It is nuanced, but his face does show something. He has probably seen this kind of thing before while developing weapons for an expansionist empire. (Now he is developing weapons for a protectionist planet.) Plus, being older, he will have more experience than the younger people in keeping his thoughts and feelings from showing on his face.
im guessing : B-lock made a copy of herself (mental) an sent it with Afro Dome,, so what you see here is a puppet. an plans to rez her body,, or find a new one.. an IF that fails take over Afro Dome.. (tho she don’t know that..)
Not a copy, a soul-gem (or the high-tech equivalent)
As long as they don’t disintegrate her (preferably while still alive), then her memories could be re-inserted and resurrected, if there is no original body, mayhaps she has a clone (or dozen hundred) stashed somewhere
Personally, don’t judge her for her actions here: she did what she needed to keep herself young and provide her services for the greater population
Those children would have died if she wasn’t around anyway, at least this way, their deaths served a purpose: one died so that five could live, not to mention what ever else she did to ensure the safety of the planet and the people
Still believe she is a bitch and needs to pay for what she has done, just don’t see what she had done with the sick and dying children was wrong
Yes, 150 children were ‘sacrificed’ a year, butt if she wasn’t around to help, that number could have easily increased by 750!
Do the maths people: 5 healed plus one sacrifice equals 6 sick or dying brats being brought to her to heal. The cost had to come from somewhere
150 dead kids a day means a dead kid roughly once every three days, with variance depending on how the Queen’s declaration of ten years is being rounded, and how much more than 1,500 were actually killed, and how many more kids she killed BEFORE Abby was split and put in the mirror.
That’s way too inefficient for a permanent deaging spell. Mistress Sarlock was most likely using a temporary deaging spell, and needed more and more sacrifices in order to push back more and more time with each casting. Hundreds of children were murdered because Mistress Sarlock didn’t want to settle for hiding her aging behind illusion magic.
That, or she was killing kids with the potential to surpass her and threaten her position, and the youth potion was just something convenient to expend the energy on so it didn’t go to waste.
Guesticus
No, it wasn’t about hiding her aging (look at Queenie, they have no problem with age), it was about extending her unnatural lifespan so she could continue helping the planet and the people
Ganurath
I didn’t say she was hiding her age. I said she was extending her lifespan, but using temporary buffs to do so. That, or non-stacking extensions, so that she’d need a fresh casting of greater power than the previous whenever she needed her age pushed further back… which would be whenever time passed.
Also, this was over the course of a DECADE. There’s nothing unnatural about her lifespan.
Guesticus
No, that is just the last decade, we don’t know how long she’s been around (the block)
And you did say “Mistress Sarlock didn’t want to settle for hiding her aging behind illusion magic.”
Ganurath
According to the cast page, she’s childhood friends with Shayli Vay, who’s currently sitting on the throne. Unnaturally long lived, she ain’t.
As for what I said, I’m going to point out the importance of the word “didn’t” there.
Guesticus
Yes, we can see what you wrote, and still saying it’s not about hiding her aging at all, it’s about restoring her energy levels, the same energy she used to heal 5 sick and slash or dying children
And, regardless of how long she has been around for, her lifespan is still unnatural
@Guesticus Dec 13. Hmm, I hear a Machiavellian argument that Salock did whatever was needed in order to achieve her goals, that is, the end justifies the means (even if morally wrong, or maybe especially if morally wrong), because I’m powerful and can get away with it.
You say a motivation was to protect the greater population, planet and society. I disagree. Any “protection” that requires killing those who are to be protected isn’t protection. She knew it was wrong, otherwise, why hide it?
Guesticus
Not defending her, just attempting to explain her motivations
If someone is going to die, would it be more efficient to spend valuable resources on them? Or to let them die so others can live? And by ‘sacrificing’ them the way she did, their deaths wasn’t wasted
She wasn’t killing healthy adults to feed her power, she was basically letting sickly children die, and using their essences to help other sickly children
If she was just doing it to secure power for herself and only for herself, butt she’s not
If she wasn’t there to save those other 750, how many of them would have died anyway? Half? Three quarters?
Oh, and there is a word for ‘killing those who are to be protected’, it’s called ‘culling’, and in doing so ensures the survival of the rest: if there is a famine, you need to cull the numbers so as not to out-stretch the limited resources
Am reminded of an episode of “SG:1”, they arrived on a planet with a toxic environment, the remaining settlers (or colonists or whatever they were) were protected under a forcefield controlled by a computer tasked with keeping the people safe. Problem is, the computer was running out of power to keep the forcefield up, so, it would periodically reduce the size which meant the living space was reduced, and, to prevent crowding, would send someone outside to die, thus ensuring the rest survived (some how it was able to alter the memories of the survivors to forget that that person even existed)
You may consider the actions of the computer to be harsh, heartless and cruel, butt it was doing what it was programmed to do: protect the greater colony
It could have done nothing, and let the forcefield run out of power and thus killing everyone
Bitchlock needs to pay for being a nasty bitch, for what she did to Abby all those years ago, and what she was planning on doing with the Time Spice, butt, not for what she did to those sick and dying children
awhorl
Just sayin’: such an argument is based on the presumption that there is no other person in the realm who could become Bitchlock’s successor as a healer. Those of us who are not narcissists accept the fact that life will go on without us, and whoever steps in to do our work may possibly do it better than we can–especially if we help train them so that they will be ready when our time runs out. The “save the person or save the trainload of people” argument isn’t applicable in this case: best practice is to cure as many of the sick as possible, children or not, and prepare the next healer if she isn’t being trained elsewhere.
No math necessary: the official healer should just perform as much healing as she can and then make way for the next gen when her gig is over. Harvesting the dead is ng in this society no matter how important you think you are. The B is putting herself first, not the country.
Guesticus
Yeah, she is doing what you say: saving as many as possible, implying that there will be some she can’t save, so, what, she’s just supposed to say “Oh well, I did manage to save so many others, never mind.” This way, that one she can’t save can at least help others
Again, please point out where said she was not a bitch and doesn’t deserve to pay for what she has done
A top tier web comic has a well scripted story, unexpected surprises, clean artwork, fantastic facial expressions, humor, and a bunch of other things I like. A great web comic also occasionally pushes a few buttons and the readers chime in with their thoughts, observations, predictions and opinions. Merceneiress is a great web comic. Thank you.
There are six more sleeps until Christmas. Happy and safe holidays everyone!
25 thoughts on “Chapter 16, page 37 – Mistress Salock’s treachery revealed”
StarSword
Bitchlock is losing her head for this. Grrr…
Guesticus
Maybe, if Afro Dome wasn’t already putting into place something to save the Bitch
Ganurath
Like a receiver for Bitchlock’s mind to transport into, taking over the body of her apprentice?
Guesticus
Wow! Sammy doesn’t looked shocked at all
Lloyd
It is nuanced, but his face does show something. He has probably seen this kind of thing before while developing weapons for an expansionist empire. (Now he is developing weapons for a protectionist planet.) Plus, being older, he will have more experience than the younger people in keeping his thoughts and feelings from showing on his face.
Guesticus
Yeah, that’s what was thinking: he’s not shocked (or not as shocked) like the others because he’s experienced worse
robnot
im guessing : B-lock made a copy of herself (mental) an sent it with Afro Dome,, so what you see here is a puppet. an plans to rez her body,, or find a new one.. an IF that fails take over Afro Dome.. (tho she don’t know that..)
Guesticus
Not a copy, a soul-gem (or the high-tech equivalent)
As long as they don’t disintegrate her (preferably while still alive), then her memories could be re-inserted and resurrected, if there is no original body, mayhaps she has a clone (or dozen hundred) stashed somewhere
ManWithJoeName
Damn! That’s a cold bitch!
Guesticus
Personally, don’t judge her for her actions here: she did what she needed to keep herself young and provide her services for the greater population
Those children would have died if she wasn’t around anyway, at least this way, their deaths served a purpose: one died so that five could live, not to mention what ever else she did to ensure the safety of the planet and the people
Still believe she is a bitch and needs to pay for what she has done, just don’t see what she had done with the sick and dying children was wrong
Yes, 150 children were ‘sacrificed’ a year, butt if she wasn’t around to help, that number could have easily increased by 750!
Do the maths people: 5 healed plus one sacrifice equals 6 sick or dying brats being brought to her to heal. The cost had to come from somewhere
Ganurath
You aren’t seeing the full picture.
150 dead kids a day means a dead kid roughly once every three days, with variance depending on how the Queen’s declaration of ten years is being rounded, and how much more than 1,500 were actually killed, and how many more kids she killed BEFORE Abby was split and put in the mirror.
That’s way too inefficient for a permanent deaging spell. Mistress Sarlock was most likely using a temporary deaging spell, and needed more and more sacrifices in order to push back more and more time with each casting. Hundreds of children were murdered because Mistress Sarlock didn’t want to settle for hiding her aging behind illusion magic.
That, or she was killing kids with the potential to surpass her and threaten her position, and the youth potion was just something convenient to expend the energy on so it didn’t go to waste.
Guesticus
No, it wasn’t about hiding her aging (look at Queenie, they have no problem with age), it was about extending her unnatural lifespan so she could continue helping the planet and the people
Ganurath
I didn’t say she was hiding her age. I said she was extending her lifespan, but using temporary buffs to do so. That, or non-stacking extensions, so that she’d need a fresh casting of greater power than the previous whenever she needed her age pushed further back… which would be whenever time passed.
Also, this was over the course of a DECADE. There’s nothing unnatural about her lifespan.
Guesticus
No, that is just the last decade, we don’t know how long she’s been around (the block)
And you did say “Mistress Sarlock didn’t want to settle for hiding her aging behind illusion magic.”
Ganurath
According to the cast page, she’s childhood friends with Shayli Vay, who’s currently sitting on the throne. Unnaturally long lived, she ain’t.
As for what I said, I’m going to point out the importance of the word “didn’t” there.
Guesticus
Yes, we can see what you wrote, and still saying it’s not about hiding her aging at all, it’s about restoring her energy levels, the same energy she used to heal 5 sick and slash or dying children
And, regardless of how long she has been around for, her lifespan is still unnatural
Lloyd
@Guesticus Dec 13. Hmm, I hear a Machiavellian argument that Salock did whatever was needed in order to achieve her goals, that is, the end justifies the means (even if morally wrong, or maybe especially if morally wrong), because I’m powerful and can get away with it.
You say a motivation was to protect the greater population, planet and society. I disagree. Any “protection” that requires killing those who are to be protected isn’t protection. She knew it was wrong, otherwise, why hide it?
Guesticus
Not defending her, just attempting to explain her motivations
If someone is going to die, would it be more efficient to spend valuable resources on them? Or to let them die so others can live? And by ‘sacrificing’ them the way she did, their deaths wasn’t wasted
She wasn’t killing healthy adults to feed her power, she was basically letting sickly children die, and using their essences to help other sickly children
If she was just doing it to secure power for herself and only for herself, butt she’s not
If she wasn’t there to save those other 750, how many of them would have died anyway? Half? Three quarters?
Oh, and there is a word for ‘killing those who are to be protected’, it’s called ‘culling’, and in doing so ensures the survival of the rest: if there is a famine, you need to cull the numbers so as not to out-stretch the limited resources
Am reminded of an episode of “SG:1”, they arrived on a planet with a toxic environment, the remaining settlers (or colonists or whatever they were) were protected under a forcefield controlled by a computer tasked with keeping the people safe. Problem is, the computer was running out of power to keep the forcefield up, so, it would periodically reduce the size which meant the living space was reduced, and, to prevent crowding, would send someone outside to die, thus ensuring the rest survived (some how it was able to alter the memories of the survivors to forget that that person even existed)
You may consider the actions of the computer to be harsh, heartless and cruel, butt it was doing what it was programmed to do: protect the greater colony
It could have done nothing, and let the forcefield run out of power and thus killing everyone
Bitchlock needs to pay for being a nasty bitch, for what she did to Abby all those years ago, and what she was planning on doing with the Time Spice, butt, not for what she did to those sick and dying children
awhorl
Just sayin’: such an argument is based on the presumption that there is no other person in the realm who could become Bitchlock’s successor as a healer. Those of us who are not narcissists accept the fact that life will go on without us, and whoever steps in to do our work may possibly do it better than we can–especially if we help train them so that they will be ready when our time runs out. The “save the person or save the trainload of people” argument isn’t applicable in this case: best practice is to cure as many of the sick as possible, children or not, and prepare the next healer if she isn’t being trained elsewhere.
No math necessary: the official healer should just perform as much healing as she can and then make way for the next gen when her gig is over. Harvesting the dead is ng in this society no matter how important you think you are. The B is putting herself first, not the country.
Guesticus
Yeah, she is doing what you say: saving as many as possible, implying that there will be some she can’t save, so, what, she’s just supposed to say “Oh well, I did manage to save so many others, never mind.” This way, that one she can’t save can at least help others
Again, please point out where said she was not a bitch and doesn’t deserve to pay for what she has done
Lloyd
A top tier web comic has a well scripted story, unexpected surprises, clean artwork, fantastic facial expressions, humor, and a bunch of other things I like. A great web comic also occasionally pushes a few buttons and the readers chime in with their thoughts, observations, predictions and opinions. Merceneiress is a great web comic. Thank you.
There are six more sleeps until Christmas. Happy and safe holidays everyone!
merceneiress
Thank you so much! Yes, happy holidays to you too and safe travels (if anyone is traveling)?
Guesticus
And a stellar webic has readers who can remain civil, even when they disagree 😀
Merceneiress
Indeed, as well as readers who’s comments are so well thought out that it actually influences the story (thank you!)
Joe Fonebone
No doubt, there will SOON be an execution!