Re: Chapter Six - The Iron Mosk

In the last chapter, Kennedy caught a glimpse of Director Sainne, the man who blinded him in his dreams. Or is he? There is some contention around that point. Though not immediately. I like how when Kennedy first confronts David in this chapter, the latter simply listens and takes in what Kennedy’s saying. He notes it down, and then moves on.

Which leads us to the various gadgets which will be crucial throughout this book and the rest of the series. And all of them run off the time gauge and the arena. Considering that I’ve had ideas for this book and this series for years and years and years at this point, the arena is a relatively recent addition. I only added it in when I sat down to seriously write Ascension at Aechyr back in 2020. The addition really added a lot to the book, particularly by making the fight scenes unique to this series. It also allowed me to have characters really get into peril without having too many physical consequences. Mental consequences, on the other hand…

The gauge gun also helped me deal with a particularly thorny topic. Given that Time Peace and Anarakia are at war, at some point my characters may need to take the lives of others. But I didn’t want this to be too common, nor have them be too eager to do so. Having a readily available effective non-lethal option really helped with that. Of course, it comes with a significant limitation, as does crystal ray. And the latter actually helped me solve a major writing conundrum down the line. But that’s for another post.

While its only a minor part of this chapter, an important part for me is the time lapse in which Kennedy and Blake learn a variety of useful skills. As important as it was to me to show them learning, there’s simply too much they need to learn to show everything. So leaving some room where they could feasibly have developed additional skills they’ll need as Deltas was very important.

Of course, this leads into the fight with David. Interestingly, David and Randy step on each other’s toes here. Usually they’re an effective, if unorthodox team. But Randy interrupts David’s attempt to defuse the situation, and David returns the favor when it seems Randy might actually connect with Kennedy after the ATV duel. Speaking of which, note that Kennedy is pretty quick to find an interesting use for the arena. This isn’t just an excuse for me to create an interesting and unique scenario (though it’s that, too) – it’s showing us an affinity that he has, which will become very important going forward. Naturally thinking in terms of the arena is a very useful trait for a Delta agent, after all.

The last major scene is of course Kennedy’s outing with Scarlett. Here’s the first time we really get a look at how the two interact with their guards down. There’s a repeat of a theme hinted at with Scarlett. As her drawings suggested, she is interested in symbols and the meanings people invest into them. She is also very supportive, but she’s not magic—she doesn’t have all the answers. Interesting, when she falls silent because of this, Kennedy actually jumps in and lightens the mood. While normally he’s socially inept, as he himself notes, some of the better aspects of his character emerge here.

Lastly, we learn a little more about Aechrian mythology in this chapter. There is a contrast between the bright and sunny side we see at the Academy and a spookier undercurrent that seems to run through their society, particularly with their monster obsession. And speaking of their monsters, did anyone notice anything special about the four named creatures who got masks? Each one seemed associated with a particular animal, and those animals sound vaguely familiar… Perhaps there is an association being drawn somewhere in there. See if you can notice it.

But that’s all for this time around! Next time, we will see the real Iterant Point. But will Kennedy finally get his answers? Only one way to find out!

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