Cat-Tale 44: String Theory in Cat-Tales Forum

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Cat-Tale 44: String Theory

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Chris Dee.gothampm	Cat-Tale 44: String Theory		Lead	[-]
Posts: 3929 10/19/05 21:06 Gothamite	"Countdown?" Who said anything about a countdown? Crisis Catverse is upon us in String Theory at FanFiction.net and The Official Cat-Tales Website
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BenRG	Re: Cat-Tale 44: String Theory	#1	[url]	[-]
Posts: 428 10/19/05 22:45	Woah! A great beginning Chris! Firstly the really good stuff - I loved the "quantum cats" (an expression that I've purloined from Robert Hienlin) . By the second Luthor variant, it became clear that we are dealing with at least four possible quantum timelines. In each case, all we know is the Bruce of that timeline has been funding research into String Theory as a method of at least beginning to quantify magic. However that is all we know right now; At least one could be an Earth-2-style 'Owlman' evil Bruce. The characterisation was great in this. You really brought Bruce, Selina and Jason to life. I think that Bruce went slightly overboard in his response to Jason's attempts to protect Selina, but it was understandable. So, what is going on? (highlight the following SPOILER text to read it) It seems, from Ertrigan and Ra's al Ghul's comments, that something Selina did has inadvertantly 'tugged' on a metaphorical string and all of existance is unravelling. At least four realities are about to merge and self-destruct. The question is... what can our heroes do about it? Damn, you write great stories. I can't wait to see where this is going... BenRG's Rating: 8/10 ~~~~ They call me BenRG* But... I don't know why... ~~~*~
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Jaime.gothampm	Re: Cat-Tale 44: String Theory	#2	[url]	[-]
Posts: 489 10/19/05 22:53 Gothamite	Okay, it is an interesting beginning. But why do you do this to me. You left me with literary blue balls. You get me completely into the story then you end it. It's not fair. I do want to commend you on the perfectly logical approach Bruce took with wanting Selina to know what was going on. I understand this post is somewhat abrupt in it's nature, but I haven't let it marrinate in my head yet.
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Unregistered(d)	Re: Cat-Tale 44: String Theory	#3	[url]	[-]
Posts: 0 10/20/05 03:02	This was an interesting beginning. It's good to see Bruce hasn't forgotten about his last experiance with magic since it seems like a lot of comic writers now at days would forget about little details like that and have him under react to the situation. I'm curios to see why there are Luthors in the other worlds while the cat verse world has somebody else being called.
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SilverTabby.gothampm	String Theory	#4	[url]	[-]
Posts: 455 10/20/05 07:07 Daughter of Gotham	Well, it has begun. wonderful intro into the confusion that will be the Really Big Situation (I think that's what I'll call it from now on...) Wonderful writing as always, but, for the reviews before mine, Jaime: literary blue balls? I have never heard or read a phrase like that before and am now laughing my arse off. Eagerly awaitng the next chapter! ST
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ThatSeanGuy	Re: String Theory	#5	[url]	[-]
Posts: 380 10/20/05 13:12 Gothamite	The Luthor thing. Hrm. Perhaps her spin on why Luthor chose the path of a busniessman, and is re-growing his mad scientist? He could have been the greatist mind of his time-varient Luthors have been, free of madness/lonliness/Superman/fangirls. And, maybe, he will be again. But, we've missed the most important question of them all. Is either Laura Luthor bald?
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Unregistered(d)	Re: String Theory	#6	[url]	[-]
Posts: 0 10/20/05 19:46	"Is either Laura Luthor bald?" The answer, my dear, is a closley guarded secret that only Ms. Luthor and her hair stylest and/or wig maker knows for certain. It falls into the catagory of questions you will never get the absolute truth on from a woman which includes, but isn't limited to, her weight and age (if she's approaching or over 30). Between the high quailty of wigs and the vast options of hair dye and extensions available, there is no way to tell the difference just by looking. Especially when you have the money to hire the best and the lawyers on retainer to enforce even the slightest violation of an iron-clad confidentially contract Ms. Luthor would have made them sign. Sadly, I'm afraid it is just going to remain one of those inanswerable questions that may occasionally keep you up at night wondering. "I tend to be something of a rambler. And a gambler. Also, I’m a joker, I’m a smoker and a midnight tok…well, ok, maybe not that last one. They have random testing at my real-life workplace. Buncha Fascists." - Rob Sorenson
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Unregistered(d)	Re: String Theory	#7	[url]	[-]
Posts: 0 10/20/05 23:44	This is an excellent beginning. The foreshadowings about the end of the world signs in the 1st scene were spooky and fun. Using Lewis and Laura to give us non-physicists a tutorial in String Theory was a cool approach. I always like to expand my knowledge. Thanks! Jason is clearly freaked out. You can tell he is very worried by the extent of the "help" he's offering. Ettie's scared too. OK, now that's worrisome! I love the "Bruce is finally getting it" moment at the end where he's able to let Selina take part in the discussions. Obviously she did, too. It's time to clean up the DCU's mess again! Way to go!
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Jarissa Paxton	Re: String Theory	#8	[url]	[-]
Posts: 551 10/21/05 10:00	I note that the first presented omen of foreshadowing was, in fact, Alfred went on vacation! Advice that Bruce absolutely will not follow: "Kyle. Fetch me that 'Oan' creature, the one you refer to as 'Ganthet'. Immediately!" "J'onn, your newshop personality needs to call in sick. Get over here. I want to talk about alien mindsets. Yes, plural." "Lois, is Clark there? No? Good. Listen, I need access to his library, and I need it yesterday. His other library. No, I don't want to take the time to explain it to him yet, because I'd have to put the Boy Scout in a room with a demon again, and -- Lois? Do not record this conversation, because it will not be news." "Barda, meet Jason Blood. Jason, Barda has you outgunned on the 'knows REALLY weird sentients' list. Go ahead, tell her about the most incomprehensible being you've met." Why won't he go with any of these ideas? Because every one of them involves giving into the idea that something could be done better/handled better/solved faster/comprehended more fully by a thinking mind who is not a human being. So how's he going to get around this terribly annoying obstacle? I can't wait to find out! Jarissa knight of the Cat-Tails Discussion Roundtable general all-purpose lurker For Katie
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Chris Dee.gothampm	Re: String Theory	#9	[url]	[-]
Posts: 3929 10/21/05 23:14 Gothamite	*Quote:* Why won't he go with any of these ideas? Because every one of them involves giving into the idea that something could be done better/handled better/solved faster/comprehended more fully by a thinking mind who is not a human being. That's a very good point, and one that never would have occurred to me if someone hadn't spelled it out that way. Bruce and I see eye to eye on that one, actually, albeit for different reasons. I find stories for non-superpowered people are more satisfying if challenges are met with non-superpowered solutions, so it is quite unlikely (but never say never) that you'll ever see a deus ex superpower in a Cat-Tale.
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Deadpan29	Re: String Theory	#10	[url]	[-]
Posts: 283 10/22/05 01:51 Gothamite	If I understood Jarissa's post, she wasn't talking about powers. She was talking about perspective. It's not that these beings have cosmic-level powers, it's that they have a mentality used to dealing with cosmic-level weirdness. On the other hand, I see a possible hole in her statement. Bruce is calling in an expert, someone with knowledge in this area and a mind several standard deviations away from the human average. (At least he is if the lecture of Dr. Leiverman, and the reaction to him, paralleled that of the Luthors.)
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Unregistered(d)	Re: String Theory	#11	[url]	[-]
Posts: 0 10/22/05 05:41	It looks like it's shaping up to be really good. I'm mostly reserving judgement at the moment, seeing as there's not quite enough to draw a conclusion yet. It's a good premise, and I can't wait to see what you do with it.
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Jarissa Paxton	Re: String Theory	#12	[url]	[-]
Posts: 551 10/22/05 10:32	*Quoth Deadpan29:* If I understood Jarissa's post, she wasn't talking about powers. She was talking about perspective. It's not that these beings have cosmic-level powers, it's that they have a mentality used to dealing with cosmic-level weirdness. Well, not exactly. Green Lanterns, even the Earth-native ones, deal with cosmic-level weirdness at least once a week. Guy Gardner is not more equipped to handle great big oddities than Bruce is. Neither are the other five. I really was thinking less of powers, or perspective, and more of biology. Bruce doesn't think that a mind attached to, say, a Rirhait or a Hamalki or what-have-you would be inherently more capable of solving this problem than a human could ever be solely because that mind is attached to a different biology. Perspectives would be different, yes, but alien perspectives can be learned. And any alien perspective will have its own blind spots and incompatibilities just as a human/American/wealthy/dedicated/judgmental-jackass perspective has. So if Bruce rejects the idea that an alien is inherently more capable of solving the problem, he's not going to waste his future time by giving the "Let's not bother Batman with this, he's only human after all, he can't really handle this!" crowd any help. I bet he hated Lovecraft's novels. There's no such thing as knowledge that, by the mere accessing of it, automatically drives a man insane; why, that'd be tantamount to suggesting that sometimes the Batman really SHOULD mind his own business, and that's for his own good! *Quoth Deadpan29:* On the other hand, I see a possible hole in her statement. Bruce is calling in an expert, someone with knowledge in this area and a mind several standard deviations away from the human average. (At least he is if the lecture of Dr. Leiverman, and the reaction to him, paralleled that of the Luthors.) Dr(s). Leiverman is an expert, in fact THE expert, in his field. This means he has (A) vast amounts of specialized knowledge, and (B) skill in the observation, selective combination, and application of that knowledge. Well, not too much the "application" bit, he's not an engineer, but he'll do. Bruce -- himself possessing a mind quite a bit in advance of the curve -- cannot possibly be an expert in EVERYthing. When would he fight crime? He'd be too busy studying. So he's going to use Dr. Leiverman in the same way that he would use Oracle, or Alfred, or J'onn, or Etrigan: as a tool that can both spit out the info that Bruce hasn't taken the time to gather, and work out the details of how to apply whatever solution Bruce determines. Okay, maybe "Bruce and Selina". And it might happen that the solution Bruce worked out was "Dr. Leiverman: Ohs nos! To save the universe, somebody will have to do $_stuff_ !" followed by "Bruce: $_relevant_JLA_member, do $_stuff_part_1_ immediately! I'll explain why when (if!) I have time. Which will be a quarter of never. Which is in less than thirty minutes!" And since Dr. Leiverman is a human expert, answering to Bruce Wayne, that means Bruce is still preserved from having an alien comprehend and solve what he couldn't comprehend and solve. Jarissa knight of the Cat-Tails Discussion Roundtable general all-purpose lurker For Katie
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Catwoman Meow	Re: String Theory	#13	[url]	[-]
Posts: 6454 10/22/05 20:02 Feline Fatale	*Quote:* I really was thinking less of powers, or perspective, and more of biology. Bruce doesn't think that a mind attached to, say, a Rirhait or a Hamalki or what-have-you would be inherently more capable of solving this problem than a human could ever be solely because that mind is attached to a different biology. Absolutely. BEING a Martian, Kryptonian, or Thanagarian doesn't make you better qualified for anything other than breeding more Martians, Kryptonians, or Thanagarians. They are not inherently more capable of anything. That isn't anti-alien prejudice on Bruce's part, it's lack of pro-alien prejudice. Bruce has nothing against aliens, as witnessed by his high esteem for J'onn as a tactician on his own level, and of Clark as a courageous, self-sacrificing, and fundamentally decent hero. Nor did he have any problems turning to J'onn for telepathic assistance with Zatanna. He simply declines to automatically pick them for the starting lineup unless they really are the best choice for the job, both in terms of abilities and the character of the person wielding it. *Quote:* in the same way that he would use Oracle, or Alfred, or J'onn, or Etrigan is starting to sound like the Miller view that Robins are just soldiers to him. Let's get this straight, the Mission is the center of Bruce's life, and if you become a part of it, that is an enormous gesture of respect on his part. Bruce has a genuine affection for Barbara and for Alfred, and a genuine respect for J'onn. He doesn't use the people he cares about and respects, although a few of them have made that charge, knowing full well it was the surest way to hurt him. And he has never once thrown it back in their faces later when they think the better of it.
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Star Ranger4	Re: String Theory	#14	[url]	[-]
Posts: 1384 10/23/05 19:38 Adrift in Space	*Quote:* Quote: in the same way that he would use Oracle, or Alfred, or J'onn, or Etrigan is starting to sound like the Miller view that Robins are just soldiers to him. Let's get this straight, the Mission is the center of Bruce's life, and if you become a part of it, that is an enormous gesture of respect on his part. Bruce has a genuine affection for Barbara and for Alfred, and a genuine respect for J'onn. He doesn't use the people he cares about and respects, although a few of them have made that charge, knowing full well it was the surest way to hurt him. And he has never once thrown it back in their faces later when they think the better of it. I really dont think that is what Jarrisa meant. Not a tool in a Milleresque sense, as in something you use and then use up; but rather in and of making use of the resources one has. Oracle is better at computer science things than Bruce is. Alfred is better at keeping things running so Bruce can concentrate on his mission. You dont ask Oracle to make the tea and you dont expect Alfred to do the deep net.research, so to speak. As I understand it, its more of going with the people who KNOW how to do these things rather than using them then discarding them when no longer needed. Granted, I could see the CT Bruce maybe doing that in relation to certain members of the Leauge due to the fallout from the 'Zatana' incident, but that doesnt mean he intends to use them then cut them loose either. And I at least dont think that was what Jarrisa was trying to imply. Oh, and I rather love Bruce and Jasons 'You got chocolate in my peanut butter' riff at the end. "I was an Otaku before those kids came along and changed the meaning of the word." -- HM "Howling Mad" Wilson to more than one team-mate.
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Jarissa Paxton	Re: String Theory	#15	[url]	[-]
Posts: 551 10/25/05 10:54	Star Ranger4 said: Not a tool in a Milleresque sense, as in something you use and then use up; but rather in and of making use of the resources one has. Exactly. There're three human adults in my household; if I'm stuck on a software-not-behaving issue, I shake up one of my housemates and fire him at the problem, whereas hardware problems beyond my own capacities are tossed (sometimes literally) at the other housemate, and meanwhile if they need a sentence so precise that a professional grammar nazi couldn't pry it apart with dynamite, well, here's me. Not that one could tell it by the above sentence. Anyhow, a wise leader plays to his team's strengths, not just because Sally's going to be better at nailpolish than Vickie on her best day could hope to be, but also because each member of the team works better in the long run if s/he is acknowledged on occasion as the Number One Bestest Person For This Job. That doesn't change the fact, though, that what a team leader must be best at is leading -- which, at its heart, is all a matter of thinking. Bruce is the best thinker he knows, aliens or no aliens, so now it's a matter of getting the right mix of supporting "knowers" and "experimenters" and "poke-it-with-a-big-stick-ers" into harness. Jarissa knight of the Cat-Tails Discussion Roundtable general all-purpose lurker For Katie
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ThatSeanGuy	Re: String Theory	#16	[url]	[-]
Posts: 380 10/26/05 11:30 Gothamite	*Quote:* "Lois, is Clark there? No? Good. Listen, I need access to his library, and I need it yesterday. His other library. No, I don't want to take the time to explain it to him yet, because I'd have to put the Boy Scout in a room with a demon again, and -- Lois? Do not record this conversation, because it will not be news." Finally figured out how to quote. ...I think. Anyway. Slightly off topic, but I can't help but think: "Lois and Bruce team up to rescearch and investigate an ancient Kryptonian mystery that's tied to something that is giving Clark the Space Flu. With his super-hearing stuffed, Clark only half-hears the goings on...and begins to wonder what, exactly, all those late night 'rescearch sessions' are really all about." It could be a neat way to show just how having super-senses can screw up your normal life...and I'm a hack.
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Star Ranger4	Re: String Theory	#17	[url]	[-]
Posts: 1384 10/26/05 17:44 Adrift in Space	SNARF Owwie.... Chalks up another Monitor splatter to Sean "I was an Otaku before those kids came along and changed the meaning of the word." -- HM "Howling Mad" Wilson to more than one team-mate.
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Starfire.gothampm	Re: Cat-Tale 44: String Theory	#18	[url]	[-]
Posts: 105 10/30/05 09:13 Gothamite	...going...through...withdrawl... ^_^;
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Chris Dee.gothampm	Re: Cat-Tale 44: String Theory	#19	[url]	[-]
Posts: 3929 10/30/05 18:59 Gothamite	Well the good news is the next chapter will be longer than normal to make up for the extra wait. The bad news is I don't have a hard ETA yet. But soon.
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RasAlGhul275	Re: Cat-Tale 44: String Theory	#20	[url]	[-]
Posts: 608 11/02/05 15:50 The Cadaver	In my experience, if she's taking longer than usual to publish a chapter, it's more than worth the wait.
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Cat-Tale 44: String Theory

Cat-Tale 44: String Theory