Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Author Notes for Remnants - Chapter Fourteen

Okay, we got a lot to cover for this chapter. Like a ton of stuff. Maiden stuff, Miranda stuff, lots of Tali stuff, horror tropes, the works. So lets just get going already.



It's probably best to explain one of the main driving forces behind making this chapter. You see, a good while ago, I read a story that featured Tali in a less than flattering light. Not to name names or give out specifics, but suffice to say she kinda betrayed the Normandy. To be honest, as much as I love Tali, I'm not really opposed to a story in an alt-universe where she is evil, but honestly it doesn't really work with the actual Tali. It could work with an expy, or a different original character to riff on the possibility, but with Tali... going evil... like full evil, doesn't work. When you change a character's personality so drastically, it stops being a what if exercise and becomes just an out of character story. What if Tali was a traitor, amoral and evil? She woudn't be Tali. Simple as that. It did not help that the story ended up not really being about her betrayal at all and became a boring revenge plot by the end.

I wanted to do Tali as an antagonist right, see how I could turn her against the crew while keeping her character intact. But I didn't want a mind control plot and I didn't want a possession story. So I went with this. As Miranda says in this chapter, this is Tali when her faults are allowed to persist unhindered. No filter, no reservations on others feelings. She just acts on every angry and hateful screaming thought that pops into her head. Why would Tali do that? Well, in fitting with her character, Tali would go wrong if she thought everyone else had decided not to listen to her. She'd turn on the crew because, in her mind, she's actually saving them. She's loyal to them, so much so that she'd hurt them to save them. In a way, Tali would become her father, justifying the means to reach an ends. Given her arc, her character, her motivations in this story and in Mass Effect canon, that stuck with me. Tali becomes her father, that would probably be incredibly scary to her in the right circumstances. And scary to other people of course.

I had no real body count here, but horror does not require a high body count. True horror can stay with you even if only one person dies. See "The Haunting" for one such an example. Tali here becomes a sort of bloodless slasher villain, able to move at will from victim to victim in pursuit of a singular goal. Her knowledge of ships, of tech and computers serving her many ways to this very end. Her ability to turn a part of the Serpent into a house of horrors was indicative of this. Tali's skills are remarkable, amazing, but when turned against you they can be terrifying. Her wizardy with tech, once an asset, now becomes a source of fear.

I'm kinda reminded when the Flash's body was taken over by Lex Luthor in Justice League Unlimited. Lex, suddenly given power, did a host of horrible, dangerous things with them. Reminded us all that, while Flash is a happy go lucky hero, if someone less moral and moe devious was behind the wheel that person could do some real damage. Same with Tali, if she was really far gone, she could've killed a lot of people, probably in far worse ways. Chiktikka can have a flamethrower with the proper upgrades, remember?

This brings me to Miranda, oh poor dear sweet Miranda. The woman who I've come to slowly appreciate the more I write her. Some people feel I was more harsh on  Miri than she deserved. My answer is, well, you were reading those scenes almost always through the eyes of an unreliable narrator. Yes, I was still writing in third person, but narration is never as clear cut as that. Third person can slip into first without you realizing it. Suddenly, I'm in Tali's viewpoint, recounting how she sees everything, her opinion. It's from her view, you see it from her perspective. So of course you got a skewed look at Miranda because Tali has a skewed opinion of her.

Here I tried to flip that by narrating from Miranda's point of view whenever possible. To show that, you know, she's not an unfeeling monster and everything she was doing was in fact based on her personality. Her backstory. Who she is as a person. I get deeper into that next chapter, but as shown here, Miranda, in my opinion, does not have the same kind of social graces most of us have. Did you see her dating profile? Good lord.

Miranda has never struck me as personable. She's very closed off, not willing to trust. She prefers professionalism, loyalty must be earned. She's a good voice in Shepard's ear to keep him grounded and never overconfident, and that can at times makes her look cold, but she is not unfeeling. She just thinks about her concerns in a more specific itinerary. She's the XO, she handles the ship when Shepard is away, people rely on her to make this crew work. And she goes about it in her way, which is effective, but it can create friction. Like with Tali. None of what she was doing was personal, but Tali takes it that.

I do hope you felt more sympathy for Miranda this time, as I wanted Tali's assault on her to be appropriately shocking. Miranda is the victim here and is not deserving of any of this. She is trying to help Tali too, even if she did put her in that cell in a sense. And I liked the idea of Miranda getting herself out of those bonds and not need anyone else to rush in to her room to save her. I like to think that showed how capable she truly is and that despite being a gorgeous catsuited supermodel of a woman... she's also a capable and resourceful field agent. She did work for Cerberus after all, came with the job.

Quick note, the Cortana and Chief scene was a bit of a late edition to the story. I realized, oh crap, Cortana and Chief pop up out of the blue and they're integral to the remainder of this arc in a way. I need to introduce them earlier than I do, so I added an extra scene. It's probably why things had to be split up in the end. The natural end point just... came there.

Oh and expect the BBR related chapter to this Arc to be a "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern" sorta situation. That's another reason I made this chapter after all.

Speaking of BBR, Iron Maiden! Like I said before, they need to appear in more media. I know, I know, gettings sons is expensive, but damn it, it's Iron Maiden! Black Sabbath got Paranoid in Skull Island, at least one person can fit in a "Number of the Beast" sequence for a similar monster flick. Come on!

I avoided popular songs as much as possible, specifically finding parts of the discography that spoke to the scene that was happening and the mood of it without breaking the flow or standing out too much. But I really wanted to get "Fear of the Dark" in there because the lyrics and tone just fit exactly Tali's predicament in the scene, scared of shadows, fearful of what lies ahead, the fact she feels alone among the terrors around her. It just fit perfectly.

"Iron Maiden" for Miranda's assault sequence felt appropriate as a forboding and direct message to readers how far Tali has fallen now and how she is near murderous with her intent. And it also has a double meaning given the truth of what she is actually facing, but spoilers.

"Where the Wild Wind Blows" was almost serendipitous in meaning and tone. A song about a couple concerned about a coming catasrophe? Trying their best to avoid it by any means they can scrounge up? Preparing for doomsday? Their information not being accurate or in fact misconstrued entirely? The fact that their own desire to survive leads to their doom? I mean come one, it was almost near perfect for the sequence and its low, quiet, sad and forboding tone made it perfect music for what was intended as a haunting and tension ridden sequence.

"Can I play with Madness?" was to signal Tali's further slippage of her sanity, as her actions become more drastic, frantic and unhinged. She is near accepting her incoming fate, that the song is interrupted when she attacks Boz is evidence enough of that. While I did not play the song in its frenetic white knuckle glory, I felt for here I would let the scene speak for itself while the reader can simply hear what occurs in the background within their mind. Helps sell insanity justoposition just a bit I feel.

When the BBR chapter drops you'll get a full playlist for this arc more or less. Expect some further hits you did not get to hear and some added commentary of course. Also, Zek will have another movie review... or movies. You'll see. And if you're wondering if Boz continues the show? He does, why wouldn't he? He's a pirate, getting a gun waved in your face is something you're going to have brush off quick in this business. You'll hear more from his station in due time. For now, time to wrap up.

This arc has been an undertaking, but the finish line is in sight. If I can stick the landing this will be the most satisfying and successful series of chapters in the writing of this story. Here's hoping it all works out. See you soon for another round of behind the scenes notes and some final thoughts on all this.

No comments:

Post a Comment