterisks is not uncommon. Also, submissions do allow links.)

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For the record, the 12 classifications in Weld’s rhyme are currently all that the PRT recognizes for classifying Parahumans. There were previously more, but apparently, over time, they were collapsed into the other classes to simplify things. “Shifter” is the most recent collapsed category, having been combined only slightly before the events of Worm’s first chapter; anyone previously classed as a “Shifter” is now rated as a “Changer”. The paperwork’s just not all up to date yet.

Ahh, I see, that makes sense.

End of Sentinel 9.1

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And thus ends the first non-Interlude chapter without Taylor in it. (Although Director Piggot may have been alluding to her at one point.)

We finally got to know Weld, which was fun! I had been looking forward to that, and what I found did not disappoint – he’s a very nice guy, with refreshing optimism, even if he did make a pretty big faux pas in not reading the room or researching the people he was replacing. I hope we get to see more of his experience as the new leader of the Brockton Bay Wards.

And it’s entirely possible that this Arc will stick to that topic. Nothing against her, but I’m okay with taking a break from Taylor for a while to follow a different POV.

Taylor may have been the primary POV character for eight Arcs, but it’s become increasingly clear that it’s hard to call her a main character, especially over the course of these last two Arcs. This story, so far, doesn’t have a main character. It’s a story not about a character, but about society at large, which we’ve so far happened to be seeing through the eyes of one Taylor “Skitter” Hebert.

(Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely do want to see what she’s up to later.)

So, next chapter… we might be going back to Taylor and presumably seeing the things I predicted for this chapter (whether her plan involves the Undersiders, what her plan actually is), or we might be sticking with Weld to see how he tries to rectify this awkwardness he’s created.

Or, hell, what if this Arc involves checking in on multiple groups of Sentinels, one per chapter? That’d be a neat gimmick, though I think I’d prefer sticking with Weld.

Either way, see you next time!

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Then she turned away and walked back to the cubicles.  She was halfway there when he saw her rub at one cheek with the back of her hand.

😥

“I… I just got here,” Weld said, helplessly.

I just got told by a pre-teen, he thought.

“Shit,” he swore under his breath.

Sounds about right.

He found a chair in front of the computer and dropped the stack of file folders on the nearest flat surface.  He plucked the file folder off the top of the stack, opened it and began studying.

Time to do your research.

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In a couple ways, Weld seems like a sort of antithesis or foil to Taylor. We’ve got pessimistic/realistic Taylor who researches and thinks things through thoroughly, and optimistic Weld who may not have done enough digging here and was faced with an emotionally charged situation he had no idea how to deal with.

Hm. Maybe there’s also some (edit for clarification: metatextual, not literal in-universe) connection between Weld not realizing the emotional state he was likely to find the team in and the fact that he’s made of metal. A typical character trait of “metal men” in fiction is heartlessness, or lack of emotional understanding – maybe that’s a flaw Weld will have to work on.

Also, should I be on the lookout for a lion, a scarecrow, a girl from Kansas and her dog?

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“Thank you,” Vista’s voice piped up, with a definite note of relief.

Helplessly, Weld watched as the team split up to go their separate ways, Kid Win sitting down at the far end of the computer station, Shadow Stalker and Clockblocker heading for the elevator.

Welp, Weld. You’re gonna have a hard time.

So I guess this leaves Weld to either try to talk to Kid Win, or explore his surroundings some more. I’m leaning towards the former.

“I fucked up.  I already lost them,” Weld spoke, mostly to himself.

“No.  They’re just tired,” Vista spoke from beside him.  “And not just lack of sleep.  You’ll see what I mean.

Oh hey, or that.

And I mean, yeah, they’re under a lot of stress these days. Mourning Aegis and Gallant, the public going nuts, Director Piggot probably breathing down their necks… Anything else?

You could’ve mentioned Aegis and Gallant, but you can’t be blamed if Clockblocker didn’t give you time to get around to it.  Nobody’s really in the mood for speeches.”

That’s fair.

Also there’s some irony in Clockblocker not giving someone time to do something.

“Right,” Weld replied, feeling lost, “Aegis and Gallant.  They’re the ones who died?”

Vista gave him a look that could only be described as pity.  “You didn’t even learn their names?  Nevermind what I just said.  Yeah, you fucked up.”

Yeeah, should’ve done some research on this front. If nothing else, asked Piggot when she explained it.