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Joined: May 2003
Posts: 515
Columnist
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OP
Columnist
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 515 |
Thanks for your patience, everyone. And thanks for reading and commenting.
Rac
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Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 605
Columnist
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Columnist
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 605 |
Hi Rac, It's good to see another part of this epic fic on the MBs.  This was a fairly quiet part, but I'm thinking the calm before the storm. I just hope the tempest doesn't halt Clark from coming home to Lois for too long. I loved Ultrawoman's speech to the gathering in Oslo and that she accepted the Peace Prize on behalf of all the real heroes. It's just sad that Lois doesn't see herself as a hero too... and not because of the super powers, but because she still gets pissed off!  The scenes between Enza and her family were very touching, and I hope that Lok Sim and Ching discover the coming treachery before too much damage is done. I just knew Rae-Et had to make more trouble. Looking forward to seeing where you take us next. Yours Jenni
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Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,147 Likes: 3
Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,147 Likes: 3 |
This was, indeed, a quiet part from the perspective of armed conflict and war, but it sets up some pretty explosive possibilities. As Jenni mentioned, Rae Et's plans aren't going to be pretty when they come to fruitition, and that puts a whole lot of characters in the crosshairs (like Lok Sim, Enza, and Ching).
And Talan's decision to be present when Kal-El testifies speaks volumes. She still loves him with all her heart, a love that is made more intense and painful and dangerous by all her years of denying any emotional entanglements at all. Yet her personal integrity and sense of duty won't let her interefere in either Clark's life or his marriage. If Talan ever meets Lois, Lois would know, but she'd also know that Clark didn't even suspect the depth of Talan's feelings. (We guys can be a little dense that way.)
Lois's award ceremony went off as I expected. She accepted the prize (and I assume that she donated the money to Kinwara relief), yet insulted those gathered there to "congratulate" her on her achievement. I'm also pleased that she ended her speech on a positive, hopeful note, one which looks towards the future and not to recriminations of past wrongs.
The scenes with Lok Sim and Enza were so sweet that it makes me afraid that something bad's going to happen. You wouldn't let these two get together and then whack one of them after such a short honeymoon, would you? They both need to live! They need to be an example for other NKers to follow. They need to raise their own children. Thia needs a little sibling to look after, don't you think?
And it looks like Clark is physically recovered. If Ching is no longer a challenging opponent for him, and it takes Lok Sim to push Clark into improvement, then his body is fine (except for a few scars, of course). And it appears that he's managed to find the courage to face the worst thing that ever happened to him. Talan was right when she told him that courage was facing the thing or things we most want to forget. I'm glad she's found a role for herself that supports Clark but doesn't threaten him personally.
Great job! It's a huge story, but you needed a canvas this large to paint such a beautiful and poignant picture of the roads they walked alone. It's almost a shame that it's nearing the end.
What? It's not nearing the end? You have some more incredible challenges for our favorite couple? Sheesh! I just hope Clark gets home before Jon has grandchildren.
Life isn't a support system for writing. It's the other way around.
- Stephen King, from On Writing
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Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 144
Hack from Nowheresville
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Hack from Nowheresville
Joined: Aug 2006
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Yeah, another part! Loved this part, Rac. My favorite was: "That is precisely what I admire most about you. Your greatest superpower is your ability to remain pissed off." Loved it! ROTFLOL!! Jo
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Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,846
Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,846 |
Hi, Great part!  It have to be the night before the trial or the moment they are taking him out to court. "This is a great honor, but I'm afraid I cannot accept it. At least not on my own behalf. This prize was established to recognize those who have contributed the most to the advancement of the cause of peace in our world. I am humbled and honored to have been chosen as this year's recipient, but in truth, there are many people more deserving than I who should be recognized with this award. I am thankful that this award will bring more attention to the situation in Kinwara, and the crimes committed there, as well as the tireless and courageous efforts of relief workers still struggling to provide security and assistance to the people of that country. . . Beautiful speech! 
Maria D. Ferdez.
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Don't like Luthor, unfinished, untitled and crossover story, and people that promises and don't deliver. I'm getting choosy with age.
MAF
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Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,797
Nobel Peace Prize Winner
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Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Joined: Aug 2005
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Rac, I absolutely don't have time to comment, but I'll do it anyway - for a little while.... I'm very sorry to quote all of this, but I think it is amazingly good, and it's my hands-down favorite part of a very good chapter: "Feeling any better about the Peace Prize?"
"No," she replied honestly.
Dalton smiled and chuckled to himself. "That," he said, holding up one finger. "That is precisely what I admire most about you. Your greatest superpower is your ability to remain pissed off."
"Dalton, didn't anyone ever tell you that Canadians were supposed to be nice, polite, and likeable?" she groused.
He leaned forward, his glass held between both hands. "The first time this job forced me to compromise my ethics for a worthy cause, it made me sick. Literally sick. I ran off to the little diplomats' room and promptly lost my lunch, ruining the tie my wife had given me for our first anniversary. I loved that tie." He gestured with his glass, as though to emphasize the point. She smiled in response.
"The second time I was asked to do the same thing—give up my idealism in order to get the result we needed—I felt nauseated, but I told myself it would pass, and eventually, it did. Third time, I experienced the briefest twinge of regret, and barely noticed it. Now, it doesn't even register. But every time we ask you to make one of our devil's bargains, you blow your top, yell at us, and remind us just how despicable it all is. The rest of us will barter away our integrity for the slightest advantage, because that's all its worth. You won't. The game still pisses you off. You won't play it unless you have no other choice. And that makes you a hell of a lot better than the rest of us." I love the description of how Dalton was literally sick the first time he had to compromise - or even betray - his ideals. He felt so bad that he even ruined his wedding anniversary tie - Rac, what an image!!! The second time he had to do something that went against his personal morality, he just felt a bit nauseated, but he didn't throw up. Now he doesn't feel physically affected at all - and even not too psychologically affected? I love, love, love how Dalton admires Lois's ability to still get pissed off, as he puts it. It's a wonderful image, a wonderful description of the hardening cynicism of an idealist, a redemption of the same cynical idealist in that he recognizes the fresh anger in someone else, an anger he wishes he himself still possessed, and it's a wonderful tribute to Lois. (I'm not implying that Dalton is really a cynic, just that he isn't the hopeful idealist that he once was.) I loved Lois's speech during the Nobel Prize ceremony, too. I love how she dedicated the prize to others whom she found more deserving than herself. I got almost teary-eyed at the way she dedicated the prize to Dr. Ingrid Heller and to Faria Kalidiatou. Imagine having lost what Faria Kalidiatou has lost, and still have the courage, hope and strength to devote her life to helping victims of the war that are younger, more vulnerable and more helpless than herself. I love the fact that Lok Sim realizes that something odd and worrying is happening, and I hope he will keep sniffing out the faint trail of evil. I love his new family and the way Thia, Enza and Lok Sim belong to each other. I still worry that something might happen to one of them. I loved how Clark spoke to the globe and his dead Kryptonian family. I just hope he can return home soon to his living Earth family. And at the end of this chapter, Clark and Talan are together again. And again I feel as if something unfortunate might be about to happen between these two. Beautiful as always, Rac. Ann
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Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,302
Top Banana
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Top Banana
Joined: Sep 2004
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Still reading, Rac. This seems like a bit of a bridging section - you're setting us up for something dramatic, I think. It was elegant, but understated. Canadians, after all, would be the last people on Earth to have a bombastic looking embassy. lol Ultrawoman continues to dominate Lois's life, and we're seeing less of the woman beneath the disguise. Is that deliberate, Rac - are you showing us that Lois is truly lost? Ann wrote: And at the end of this chapter, Clark and Talan are together again. And again I feel as if something unfortunate might be about to happen between these two. I'm not sensing that; after the last couple of sections, I've become convinced again that Clark is deeply in love with Lois and has no thoughts of betraying her. Nor do I think that Talan will throw herself at him so to speak Instead, building on the previous section, I'm wondering if it's Talan who's about to act. Clark doubted she would admit that she'd come halfway across the planet just to provide moral support to a friend. I'm guessing Clark isn't completely reading Talan's motivation here - I'm wondering if she has something more in mind, something altogether different... c.
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Joined: May 2003
Posts: 515
Columnist
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OP
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Joined: May 2003
Posts: 515 |
Hey everyone, thanks for reading and commenting. Jenni, thanks for the feedback. I know this was a pretty quiet section, but you're right that Rae Et is plotting something very nasty. Hi Terry, you're right that Talan's actions speak volumes, even if Clark isn't really picking up on any of it. And I know I've succeeded in becoming a really evil author when every nice thing I allow to happen to the characters just leads to fear and trepidation of what I'm planning to do to them.  Jo, thanks for reading and commenting. I liked that line, too. Dalton can be a lot of fun to write. Maria, thanks for your comments. I'm really glad that you liked Ultrawoman's speech. Hi, Ann. Thanks for taking the time to comment, even though I know you're busy. I'm glad you enjoyed Ultawoman's conversation with Dalton. He has the heart of an idealist, but life has made him a bit of a cynic. As he said, his job has caused him to make a lot of compromises and deals that went against his beliefs, but at heart, he still admires and respects those who stick by their beliefs. Hi Carol. I'm glad that you, as a Canadian, enjoyed this. Is Lois lost? I think that, to paraphrase Clark, she might be losing herself to the woman in the colorful suit, but I'm not counting her out just yet. It's up to her to find her way back. I agree, that in recent sections, we've seen Clark remembering who he is and how, a big part of that is his love for Lois. As Terry mentioned, Clark is a bit dense, but what exactly is Talan's motivation? In the next few parts, I think that will become clear.
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