Girl Genius XXIX: A giant corkboard of continuity madness

[Fyraltari]

I think Zeetha just found a map with Skifander's location plainly visible.

[Ellen]

Thinking about queens--

Up till now, it seemed like there wasn't a good answer to living in a world of sparks. You have temporary islands of stability and a lot of chaos.

But, queens change the equation. Yes, there are issues with Albia. There are also legitimate questions how a sole survivor of a phenotype existing in isolation in a state of threat represents the type's norm.

But, what if, however sparks came to be (evolution, mad science, aliens dropping monoliths off on random planets for laughs), queens were supposed to be part of the system? Lucretia has been eliminating the stabilizing element?

I don't want Agatha to have to become an immortal who rules over lesser beings to have a stable Europa (especially because she's going to outlive Gil and Tarvek and Zeetha and most of her other friends who aren't Jaegers). But, maybe there's an alternative or better balance. Even if not, if bad for Agatha can still equal good for Europa--no more towns getting wiped out by mad sparks and no wastelands ravaged by monsters--I'm for it.

[Traab]

Thinking about queens--

Up till now, it seemed like there wasn't a good answer to living in a world of sparks. You have temporary islands of stability and a lot of chaos.

But, queens change the equation. Yes, there are issues with Albia. There are also legitimate questions how a sole survivor of a phenotype existing in isolation in a state of threat represents the type's norm.

But, what if, however sparks came to be (evolution, mad science, aliens dropping monoliths off on random planets for laughs), queens were supposed to be part of the system? Lucretia has been eliminating the stabilizing element?

I don't want Agatha to have to become an immortal who rules over lesser beings to have a stable Europa (especially because she's going to outlive Gil and Tarvek and Zeetha and most of her other friends who aren't Jaegers). But, maybe there's an alternative or better balance. Even if not, if bad for Agatha can still equal good for Europa--no more towns getting wiped out by mad sparks and no wastelands ravaged by monsters--I'm for it.

Im not sure it means they were supposed to exist, but it may be more, they are what makes it possible for stability to exist. They are strong enough to protect what they claim, and over time, your insanity becomes the new normal. Nobody in england has any issue with her taking over at will. The same way nobody in paris ever questioned the master and his control over the city itself. or the way mechanicsburg became an entire town of minions, because their culture adapted over time for the reliable nature of their ruler. Only one of whom was a queen. And one of whom was a succession of heirs who were basically the same as their predecessors in the broad strokes, if not specifics, maintaining the nation of minions to serve the masters.

That said, your supposition reminded me of a book series, The Black Jewels Trilogy. By Anne Bishop. Its a super dark fantasy series, but the general setup is, just about everyone is magical to some extent. Your power determined by the jewel you wear with black being the strongest, white the weakest. The part that gets interesting is, men and women both can basically be born with certain characteristics that make them a queen, a priestess, a warlord, or a warlord prince. Each area needs a queen to lead it over the long term. The place doesnt fall apart right away if they lack one, but problems arise. These are basically personalities and some inborn gifts and they are all needed, but at the top they NEED a queen. Some bad guys basically are taking out all the queens, leaving the priestesses in charge, and that is throwing the whole system out of whack and causing all sorts of terrible things to happen. Lots of chaos, death, torment, etc. Anyways, I wont go too much further into detail but the general gist is yeah, the world needs all those people working together for stability. No queens, no stability.

[geoduck]

I'm wondering if this area is related to the Witch Queen Lozz, or Queen Sianna (both mentioned by the the early memory they talked to at the Queen's Henge). Or perhaps this is where Albia originally came from, and this is an old library of hers. The fact that there are so many areas devoted to different cultures, and we know that the mirrors need to be attuned to their destinations, it seems too convenient all these cultures are represented somewhere near where a mirror is found.

No. This whole setup is from the society which existed long before the Queens came along, the ones who originally constructed the Mirrors. Interesting to learn that Skifander existed in some form at that time, which presumably means that the place was around/settled before Queen Luheia somehow came to be its ruler.

[TeChameleon]

... huh.

Y'know, it occurs to me that the very fact that Zeetha isn't cheerfully perving on Gil while he's naked is a pretty strong argument for her already knowing they're related, given that she's never shown the slightest hesitation before or after to enjoying a nice bit of man-candy when it presents itself.

[Shining Wrath]

... huh.

Y'know, it occurs to me that the very fact that Zeetha isn't cheerfully perving on Gil while he's naked is a pretty strong argument for her already knowing they're related, given that she's never shown the slightest hesitation before or after to enjoying a nice bit of man-candy when it presents itself.

Yeah, Zeetha does like ogling (but perhaps not ogling Oggie). You do have a point. Maybe Gil has a birthmark similar to one she has, or some such.

[Willie the Duck]

In no way do I disagree, however I also think the 'loves trashy romance novels' schtick is a separate subset of this trait. Agatha has also been known to enjoy the mancandy, but tends not to be as into the novella equivalent.

Yeah, Zeetha does like ogling (but perhaps not ogling Oggie). You do have a point. Maybe Gil has a birthmark similar to one she has, or some such.

It does seem like she knew ahead of time (before he woke up at Mama Gkika's) not to be attracted, so maybe she didn't just figure it out when he said someone like her might try to kill him? Birthmark seems a little too straightforward for the Foglios, but maybe...

[geoduck]

Zeetha should have figured out what the deal is, but as I may have said before, I suspect she hasn't, and she hasn't perved on Gil simply because there's no attraction. And there's no attraction because when The Reveal finally comes, her having done that would be retroactively creepy. (See all the Luke/Leia incest jokes from Star Wars.)

[Willie the Duck]

Zeetha should have figured out what the deal is, but as I may have said before, I suspect she hasn't, and she hasn't perved on Gil simply because there's no attraction. And there's no attraction because when The Reveal finally comes, her having done that would be retroactively creepy. (See all the Luke/Leia incest jokes from Star Wars.)

That's a good point. Plus of course by then she knew he and Agatha had a 'will they or won't they'-thing going on.

Honestly, I can't tell if she knows. I wouldn't be surprised if the end result goes either way (either 'I knew it!' or 'huh?!).

[Fyraltari]

That's a good point. Plus of course by then she knew he and Agatha had a 'will they or won't they'-thing going on.

Honestly, I can't tell if she knows. I wouldn't be surprised if the end result goes either way (either 'I knew it!' or 'huh?!).

Wasn't there a scene where Gil told her about a meditation technique or some such his father taught him that sounded suspiciously like a technique from Skifander and she was all like "Reeeaaaally?"

[Willie the Duck]

Wasn't there a scene where Gil told her about a meditation technique or some such his father taught him that sounded suspiciously like a technique from Skifander and she was all like "Reeeaaaally?"

There are like 5 million different reasons why she should at least realize that Gil/the Baron have a Skifander connection. Maybe even that the Baron is Chump. Whether that translates into realizing they are siblings, I don't know. Sillier things than her just not catching on have happened in this comic, and even 'the sane ones' really aren't all completely with it.

[Manga Shoggoth]

Wasn't there a scene where Gil told her about a meditation technique or some such his father taught him that sounded suspiciously like a technique from Skifander and she was all like "Reeeaaaally?"

Yes, indeed. Complete with the emphasis in panel 4 and the smirk in panel 5.

By the look of the scene (panels 4, 5 and 5) she is actively avoiding admitting anything as well - at least, when Gil starts digging in that direction she rapidly changes the subject.

[Shining Wrath]

I'm now leaning toward Zeetha actually knows but isn't saying. Either because she doesn't want to kill Gil, or because she knows that she's equally killable - after all, if twins are bad luck, does that mean that you kill the male? Or the older / younger?

[Fyraltari]

Yes, indeed. Complete with the emphasis in panel 4 and the smirk in panel 5.

By the look of the scene (panels 4, 5 and 5) she is actively avoiding admitting anything as well - at least, when Gil starts digging in that direction she rapidly changes the subject.

Ah, that'd be it thanks.

I'm now leaning toward Zeetha actually knows but isn't saying. Either because she doesn't want to kill Gil, or because she knows that she's equally killable - after all, if twins are bad luck, does that mean that you kill the male? Or the older / younger?

To me it's less "Zeetha knows" and more "Zeetha strongly suspects". It's not like she has any actual evidence.

Also, she probably loves the idea of being Agatha's sister-in-law.

[MDR]

I'm now leaning toward Zeetha actually knows but isn't saying. Either because she doesn't want to kill Gil, or because she knows that she's equally killable - after all, if twins are bad luck, does that mean that you kill the male? Or the older / younger?

I also believe it is fully possible that Gil has worked things out as well. One of the reasons we had that amusing scene with Gil and Higgs when Higgs was telling Agatha about his history was to show that Gil is very good at working things out, connecting the dots, and hiding that information very well.
He knows his father used to Adventure, I believe he knows about his father using the mirror and showing up with him as a baby (?), and he should know about his father being familiar with Zeetha's homeland by now. (actually, another point to show that Zeetha knows is she has not grilled Gil on how his father knew her language, has she?)
The only problem I see with this is that I do not see him keeping it a secret for this long, especially after everything that has happened with his father and Empire. He would have pulled a Luke/Leia discussion to confide in her at some point I think.

But if it did come down to a fight between the two for whatever reason, I think that Gil is capable of taking out Zeetha. While I believe she is more skilled, it has been shown multiple times that he is also very skilled, and has strength enough to take down Jagers, can take a lot of damage, and had endurance. If she attacked him, she might not win. They are at the least evenly matched, and I would not be surprised if he won in a fight.

Actually, since it has been pointed out that Klaus has obviously used his knowledge of Jagers on his son for whatever reasons, its possible that taking the version of the jagerdraught that saved her life may have evened the playing field physically between the two. If so, any fight between the two would come down to his smarts versus her skills. It would depend on the actual long term affects of the drink has on her.

[MDR]

Ah, that'd be it thanks.

To me it's less "Zeetha knows" and more "Zeetha strongly suspects". It's not like she has any actual evidence.

Also, she probably loves the idea of being Agatha's sister-in-law.

Yup! Plus he would be her only family she has right now :)

[Traab]

So todays comic. Seriously zeetha? Just gonna grab a mysterious floating object that even you admit is powerful? Hasnt anybody watched indianna jones in this universe?

[Fyraltari]

Alright, Zeetha, but what does it do?

So todays comic. Seriously zeetha? Just gonna grab a mysterious floating object that even you admit is powerful? Hasnt anybody watched indianna jones in this universe?

Mummies standing up in three... two... one...

[Vinyadan]

It does seem like she knew ahead of time (before he woke up at Mama Gkika's) not to be attracted, so maybe she didn't just figure it out when he said someone like her might try to kill him? Birthmark seems a little too straightforward for the Foglios, but maybe...

In theory, when she spoke to the Baron outside Sturmhalten, the Baron could have started out with "Stop right there you Skifandrian woman! You clearly are here to kill my son, whose mother was the then-current Queen of Skyfander, and whose twin sister was a green-haired bun when I left twenty years ago! Well, you'd better yeld now, because even my sword, a true Skifandrian artefact, is making angry faces! The sword that is known in all of Skifander as the mark of yours truly, and you can see right here in my hand!"

[Shining Wrath]

Let us connect a few dots here.
Sparkiness runs in families.
Gil and Klaus are two of the most powerful Sparks known.
Zeetha, sister of Gil and daughter of Chump, just grabbed an incredibly powerful floating rock with her bare hand. The mate is sitting on her mother's throne, so presumably not dangerous to just be near, but this one is floating, which suggests some sort of Sparky tech is operational.

Is it time for Zeetha to break through and become a powerful Spark?

Agree that this is the cue for the mummies to do that voodoo that they do. OTOH, this may be the time that "I am Zeetha, Princess of Skifander, I am entitled to this stone by right of rule" will actually work.

[DaFlipp]

So todays comic. Seriously zeetha? Just gonna grab a mysterious floating object that even you admit is powerful? Hasnt anybody watched indianna jones in this universe?

To be fair, Zeetha probably operates under a clear assumption of "I can punch and/or stab any problem that manifests from my actions until it stops being a problem" unless directly proven otherwise (at which point, to her credit, she adjusts her thinking accordingly - she's confident but not at foolish).

Also, regarding speculation about her reaction to Gil's "someone who looks like you was sent to kill me," am I the only one who never read that as "Zeetha knows something she's not telling us" and instead as "Zeetha has no earthly idea why that would be, but is now *fascinated* as to why rumors about her killing the Emperor's son have started up", with notes of "Ooooh I'm infamous enough to have regicidal rumors about me? Sweet!" thrown in for good measure.

[theangelJean]

Let us connect a few dots here.
Sparkiness runs in families.
Gil and Klaus are two of the most powerful Sparks known.
Zeetha, sister of Gil and daughter of Chump, just grabbed an incredibly powerful floating rock with her bare hand. The mate is sitting on her mother's throne, so presumably not dangerous to just be near, but this one is floating, which suggests some sort of Sparky tech is operational.

Is it time for Zeetha to break through and become a powerful Spark?

Agree that this is the cue for the mummies to do that voodoo that they do. OTOH, this may be the time that "I am Zeetha, Princess of Skifander, I am entitled to this stone by right of rule" will actually work.

I'm thinking this might be one of the power sources Lucrezia was mocking Albia about. Not sure exactly how it fits in with the mirrors and the Queens, maybe Albia took an artifact from each region of the world, made the mirrors and taught the other Queens how to use them, and then sealed the knowledge even from herself so that nobody would realise that she had them?

[Scarlet Knight]

To be fair, Zeetha probably operates under a clear assumption of "I can punch and/or stab any problem that manifests from my actions until it stops being a problem" unless directly proven otherwise (at which point, to her credit, she adjusts her thinking accordingly - she's confident but not at foolish).

Her time with Mr. Higgs should have taught Zeetha the foolishness of that thinking. Also, she just uttered the words: "Sacred Guardians."

[MDR]

Agree that this is the cue for the mummies to do that voodoo that they do. OTOH, this may be the time that "I am Zeetha, Princess of Skifander, I am entitled to this stone by right of rule" will actually work.

For some reason I suddenly got a mental image of the sacred guardians doting on her and kind of acting like old grannies towards her.

Also, regarding speculation about her reaction to Gil's "someone who looks like you was sent to kill me," am I the only one who never read that as "Zeetha knows something she's not telling us" and instead as "Zeetha has no earthly idea why that would be, but is now *fascinated* as to why rumors about her killing the Emperor's son have started up", with notes of "Ooooh I'm infamous enough to have regicidal rumors about me? Sweet!" thrown in for good measure.

I think a lot of people thought that at the time, as there was not much information about the possibility of them being brother/sister. Over the years and apparently a couple of books, people have started putting things together and looking back at the groundwork that was laid out long ago.
Who knows, perhaps all the speculation is wrong and that is actually the way it is :)

I'm thinking this might be one of the power sources Lucrezia was mocking Albia about. Not sure exactly how it fits in with the mirrors and the Queens, maybe Albia took an artifact from each region of the world, made the mirrors and taught the other Queens how to use them, and then sealed the knowledge even from herself so that nobody would realise that she had them?

I'll have to reread the Henge part of the story, but didn't the ancient Albia say that it was the other Queens that taught her how to use them? The Witch Queen Lozz was using them to scare people to secure her power, but Albia pulled an end-run and met the Queens and defeated Lozz. I *think* that is what happened, I only glanced through that section the other day and didn't really read everything.

[Willie the Duck]

In theory, when she spoke to the Baron outside Sturmhalten, the Baron could have started out with "Stop right there you Skifandrian woman! You clearly are here to kill my son, whose mother was the then-current Queen of Skyfander, and whose twin sister was a green-haired bun when I left twenty years ago! Well, you'd better yeld now, because even my sword, a true Skifandrian artefact, is making angry faces! The sword that is known in all of Skifander as the mark of yours truly, and you can see right here in my hand!"

Despite characters in fiction loving to make clear that they know something (even when doing so does nothing for them but gives their opponents valuable information), I think the Baron would keep his cards close to his chest there. Even if he can imagine no reason for Zeetha to be there except to kill Gil, letting her know that doesn't help him in any way.

Sparkiness runs in families.
Gil and Klaus are two of the most powerful Sparks known.
Zeetha, sister of Gil and daughter of Chump, just grabbed an incredibly powerful floating rock with her bare hand. The mate is sitting on her mother's throne, so presumably not dangerous to just be near, but this one is floating, which suggests some sort of Sparky tech is operational.

Is it time for Zeetha to break through and become a powerful Spark?

Oh, uh, no please. Zeetha is a wonderfully well-developed character in her own right, making her the (let's say) 7th most powerful spark in the primary plot and having that sub-plot fight for prominence in her allotment of the page count would make her less interesting, in my book.

[lord_khaine]

I cant really see how Zeetha could not have figured out her connection to Gil.
All the pieces are fairly obvious, and available to her.

She should know her father vanished back into the known world.
And for that matter her cultures view on twins.
Surprise! the Baron recognise her as Skifandrian, and speak the language.
(he is the right age, and a great warrior)
He warns his son (Gil) about her wanting to kill him (Gil again).
Its common knowledge/speculation that Gil's mother is unknown.
Bonus surprise. Gil learned a secret meditation technique from a father, that has simular effect to a Skifandrian one (weakest bit of evidence).

[MDR]

BTW, has there been any speculation about the skeleton on this page?

https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/com...2#.YUs72vlKj5U

It has a crown and floating things around its head, which have thus far been standard on Queens I think.



Also, it really bothers me that Agatha does not call Judy and Punch, 'mom' and 'dad'. Been meaning to mention that for years, but never got around to it. Glad I got that off my chest. :)


Idle Note : I started looking at the wall and the images that are on them. There are a lot of images of the Mirrors. Some with people in them, at least one where it looks like three people are holding one open, and one or two I think show it closed. We also see, in the upper left hand corner, a large head that is unhappy with some sort of triangle on its forehead, and next to it, perhaps facing against it, it a large clank (?) with people supporting or build it. On the right hand side we see water, and the images of the mirror seem to show more normal sized people using it? Perhaps it is saying that the mirror was a way of traveling, but one day a big person came through and they fought back? There also does seem to be a number of four-armed people as well....well that or helicopter people.

Also Idle Note : It may be nothing, but the Mirror being used by the villians looks a lot like the mirror seen here
https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/com...0#.YUtT3PlKj5U
with the woman figures holding up the sides. I wonder if there is a connection.

[Shining Wrath]

Despite characters in fiction loving to make clear that they know something (even when doing so does nothing for them but gives their opponents valuable information), I think the Baron would keep his cards close to his chest there. Even if he can imagine no reason for Zeetha to be there except to kill Gil, letting her know that doesn't help him in any way.


Oh, uh, no please. Zeetha is a wonderfully well-developed character in her own right, making her the (let's say) 7th most powerful spark in the primary plot and having that sub-plot fight for prominence in her allotment of the page count would make her less interesting, in my book.

Zeetha would become a Warrior Princess + Jagerdraught recipient + powerful Spark; that is one lethal combination. I'm sure all the Jagers can fight nearly as well as she can - centuries of experience can make up for a lot of training. So yeah, maybe overkill.

[MDR]

Zeetha would become a Warrior Princess + Jagerdraught recipient + powerful Spark; that is one lethal combination. I'm sure all the Jagers can fight nearly as well as she can - centuries of experience can make up for a lot of training. So yeah, maybe overkill.

I just don't see it happening. She has expressed zero interest in how things work or are made. She seems interested in Higgs and Agatha, and then fighting, and then cake.

[Shining Wrath]

I just don't see it happening. She has expressed zero interest in how things work or are made. She seems interested in Higgs and Agatha, and then fighting, and then cake.

Do you have to want to be a Spark to break through?