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Cam is watching a new recording of Atriama, tail swishing in the gap in his couch, and doesn't stop to pause the show when he feels a summons go by.
from_scratch
Well, what Cam would like them to understand is that it's inconvenient to keep them in comas but only slightly, that he is going to put tracking devices in them, and that they're on a one-strike Cam's-personal-opinion sort of probation if they would like to wander the area and can earn a little more leeway if they make themselves useful and also those coma drugs can leave a weird taste in your mouth have an ice cream cone. Can they understand this?
wormcan
The part about the ice cream is hit and miss. (Cam's power is weird even by power standards.) Other than that, his point is very much taken.
from_scratch
Oh good! Off they go, then.
Cam notifies his various people that he's letting the capes go, that he can find them and remotely knock them out if necessary, and that he should be notified at once on the emergency messenger if any of them steps out of line.
Cam notifies his various people that he's letting the capes go, that he can find them and remotely knock them out if necessary, and that he should be notified at once on the emergency messenger if any of them steps out of line.
wormcan
They aren't exactly capes in the same sense, but it's not like that distinction matters.
Cam has got himself a pretty substantial territory now. Normally when someone ambitious triggers and is lucky enough to vastly outgun the nearby competition, they go through a phase where they're limited by their own mobility (in Cam's case: very high) and then by the competition. Inconveniently, none of the competing warlords have any idea how outgunned they are and might think Cam falls into this pattern.
Cam has got himself a pretty substantial territory now. Normally when someone ambitious triggers and is lucky enough to vastly outgun the nearby competition, they go through a phase where they're limited by their own mobility (in Cam's case: very high) and then by the competition. Inconveniently, none of the competing warlords have any idea how outgunned they are and might think Cam falls into this pattern.
from_scratch
Cam expands at a fairly sedate pace. He doesn't want to bite off more than he can chew. But he doesn't sleep and he doesn't stop moving and if he meets a warlord they are probably going to have an argument.
wormcan
Daeva have quite a lot of figurative chewing ability. But as long as his territory is small enough that he could hold it without personally being a world power, people are going to have to find out he's unassailable the hard way.
The conclusions of the inevitable arguments are foregone enough to not need repeating.
The conclusions of the inevitable arguments are foregone enough to not need repeating.
from_scratch
Expand expand expand. Cam does speak Afrikaans and Swahili and French; he has never picked up Tshiluba or Kituba or Lingala or Kongo or Sangha or Teke or M'Bochi, and this affects how readily he can expand in some directions, although he can rig up serviceable computer translation and is finding it nice and easy to hire people.
wormcan
Eventually the opposition will be teams of allies, who can't easily be beaten by walking into a single location and conjuring coma drugs. Fighting openly is a Bad Idea, as they've learned from the ones who went before, so they work out other ways to antagonize the newcomer. Like wrecking his creations and then blending in with the locals. It won't stop him, but they can't just do nothing.
from_scratch
Well, they could, but he didn't really expect them to. He can replace stuff. And he fancies that his locals might like him enough to point out the strangers.
from_scratch
Well, that's inconvenient. Cam decides not to implement draconian police state measures over it at this time. He does start lacing some of his more vulnerable-looking architecture with dye packs.
wormcan
Once he finds them, one of the bright orange offenders collects the nerve to talk. "They sent us because they think we're expendable. But if you don't stop soon, you're up against everybody."
wormcan
"Everybody. So far you've been replacing people who got there by being scarier than everyone else, but past Lubango that stops. People hold cities because they have permission, and one of the conditions is that they band together and keep outsiders out. Maybe we can't beat you, but you know we can bring down buildings. Think you can hold off armies of capes like us?"
from_scratch
"I mean," says Cam, "yeah, I think that, but also if the occupants of regions prefer to keep their existing systems of governance I don't really have a problem with that."
from_scratch
"I'm not actually doing this," he gestures vaguely "thing, because I want to draw a really big circle on a map? That's not the point. Anybody who manages to be good to their population can do what they're doing."
from_scratch
"Oh. I'm indestructible and awake all the time and don't really have a range limit and I can fake a lot of Tinker stuff and, yeah, if a bunch of parahumans formed an army I would probably just put them all to sleep? And then maybe a few of them wouldn't go to sleep but it wouldn't be an army's worth and I'd do something else with them. I don't want this to happen because there might be collateral damage and I don't like collateral damage, but if some army would like to go fight me in low earth orbit we could get this question settled without putting anybody else at risk?"
wormcan
"Lots of people are indestructible. How are you on death by demon?"
The speaker's compatriots look at her like she just violated some taboo, which is reasonably likely.
The speaker's compatriots look at her like she just violated some taboo, which is reasonably likely.
from_scratch
"I mean, I haven't tried it, but my indestructibility is pretty all-purpose. Are you talking about Moord Nag or is there another one?" Ha, ha.
wormcan
No one gets the joke. Not fair.
"Yes! Her! That's what comes after the army, if you're right about that. She'll kill you by looking at you, and end up even stronger."
"Yes! Her! That's what comes after the army, if you're right about that. She'll kill you by looking at you, and end up even stronger."
from_scratch
"I'm not specifically planning to go pick a fight with her. People in her territory seem to be doing better than a lot of other people."