Notes and Errata of Mark of the Asphodel

 Day-um, fe_contest .

I mean, there was a bunch of good stuff this time.  There was good stuff last time, too, but it just keeps getting better.  This is really cool.  As samuraiter  said over on his journal, the community-support aspect of this is really great.  I wouldn't have finished my story for months if myaru  hadn't egged me on, some of us turned up the pressure on myaru  to get hers out, and shimizu_hitomi joined the fray after seeing what the rest of us were doing.

Oh, yeah-- FOUR Archanea-verse entries.  Sa-weet!

Anyway, now that Michalis has been laid to rest (for now), it's back to the WIP-pile.  "Another Piece of Blue" is inching closer to completion, and I've finished a little thing called "A Dark Adapted-Eye" that chronicles one of the misadventures of the Free Knights.  [That's the post-war team of George, Astram, Midia, Gordin, and Castor, who are doing the Super Friends thing in the city of Pales].  Dunno when I'll post it, though.  For one, it covers some of the same ground as Chapter Five of "Another Piece of Blue" wrt street gossip, rumors, political dissidents, and other NICE topics.  Is it more fun to see this stuff from Cain's lofty perspective in the corridors of power, or Castor's cynical perspective from the gutter?  I can't really say.  They certainly have 180-degree reactions to what they see/hear, plus Castor has the rest of his gang to serve as a foil, whereas Cain keeps going off to angst alone as the shoes drop around him.       

Anyway, the Free Knights are a fun bunch.  I've said this before, but they are so totally the stereotypical superhero team.  George is the smart and cool one, Astram is the guy who looks like a leader but is less clever than his buddies, Gordin is the upright and honest one, Castor is the sneaky and underhanded one, and Midia is The Chick.  Throw in a little romantic tension with Astram/Midia and Gordin->George and you're in business.  Why the hell do fans find characters like Navarre so irresistible, again?  Brooding loners are BORING.  They brood!  They're alone!  What's the point?

[If you're gonna write Navarre, at least give him Fina to interact with.]

OK.  I need to finish making dinner.