Chapter 3 ABD Commentary pt 1

[4leavesonaclover]

Original Sporking found here, Daily Palestine and other causes Click here

Current Rotation: Yoona, Irene, Subaki, Benny, Kaze

Irene: Well, I'm not excited to be back here for the second time in a row.

Subaki: Me neither, but we're doing this for sake of the kids. They're all sitting out, even the older two, because we would rather spare them from witnessing the brutal murders of our companions. The things I do as a father...

Kaze: That out of the way, shall we begin?

The castle itself was already imposing enough, its spire reaching so high that it almost reached the clouds, but that dominating presence

Irene: *deep sigh* Well Boyd and Leliel's team has already commented about this to death, so let's just be glad my third incarnation, Sana, who married Niles didn't spork this with her husband. We'd never hear the end of it.

Subaki: I keep imagining how easy it would be to tip over. It's about as strategically sound as the "lion ladder" argument the billion of lions fans use as a counter against Pokémon. 

"That's Norhian architecture for you," said Leo, "We may not be as pretty as the Hoshidans or have the same bountiful agriculture, but in industry we'll beat them every time. And there's no such thing as a Norhian that doesn't know hard work."
Leliel: ...ah. Yeah, I see the problem.
Theresia: Huh?
Leliel: It’s a particularly noxious strain of worldbuilding to make a nation of warriors, especially if the warriors are expected to be the sympathetic side. Nohr is cursed by its environment, so it has to be a place where *gruff voice* only the strong, only the hard survive, and the strongest and the hardest - they rule. *normal* It’s the kind of civilizational spire-waving that makes a lot of military fiction come off as testosterone-addled tripe, because ultimately, it’s made to make one side’s warriors seem all tough and gritty and oh so cool and manly. Not only is it generic, it also comes off as, well, having some unfortunate implications. “Real warriors can’t be soft or merciful, they have to be born in Darwinian hell-pits!

Benny: I can't imagine the logistics that came to build that. With the lack of resources and sun, the workforce would be depleted rather quickly... Actually come to think of it, castles were sealed with lime mortar. Saint-Astier, a provider of lime mortar, has this to say: 

If the mortar dries too slowly, water held in the mortar will slow or diminish the rate of initial and possibly final set, inhibit carbonation and result in a mortar that is frost feeble. It may also be susceptible to lime migration, sufficient to cause friability in the mortar. Protection of the wall heads and functioning drainage should be in place.

Yoona: Following that logic, Nohr's buildings should have all collapsed due to the sealing, which is necessary for buildings to hold together, not being able to dry out without a sun, which also would expose them to frost! This is just another can of worms opened regarding the sunlessness! Subaki isn't far off about the tipping over comment...

The doors opened behind them, and two people were pushed through and forced to kneel. A woman, tanned to the point of being brown and wearing distinctly tribal clothing, and a man, while not brown as his companion, had a distinct shade to his face

Kaze: *already sharpening his shuriken in annoyance* First of all, "tribal" is a very culturally insensitive way of referring to Rinkah. Second of all, my skin is lighter than either Niles or Benny, both who are Nohrians.

Jude: *pause, then slowly growing grin* Kaze, you sly old bastard.
Boyd the Reaver: Huh? …oh. Oh. Doitdoitdoit -
It was only when he raised his knife that Corrin realized what he was planning to do. Corrin kicked the woman straight in the knee to get her to back off for a second then charged for the ninja. His arm was almost fully extended when she caught up to him, and she swiftly cut her sword through his arm, severing it entirely just as the knife left his palm. The interruption causing it to land harmlessly in front of Garon's feet.
Boyd the Reaver: …BULLSHIT!
Velouria: Dammit! And I was really looking forward to Kaze being the main character who managed to turn his execution into a major Hoshidan victory, or at least a major antagonist. Ah well, back to the one part of the fic that’s tolerable-

Kaze: Unfortunately, given the length of the fanfiction, I had already deduced contrivance would make my counterpart's attempt of shortening the story a failed endeavour. Taeyeon had the foresight to at least let me settle with this. *throws shuriken into a Garon portrait and nails it dead centre in his face*

Yoona: Teen DDI is really just writing like the old kid treehouse saying "No Girls Allowed" except here it's "No Hoshidans Allowed."

Velouria: ...unlike our main character, who seems to have not figured out the fact that, I don’t know, this man is doing the low, dirty deed of trying to kill someone who is openly angling for a war with Kaze’s home country and ordered his execution by gladiatorial arena-slash-proving ground. You could have some empathy, if you’re supposed to be someone sympathetic!

Irene: Well, you know the saying, "people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones." Corringula already plays dirty with prisoners, what moral ground does she have to stand on with such a lecture.

Subaki: Even then, there are plenty of methods of knocking the dagger off course without going straight to severing arms. But that would require actual skill, and not savage butchery like Corringula knows.

"Just finish it Corrin, it's just like any other prisoner," said Leo
"Decisions such as these is our responsibility as royalty," said Xander
"Dearest, there are some things you just can't avoid. Better to get it over with quickly than to think about it too hard," said Camilla
"I mean, I know it's not fun and all...but I really don't want to lose you, big sister," even Elise

Kaze: *throws second shuriken at Garon's face with an angered sharpness* I have lived on all three routes out of the shared sense of mercy of these four. Not only Lord Leo who faked mine and Rinkah's execution, but Lady Camilla and Lady Elise also cared enough, even if it was on my wife's behalf. As for Lord Xander, here is an exchange we share in the C support about our encounter:

Kaze: Thank you, milord. Heh. It's a funny thing, fighting at your side. When we first met, I never would have dreamed it possible.
Xander: I feel the same. Fate is a tempest that leads us down the most unexpected of paths.
Kaze: Too true. Say, do you remember our first meeting? When I was captured and taken to Nohr... I was prepared to die, right in front of you, and expected it fully. And yet...I live on, somehow. I am very thankful for that.
Xander: You do. And it is all thanks to Corrin and Leo. If you wish to express your gratitude, you ought to tell them.
Kaze: Perhaps. But you cooperated with them as well. You did not have to do even that. It may have meant your life, after all. You deserve my gratitude as well.
Xander: It was what Corrin desired. And even as your enemy, I knew it would have been a waste.
Kaze: A waste?
Xander: Yes. I watched you fight, remember? You moved gracefully, even when wounded. I felt that if you had joined our army, you would have been a tremendous asset. To murder you on the palace floor like a dog would have been...dishonorable.

Yoona: My brother has his own sense of Nohrian honour that he sticks to, for better or for worse. Way to totally assassinate him.

Irene: Well said my other half. That's also Nohr's redeeming trait, that anyone with a decent skill of fighting and an honourable spirit is a worthy option. The whole Conquest route is about us quietly rebelling again Garon, not being their execution dogs like we're Hans! 

"Hmm...as I suspected," Garon said, "I'm correct in assuming everyone you have ever fought and killed up to this moment had been armed." Corrin nodded, "It appears that when the adrenaline runs through your veins and your life is on the line, you have no issue with killing your foes. You might even take pleasure in the challenge of it, in triumphing over a foe, proving your skill and relishing in the thrill of battle. But it is the battle that drives you, the kill is nothing more than a byproduct. Against an unarmed enemy, such enthusiasm is diminished. How can you possibly justify killing someone who has no ability to fight back?"

Subaki: This... this just hurt my brain to read. What an utter lack of regard for life. For that matter, I guess trying to extort information is for spineless cowards, even if they were going to executed after giving information anyway.

Kaze: Also note she doesn't care that we're just Hoshidans trying to do our duty to our kingdom, only about being unarmed. Apparently, our crime is equal to that of rapists and murderers. How compassionate and egalitarian. 

"Know this," Garon continued, "An unarmed enemy is no less dangerous. The seed of rebellion is still growing strong in them, and given the opportunity, they will strike again. Just look upon the ninja; he was a prisoner, subdued, defeated. Yet he had no issue with making an attempt on my life the moment the opportunity presented itself, and would do so again in a heartbeat if he survived this day. An enemy is always dangerous, no matter how weak they may appear, and you must treat them as ruthlessly as you would if they were attacking you. You must learn this lesson now, before you reach the battlefield; the most dangerous enemies will often be the ones who aren't armed. Do you understand?"

Yoona: Father dearest has clearly never heard of the trope Don't Create A Martyr. Killing a brave soldier on the line of duty, especially as his last stand is trying to take down the warmongering king, is a great way to give the people an inspirational figure to rally behind. They're not going to fear death because the martyr figure is behind them!

Irene: Besides, you know how conquerers get successful with conquests? Treating their conquered well to show that surrender is better for them than resistance. Killing them with kindness, however backhanded, yields better results. If they know they're going to die anyway, well, as Leliel's team has said in the future, that just suggests to them that they as well remain defiant to the end and go down fighting.

Benny: Also, I suppose Garon has never heard of every self-fulfilling prophecy in which an evil ruler razes the chosen one's town to prevent his downfall. There's always people who get away, who survive. Just ask Aang, Po, Jesus or Moses,

Yoona: Well much like the sporking team needs a second part to pick apart the philosophical mess that is Garon's policies, we will also need to have an intermission. Hooray...