Erfworld Thread VII: No Consensus, Left Unsealed

[Calemyr]

I love this one. I really do. There's something beautiful about the Don's reaction. He believed he had Stanley over a barrel, that everything was going his way. That is no longer the case.

First off, Stanley is not panicking. He's got a brand new army of psychotic rock warriors who make the old Knights in Stanley's Service look like a knitting circle - an army that is more or less custom designed to shut down his primary enemy, with a demeanor that suits him perfectly. He's traded up on the archon business, losing a mid-level one in favor of a level 10 elite. He's got a rifle and a dollamancer himself, but also a rockstar dirtamancer. And, above all, he's looked certain defeat in the eye twice now and defeat blinked each time. Wanda may be on death row, Parson and co may be hostages, but they're not dead. All else can be mended. All else will be mended. Look into eyes that can see from that perspective and you will understand why even defeat blinks.

Second, he didn't even care about the price. 2 mil was supposed to be a crippling, humiliating sum, and the maniacal midget didn't even blink. He was more angry about the runaround than the sting! How badly did Ben misread his finances? What don't they know?

Third, he didn't even care about the price! What could Parson actually be worth for even an absurdly wealth side to pay his ransom without blinking? Are they really talking about selling a nuke back to an enemy side? On the other hand, can they afford not to?

Fourth, he didn't even care about the price! He should have been frothing mad! His dialogue should have had more boops than a 1930's cartoon compilation! Or he should have been diplomatic, at least. Maybe a little bit of groveling to bring the price down. Instead, he just gives an off-hand dismissal directly targeting the royalty, once again attacking the very topic that has made the GK a pariah side. Stanley isn't groveling, but neither is he standing on the battlements screaming down his desperate defiance. Instead, he just shrugs it off as being typical royal jackassery, as if being a king was being tantamount to being a two-year-old wanting a toy.

Stanley is not on the ropes, even now, and that thought is flat out terrifying to the Don.