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ambidextrousarcher · 4 years

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Meta-1: Dispelling the myth that Karna was unheard by others as he was a Suta...

Okay. *Takes a deep breath*

Since all opinions are welcome here, and I do not wish to ruffle people’s sensibilities (too much, at least, lest anyone think that I am attacking them), I’d like to calmly state that, outside of the realm of TV shows and revisionist retellings, the whole ‘Karna is always dismissed as he was a Suta’ is but a fancy.

I have seen a number of posts, both here and in other sites, recently, claiming that Karna nearly always not listened to because he was a Suta.

I would like to corroborate this claim of mine with quotes from canon. BORI mostly) This is under a cut. Trigger warning: Sexual assault.

This meta is TOO long as it is, so I am deleting/shortening some canon citations. Feel free to comment if you want the longer versions, I’ll try to DM you.

This is intended for @hindumythologyevent Day 5: Character analysis.

In light of certain events that happened yesterday, I would like to clarify that this meta was planned for over a month, it has been sitting in my drafts for that long, as @medhasree (my beta/co-writer), @ambitiousandcunning (my beta), @jigyask and @shaonharryandpannisim can attest to. This is not a pre-mediated attack, nor is it meant to be overtly hostile, except perhaps to Karna/Draupadi shippers, as per my own subjective opinion.

This is, as all my posts are, canonically based. I have included many canon citations from BORI and also stated my own subjective opinion. It is not intended to hurt anyone, merely to set some facts in front of everyone who is interested in them.

As usual, I will tag all the mods of the event: @1nsaankahanhai-bkr, @allegoriesinmediasres and @soniaoutloud.

Also tagging some of my mutuals: @chaanv @mayavanavihariniharini @phalgunaa @snaagin @vishnupada. Apologies for the short tag list.

The first misconception is that Karn was not Dron’s student. He was.

‘Then the valorous Drona taught Pandu’s sons the use of many weapons, human and divine. O bull among the Bharata lineage! Other princes also came to Drona, supreme among Brahmanas, to learn the use of arms—the Vrishnis, the Andhakas, kings from many countries and Radheya, the son of the suta. They made Drona their preceptor. The suta’s son was envious of Partha and always competed with him. With Duryodhana’s support, he showed his contempt for the Pandavas.

(Page 734, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition)

Here, Radheya, the son of the suta, refers to none other than Karna.

The second instance is the Rangabhoomi exhibition, which is basically the one instance in canon where he IS insulted by someone in the Pandava side, which is Bheem, and not Arjun. However, it makes sense in context.

The first thing to remember here is that the Rangabhoomi is a family exhibition, no one outside family is welcome.

“O Partha! Before the eyes of these people, I will perform feats that will surpass everything that you have done. Don’t be too amazed at what you have done.” O supreme among those who are eloquent! No sooner had he uttered these words, than the spectators quickly stood up all at once, as if raised up by a single machine. O tiger among men! Duryodhana was greatly delighted. Bibhatsu was suddenly filled with anger and a sense of disgrace. ‘With Drona’s permission, Karna, always eager to do battle and immensely strong, exhibited all that Partha had displayed before. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Duryodhana and his brothers delightedly embraced Karna and said, “O mighty-armed hero! Welcome. Good fortune has brought you here.

(Page 744, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition)

Clearly, here, it is obvious that Duryodhana and Karna are old friends. Nor has anyone brought his lineage forward yet, until he asks for a duel with Arjun, who, angry, agrees, threatening to kill him.

Another thing to remember here is that Karna is about a decade older than Arjun. In too many modern adaptations, that is washed off. I would like to bring notice to the fact.

Once they are ready, Kripa introduces Arjun, just as Drona had introduced Arjun before, and asks Karna to do the same, introduce himself, proving himself equal to Arjun’s lineage. This might be taken as a slur, but it seems he is just following protocol, since Dron does not object, he actually gives Karn implicit permission as he nods his head and allows Karn in when Karn challenges Arjun.

After Karna has been crowned to establish him as Arjun’s equal, a crown that he was neither born to, nor earned for himself by either his or his students’ valor, then Adiratha walks in. Karna treats him as a father. That is when Bheem, incensed, insults Karna. (Bheem is very protective of Arjun, so much so that his loyal protectiveness, not only of Arjun, throughout the epic, is his most defining trait) and while it does not excuse what he did, it does give an explanation to why he said what he did.

When Pandava Bhimasena saw him, he deduced that he was a charioteer’s son and jeeringly said, “O son of a charioteer! You don’t have the right to be killed by Partha in battle. You had better take up a whip, more befitting of your lineage.

(Page 747, the Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

This is, by far, the one time Karna is insulted for his caste. Kindly observe that such “caste”-based insults are not at all new throughout Mahabharata, or specific to Karna either. And no, I am not speaking of the “low” castes, you will be surprised to know. To state an example - the likes of Bheem and Drupad insult Drona for his caste, and he was a Brahmin, unanimously an “upper” caste man. Note the context and timing of such “casteist” insults. War. It is always during war and battle. Psychological warfare is something most of you must have heard of. Insults related to but not limited to caste are spread throughout the epic.

What does he do next? Support Duryodhana in killing the Pandavas.

‘On seeing that Bhimasena had become extremely strong and Dhananjaya extremely skilled, the evil Duryodhana was tormented. Then, Vaikartana Karna and Subala’s son, Shakuni, tried to kill the Pandavas through various means. However, the Pandavas, slayers of enemies, discovered all of them.

(Page 749, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Note that Karna does not challenge Arjun to a duel again. Arjun, in the text, was clearly willing to go for it. Karna could easily have challenged and killed him (if he really could) out of the public eye. Or, considering the text states that they tried to kill the Pandavas through “various means” (undefined ones), one can speculate if some sort of duel did happen, and if it did, well, the result seems to be conclusive enough for the average heedful reader.

Another incident that is commonly cited is Draupadi refusing him. Something that did not happen. [Only 3-4 manuscripts, including the one KMG used, out of the 1200+ manuscripts, mention the refusal of Draupadi, and go on to contradict themselves again. As such, we can easily junk this interpolation.]

“O Brahmanas! If Kshatriyas like Karna and Shalya, who are famous in the world, have great strength and are well versed in Dhanur Veda, could not string the bow, how can this weakling Brahmana, with no knowledge of weapons, succeed?

(Page 832, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

This paragraph is said when Arjun stands with the intent of stringing the bow. Karna’s name is explicitly mentioned as ‘could not string the bow.’ Draupadi is documented to say not a word.

For those who say that Arjun is able to fight Karn only with Krishn’s help, I have this sound piece of evidence, (apart from the sound defeat Karna and the rest of the Kuru army faced at Arjun’s hands, without the presence of Krishna), said by Karn himself in Draupadi’s swayamvara, when he is fighting the Brahmana who has won Draupadi. In canon, Arjun and Krishn do not meet until after the Swayamvara.

Have you assumed the form of a Brahmana to disguise yourself and are now fighting strongly with me for self-preservation, mustering the strength of your arms? When I am angry in the field of battle, no one except Shachi’s husband and Pandava Kiriti can withstand me.”

(Page 836, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Here, Shachi’s Husband is Indra, and Pandava Kriti is Arjun. Karna himself admits that Arjun can withstand him.

Note that Karna himself admits that Arjun can easily withstand him, even when he is, self-admittedly “angry in battle”. Karna is quite clearly not holding back when he fights Arjun “just because he is a Brahmin" (which is used by many people to indicate that it was actually Karna who won this “round”). Karna himself seems to think otherwise, friends.

Duryodhana listens to Karna most of the time, instead of the other way round. Karna has a lot of weightage in his councils. In the Dyuta Sabha, after Duryodhana considers Draupadi won, he wants her to come in front of the elders as a slave, as far as I can interpret the text. His ideas explicitly does not include the vastraharan...until. Karna instigates the idea.

“O Duhshasana! This son of a suta has limited intelligence. He is frightened of Vrikodara. Go and bring Yajnaseni here yourself. Our rivals are now under our control. They can do nothing.” Having heard his brother, the prince arose. His eyes were red with anger. He entered the house of those maharathas and told Princess Droupadi, “O Panchali! O Krishna! You have been won by us. Look upon Duryodhana without any shame. O one with eyes like long lotus petals! You will now love the Kurus. You have been won in accordance with dharma.

(Page 1058, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Note that Duryodhana seems to have no intent to disrobe Draupadi. He says nothing about dragging Draupadi to court in the vile manner Duhshassan does either. He tells Duhshassan to “bring” her. Probably use harsher words than the “frightened” messenger did, be more authoritative.

This is what Dusshasan says to Draupadi before dragging her (which seems to be completely his own idea, not Duryodhana’s, as portrayed by many).

Swiftly the angry Duhshasana rushed at her, letting out a great roar. The long, blue and flowing hair belonged to the wife of a lord of men and was now grabbed by him. At the time of the great rajasuya sacrifice, the hair had been sprinkled with auspicious waters. The valour of the Pandavas was vanquished and Dhritarashtra’s son grabbed it with force. She had protectors, but was without a protector. Grabbing her by her long hair, Duhshasana pulled and dragged her to the sabha, like a plantain tree buffeted by the wind.

(Page 1059, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Dusshasan drags Draupadi to the hall, her hair and dress becomes loose, but she is still clad in loose, half-length clothes, befitting her menstruating state, as given above. This scene is bad enough as it is, it is going to get worse.

She is dragged to the Sabha, she asks if Yudhisthir was truly her lord when he lost her, Dushassan keeps dragging her and calling her a slave. Vikarna defends her, asking Dhritrashtra to answer her question. Then enters Karna into the conversation.

Vikarna again spoke to all those lords of the earth. He rubbed his hands against each other, sighed and said, “O lords of the earth! O Kouravas! Whether you say anything or not, I will tell you what I think is right. O best of men! It has been said that addiction to hunting, drinking, gambling and sexual intercourse are the four vices of kings. The man who is addicted to these deviates from dharma and the world does not approve of these improper deeds. This son of Pandu was addicted to vice and challenged by deceitful gamblers, staked Droupadi. The unblemished one is common to all the Pandavas. Having first lost himself, the Pandava offered her as stake. Soubala, desirous of a stake, suggested Krishna. Reflecting on all these, I do not think she has been won.” On hearing these words, a great roar arose from all those who were in the sabha. They approved of Vikarna and censured Soubala.

(Page 1062, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

The above is about the latter half of what Vikarna speaks. The Sabha turns to support Draupadi and Vikarna after this.

When the noise died down, Radheya, who was almost senseless with anger, gripped his lustrous arms and uttered these words, “I have witnessed many distortions in Vikarna. O Dhritarashtra’s son! How can you think that Krishna has not been won? In this sabha, the eldest Pandava staked everything he possessed. O bull among the Bharata lineage! Droupadi is included in all his possessions. When Krishna has been won in accordance with dharma, how can you think she has not been won? Droupadi was mentioned in the speech and the Pandava approved. According to what reason do you then think that she has not been won? If you think that bringing her into the sabha when she is clad in only a single garment is against dharma, listen to the words I have to say in response. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! It has been ordained by the gods that a woman should only have one husband. However, she submits to many and it is therefore certain that she is a courtesan. It is my view that there is nothing surprising in her being brought into the sabha in a single garment, or even if she is naked. In accordance with dharma, Soubala has won all the riches the Pandavas possessed, including her and themselves. O Duhshasana! This Vikarna is only a child, though he speaks words of wisdom. Strip away the garments from the Pandavas and Droupadi.”

(Page 1063, the Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

If you read the passage above, it is extremely clear that it is neither Duryodhan, nor any other Kaurava, who is initiating Vastraharana, either of Draupadi, or her husbands, instead, it is Karna. The Kauravas, including Duryodhana and Dusshasana, follow Karna’s instructions. In fact, Karna outright commands Dusshansana, and he obeys without a murmur.

There are many people who call this ‘justified retribution’ to the ‘insult’ Draupadi gave Karna, and I have seen that many of them are women. It has already been cited above that Draupadi did not refuse Karna.

Even if she had, I am sure that such disproportionate retribution can be justified only in the eyes of people who have no idea what justice is. Vastraharan is a scene that is nearly rape. It is sexual assault of a very high degree. Would you say that every girl who refuses a boy on grounds that she is not pleased with him deserves something like this? Would you?

If you would, I am sorry, I would not consider your opinion worthy of consideration, especially if you are a girl/woman yourself.

After Vastraharan, comes the exile. Here, too, Karna plays an active part (until it comes to the thick of battle, in which, most of the time, if not all the time, he runs away. I will prove this, too.)

First comes the Ghoshayatra. Karna plans on humiliating the Pandavas and kill them. Note that I said ‘Karna plans’.

Karna opened his radiant eyes wide. In great anger, he aroused himself, and spoke to Duhshasana and Soubala in wrath, “O lords of men! Listen to my true views. With servile hands, we are trying to do everything that pleases the king. But while remaining stationary, we cannot always bring him pleasure. Let us now grasp our armour and weapons and mounting our chariots, go together and kill the Pandavas, who are roaming in the forest. When they have all been pacified and have left for the unknown journey, we and Dhritarashtra’s sons will be unchallenged. As long as they are distressed and as long as they are immersed in grief, as long as they are without allies, till then, we can do this. This is my view.” Having heard these words, they applauded them repeatedly. All of them then praised the suta’s son, saying that his words were excellent. Having said this, all those angry ones separately mounted their chariots. They then set out in a body, having made up their minds to kill the Pandavas.

(Page 1110-1111,The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

It is Karna who thinks up of this plan. All along, as in the Vastraharan, Duryodhana and his brothers follow Karna. What happens next? Duryodhan gets cursed by a Rishi, it seems, according to canon, that if he doesn’t make peace with the Pandavas, Bheem will kill him.

Something that strikes me is that, Karna, who asks Arjun to be fair to him at the end, clearly doesn’t care about fairness when it comes to his own actions at all. He never challenged the Pandavas when they were in an equal position to him. No, he waits till they are cheated and exiled to do that.

After that comes the Parva in which Bheem kills Baka’s brother, then comes Kirata Parva, in which Arjun gets celestial weapons, then Arjun goes to heaven, a lot of other things happen, but those are for another day.

For now, we shall go to the Ghosha-yatra parva.

In which, after hearing Dhritrashtra praise the Pandavas, Karna suggests showing off their cattle and wealth to the Pandavas.

Karna heard these words of Dhritarasthra. At an appropriate time, he spoke thus to Duryodhana. “O descendant of the Bharata lineage! You have exiled the brave Pandavas through your own valour. You now enjoy the earth alone, like the killer of Shambara in heaven. O lord of men! O king! All the kings of the east, south, west and north pay tribute to you. The blazing Lakshmi used to serve the Pandavas earlier. O king! But with your brothers, you have now won her. O king! The blazing prosperity that we earlier saw, for a short time, with Yudhishthira in Indraprastha, is now with you and he is oppressed by sorrow.

(Page 1636, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

He continues in such a vein for some time, then comes to the point.

You have wealth and they are deprived of wealth. They are without prosperity and you are full of prosperity. O king! Go and see the sons of Pandu. Let the Pandavas behold you like Nahusha’s son Yayati, with great splendour and established in great fortune. O lord of the earth! This prosperity, that well-wishers and ill-wishers see in a radiant man, is considered to be real power. Like a man who stands on a mountain and looks down on earth, what happiness can there be that is greater than being on plain ground while one’s foes are on uneven terrain? O tiger among kings! The birth of a son or the obtaining of a kingdom does not bring as much bliss as seeing one’s enemies in misery. What happiness will there not be, on being successful oneself, and on seeing Dhananjaya attired in bark and skins? Let your wives, attired in excellent garments, see the miserable Krishna, attired in bark and skins, and thereby increase her grief.

(Page 1637, the Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Here, Karna is the one who comes up with the idea of the Ghoshayatra. He specifically speaks of seeing the grief of Krishna (Draupadi) and Dhananjaya (Arjun), not of any other Pandava, even Duryodhana’s bitterest enemy, Bheema. It is clear that he is in this for his own motivations.

(Also, Karna/Draupadi shippers, including published authors, have NO respect in my eyes, after Vastraharan, and then this clear indication that he just wants her grief and pain.)

‘When King Duryodhana heard Karna’s words, he was extremely delighted. But he again became sad and spoke these words. “O Karna! What you have told me has always been in my mind. But I will not obtain permission to go to where the Pandavas are. Dhritarashtra, lord of the earth, always mourns for those brave ones. Because of the power of their austerities, he considers the Pandavas to be superior. I will obtain great pleasure if I see Bhima and Phalguna, together with Krishna, miserable in the forest. The pleasure that I will get from winning the earth is less than that from seeing the sons of Pandu, clad in bark and skins. O Karna! What joy can be greater than the sight of Drupada’s daughter Droupadi, clad in red garments in the forest? If Dharmaraja, Bhimasena and Pandava see me united with this supreme prosperity, it is worth living.

(Page 1638, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

It is Duryodhana who mentions Bheema, his own prime enemy, along with the other Pandavas. (This is more of a personal interpretation, but Draupadi seems like an afterthought to me, here.) This addition is credited to my beta/co-writer @medhasree

This is what happens next.

Having reached Lake Dvaitavana, the vanguard of the army of Dhritrarashtra’s son was about to enter the forest, but was restrained at the gate by the gandharvas. O lord of the earth! O king! Surrounded by his masses, the king of the gandharvas had already arrived there from Kubera’s abode. He was in the habit of sporting with masses of apsaras and the sons of the thirty gods and had therefore barred entry to the lake. O king! When the king’s servants found that the lake had been barred, they returned to King Duryodhana. On hearing their words, Kouravya dispatched his war-crazy soldiers to evict the others. On hearing the words of the king, the soldiers in the vanguard went to Lake Dvaitavana and spoke to the gandharvas. “King Duryodhana, Dhritarashtra’s strong son, has come here to sport. Leave this place.” O lord of the earth! Having been thus addressed, the gandharvas laughed. They replied to those men in harsh words. “Your king Suyodhana is evil in his intelligence. How can he command us, as if we are his servants? We are inhabitants of heaven. There is no doubt that you are evil in wisdom, since you are heading towards death. You have lost your senses if you repeat his orders to us.

(Page 1642, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Basically, Duryodhana’s armies are attacked by Gandharvas. At first, Karna fights.

‘On seeing the gandharvas swiftly descend on them with raised weapons, the sons of Dhritarashtra could be seen to flee in all the directions. On seeing that the sons of Dhritarashtra were fleeing from the field of battle, the brave Vaikartana was the only one who wasn’t reluctant to do battle. On seeing the great army of gandharvas descend on him, Radheya repulsed them with a mighty shower of arrows.

(Page 1643, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Then, when the Gandharvas attack him with renewed strength, this happens.

‘O king! Being thus oppressed by a great army, they were frightened. They fled the field of battle and went to where King Yudhishthira was, seeking refuge with him. Everywhere, the soldiers of the sons of Dhritarashtra were being destroyed. O king! Vaikartana Karna was the only one who stood immobile like a mountain. Duryodhana, Karna and Shakuni Soubala were severely wounded in the field of battle, but kept fighting the gandharvas. With a desire to kill Karna in battle, hundreds and thousands of gandharvas rushed collectively towards him. Holding a sword and a shield in his hand, the son of the suta jumped down from the chariot. He leapt onto Vikarna’s chariot and whipped the horses, so that he might escape.’(Page 1645, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

When the army of Gandharvas begins to attack Karna in earnest, he runs away, taking Vikarna’s chariot. What about his loyalty to Duryodhana, who is still fighting? In the end, it is ironic that Karna wanted to gloat to the Pandavas, yet his men and Duryodhan’s go grovelling to the Pandavas for the sake of saving Duryodhana. Of course, Karna needs no saving. He has already run away.

What happens next? Yudhisthir dispatches Bheem and Arjun for that purpose. (He is forever ready to dispatch his brothers to do things, not so ready to do things himself.)

A lengthy battle occurs. I would have given citations, but this is already too long, just comment if you want them, I’ll either DM or reblog. ).

Along with Bheem and the twins, Arjun fights the Gandharvas, defeats them, finds out that he knew the Gandharva King from his trip to heaven after a lengthy battle in which he injures the said Gandharva King, lets his friend go, they talk, and Arjun leaves with Duryodhana.

Where was the vauntingly loyal Karna then? Seeing to his own safety, something that gets him scathingly scolded by Bhishma.

But Duryodhana still believes in his friend, still defends him, even when he is suicidal, he allows Karna to talk him out of it.

The last citation I would like to show is of Virata Parva.

This has two parts.

First, it is Karna who asks Duryodhan to attack Matsya, not because they have found that the Pandavas are there, but because it is ‘ripe for the taking after Keechak’s death’. Keechak, by the way, is a Suta. Where did the ‘breaking caste-barrier hero’ Karn go then, if not to defend the Kingdom deprived of the general who was a Suta? Oh, he went to rob their cows.

The idea is put forward by King Susharma of Trigarta, yeah, the King of those guys who become the army of Sampatakas later and swear a vow of either killing Arjun or dying themselves. Arjun being who he is, of course, they die, but they do manage to keep him away from the Chakravyuh.

‘King Susharma of Trigata, the leader of a large number of chariots, had been repeatedly defeated earlier by Kichaka, the suta of the Matsyas, accompanied by the Salveyakas. When the time was right, that lord swiftly spoke these words of grave import. O lord! His forces, together with those of his relatives, had earlier been defeated by that powerful one. He now looked at Karna and spoke to Duryodhana. “In earlier times, using his greater powers, the king of Matsya oppressed my kingdom. The powerful Kichaka was his general. The evil-souled one was terrible and invincible and was famous on earth because of his valour. That wicked and cruel one has now been killed by the gandharvas. O king! On his being killed, it is my view that Virata has lost his insolence and is without endeavour and without refuge. O unblemished one! If it pleases you, let me, all the Kouravas and the great-souled Karna go there.

(Page 1849, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Immediately after Susharma’s dialogue, Karna says this:

‘On hearing these words, Karna told the king, “Susharma has spoken words that are appropriate to the occasion and they are for our welfare. Let our forces yoke their mounts and swiftly march out. O unblemished one! Let us arrange our forces, or whatever else that you desire. Consult with the wise elders among the Kurus, our grandfather, the preceptor Drona and Sharadvan’s son, Kripa. Do what all of them think and let us advance. We should advance quickly and overpower that lord of the earth. What do we have to do with the Pandavas? They are weak in riches, forces and manliness. They have either been destroyed, or have reached Yama’s abode. O king! Let us attack Virata’s kingdom without any anxiety. Let us grab his cattle and his many other riches.”

(Page 1850, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Here, Karna explicitly says “What do we have to do with the Pandavas?” So he has ceased caring about them, he assumes they are dead. Still, Matsya, which is no enemy Kingdom of the Kurus, he is open to attacking, as they have lost their general. The Pandavas have nothing to do with this.

This is what happens right after Karna’s words.

Duryodhana swiftly accepted Vaikartana Karna’s words. He himself instructed Duhshasana, who was always devoted to his commands. “Consult with the elders and swiftly yoke the army. As instructed, we will go there, with all the Kouravas. As instructed, let maharatha King Susharma also go there, with all his forces and vehicles. Let him go to Matysa first, but concealing his intentions. We will follow him, but a day later. Preparing ourselves well, we will advance towards Matsya’s territory. Suddenly arriving in Virata’s city, we will swiftly subdue the cowherds and take away their great riches. There are hundreds of thousands of handsome cattle, with all the qualities. We will divide our forces into two and rob him of these.” O lord of the earth! As commanded, Susharma marched in a south-eastern direction. He began to rob the cattle on the seventh lunar day of dharmapaksha. O king! On the following day, the eighth day, all the Kouravas joined forces and robbed thousands of cowsheds.’

(Page 1850, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

Again, it explicitly says “Duryodhana swiftly accepted Vaikartana Karna’s words” not Susharma’s. It is Duryodhana and Duhshasana who obey Karna and not the other way round.

So, they go to Virat. Susharma robs the cattle, the herder goes to the King. The King assembles his army, including four Pandava brothers (except Arjun, who is in Brihannala disguise) and goes to confront them. Matsya manages to retrieve their cattle, but at that time, Duryodhana’s men invade the citadel of Matsya.

Uttar boasts that, with an able charioteer, he will defeat everyone, like Arjun himself (it is Arjun mentioned here as a great warrior, none else), in front of Panchali, who, feathers ruffled, tells him that Brihannala was Arjun’s charioteer. Uttaraa goes to get him. Uttar praises him and Arjun. (I am seriously laughing at this by now, I mean, imagine what Arjun would be thinking) Arjun pretends he has no idea how to wear armor, Uttar helps him, Uttara asks him to bring the defeated men’s garments, Arjun nods assent, they go to the army, Uttar freaks, Arjun pursues him, goads him, motivates him, asks him to withdraw Arjun’s weapons from a Shami tree. Uttar asks who he is, Arjun gives his detailed introduction, detailing some of his exploits, (explicitly because Uttar asks), they go back.

(This meta is already getting too long, but if anyone wants those citations, comment, I’ll give them as a reblog)

By this time, the Kurus, especially Dron and Bhishm, are advising Duryodhana to retreat as Arjun is here. Karna, characteristically, pooh-poohs at it.

This is what he says:

“I see that all you honourable ones are frightened and terrified. All of you do not wish to fight and are standing idly. Whether it is the king of Matsya or Bibhatsu who has come, I will restrain him, the way the shoreline holds back the abode of makaras. Arrows with straight feathers will be shot from my bow and they will not be repulsed, like gliding snakes. They have golden tufts and are extremely sharp at the tip. Released from my hand, these arrows will cover Partha, like locusts covering a tree. These winged shafts will firmly strike against the string of the bow, and the sound of the slapping of palms will be like that of a kettledrum. Bibhatsu has concentrated for eight and five years and is fondly looking forward to a battle in which he will strike me. Kounteya, with the qualities of a brahmana, is the right receptacle to receive thousands of arrows shot by me. This great archer is famous in the worlds. O best of the Kurus! But in no way am I inferior to Arjuna. I will release these golden arrows, shafted with the feathers of vultures, and the sky will seem to be covered with fireflies. I gave my word to Dhritarashtra’s son earlier and I will repay that debt today. I will kill Arjuna today.

(Page 1875, The Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

This is nearly half of his long-winded praise of his own self. Note the words “In no way am I inferior to Arjuna.” Does that hold true? Let us see.

This is what he does when the battle starts.

Vaikartana, the suta’s son, exhibited his valour, like a king of elephants displaying his tusks, or like a tiger attacking a large buffalo. Vaikartana attacked Pandava with twelve arrows. He pierced the bodies of all the horses and that of Virata’s son with those arrows. It was like a king among elephants being struck by an elephant. He took out sharp arrows from his quiver and stretching the string of the bow right up to his ear, pierced the body of the suta’s son with his arrows. With arrows unleashed like lightning from his bow, the destroyer of enemies pierced him in battle, in the arms, the thighs, the head, the forehead, the neck and in all the parts of the chariot. Thus wounded by the arrows shot by Partha, and scorched by Pandava’s arrows, like a swift elephant that has been defeated by another elephant, Vaikartana fled from the forefront of the battle.’

(Page 1885, the Mahabharata, Kindle Edition).

He flees. And this is just the abridged version. If anyone wants the detailed one, again, comment or DM.

For all those who credit Krishn with all of Arjun’s victories with Karna, note that canonically, Krishn is not even in a 100-mile radius of Arjun right now. Yet, Arjun wins. Karna runs, along with a division of his infantry. From one (1) man on a chariot.

That brings me almost to the end of the meta.

I’d like to end by stating that, even after this, Duryodhan stuck to Karna. Even when Karna does not fight for 10 days in Kurukshetra, Duryodhan fights. Even when Karna, repeatedly, abandons Duryodhana and his army, either against Arjun or to be saved by Arjun, Duryodhana believes in him. Above all, Duryodhana obeys Karna, not the other way around.

The virtues of generosity (Duryodhana gifts Karna Anga, a gift for which he got precious little, Anga was canonically turned into a hotbed of debauchery), loyalty (Duryodhana believes in Karna, no matter what, in spite of his repeated failures and fleeing from his greatest enemy, Arjun and by extension, the Pandavas) and obedience (It has been demonstrated amply that after Lakshagriha, nearly every plan to dispose of the Pandavas that goes awry is Karna’s brainchild and not Duryodhana’s) belongs to Duryodhan, not the much vaunted and glorified Karna.

Finis.

#mahabharata #meta #karna #duryodhana #arjuna #the catalogue of karna's misdeeds #by no means full #anti-karna #always #nila rants #nila writes #arjun

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alltingfinns · 4 years

Text

Back on my bullshit (somewhat later than previously expected) and finishing the rewatch of A Scandal in Belgravia:

“Thinking about what?” “Your blog counter-“

Is he changing the topic or answering the question? Technically he’s still tasked with the phone although, again technically, it was retrieval of the phone not gaining access to it. Maybe he’s just thinking about John’s blog, it does tend to occupy his mind more than it does John’s at times.

“How can we not know?” John sees himself and Hudson as the ultimate Sherlock experts. Not Mycroft or Lestrade. Could be a meta nod to the narrator and the foreshadower roles they play.

Pretty lady he doesn’t know calls him by name and asks him out and he’s like sure, kidnap away! I know he has a danger boner, but damnit Watson, get some survival instincts!!

Wonder if there’s a point to make us think Mycroft other than “plot twist not dead”. Technically Irene could have been revealed a number of surprising ways without invoking Mycroft, and there’s a callback later to John just wanting to meet at a cafe.

“Sherlock doesn’t follow me everywhere.” Famous words.

“He does that all anyway.” So why do you think he’s heartbroken, John? Why do you think Irene means so much to him?

“I’ll come after you if you don’t.” The classic “if you hurt him” threat.

“Oh I believe you.”

He starts off so calm but by her second refusal to tell Sherlock he’s huffing and puffing. Irene gets way under his skin.

He’s so angry and jealous. I just... the way he explodes out “What do you usually say? You’ve texted him a lot!”

John just cares so much more about those texts than Sherlock ever does.

He just can’t fathom the possibility that Sherlock didn’t reply because he didn’t care.

Now we come to some infamous precise wording from John Watson:

“Are you jealous?”

“We’re not a couple.”

As you know, jealousy in difference from envy, involves an element of possession. Therefor it is usually associated with couples, which John and Sherlock aren’t at this point. At least not officially. But John is possessive of Sherlock, and is sensitive to someone like Irene taking him away.

“I am not actually gay”. John isn’t gay (in the strictly homosexual meaning rather than the more general queer meaning) as we saw earlier with him checking out the pretty lady.

Although thinking about it, that was just after he asked Hudson about Sherlock’s romantic history, so he may have been overcompensating. That’s probably what lowered his guard, the relief of getting to confirm his attraction to women post haste.

“But I am.” She mentions male lovers at different points, but she also uses her sexuality and understanding of others wants in a transactional way. So does she mean strictly-into-binary-women-lesbian or generally queer? It’s placed in opposition (and simultaneously not) to John’s statement, so probably the former.

“Look at us both.” John’s chuckle is a real “you got me there”.

John looks so vulnerable when he realizes what Sherlock just heard. But Irene knows that John isn’t ready to confront a Sherlock who knows how John feels, and uses that fear against him. Who knows what might have happened if John had just pushed through.

Sherlock’s eyes going back and forth indicates he’s deducing while walking. Depending on how much he heard there are two possibilities, 1) he’s trying to figure out how Irene is alive or 2) how John can be “not gay” for him. 1) is unlikely as he surely must have been tight enough on John’s heels to at least have caught the tail end of her explanation, but all options should be considered. With 2) some of you may wonder why he doesn’t need to deduce Irene being into him, because you forgot that she’s been flirting at him non stop.

Sherlock deduces some assholes messed with the wrong landlady.

Ok so how did Sherlock get back so much faster than John? Because you almost think he walked back, but even if he got a cab, why does John take so long? Maybe the fanfics are right and Sherlock is just magically better than John at summoning cabs.

Sherlock is impatient for John to take Hudson away so he can deal out justice without doing it infront of her or leaving her alone downstairs.

“Oh! That was right on my bins.” Classic!

Hudson is so important to Sherlock. Wonder if we’ll ever get their full story?

John smiling at Sherlock’s softness.

Sherlock probably realized there were more than pictures back when the Americans first showed up. Hence why he’s preoccupied with getting into it while John is preoccupied with Irene and what she means to Sherlock.

Oooh! The Netflix subtitles turned John’s “so she’s alive then” to “in other words she lied”. Technically both works, she lied about being dead which is kind of rude.

Also John please.

Drink in hand. “How are we feeling about that?” “Do you think you’ll be seeing her again?”

You know how people are John? I think this is a case of John is people. Irene shows up in one short story, bests Sherlock and leaves to live happily ever after with her husband. He notes that she’s remarkable as the only woman to defeat him and keeps her picture. (Which honestly is no different from how he asks John to remind him of Norbury, he wants to remember his mistakes.) Yet the mainstream view is that she is his greatest love, and people have written books where she returns to have a daughter with him.

Fucking straight culture.

Sherlock sending Irene a happy new year text like “there, John, you see? She. Is. Not. Special!!”

“You think she’s my girlfriend because I am X-raying her possessions?”

Fucking. Straight. Culture.

“They do, don’t they?” If you’re following Molly’s line of thought and thinking of people in love, I hate to break it to you Sherlock. You’ve been head over heels for one sharpshooting doctor for a while now.

Molly’s threatened by how Irene “loves to play games”. That is how John sees it; Irene seems like a perfect female counterpart to Sherlock. His jealousy of Irene is basically an expansion of his jealousy of Moriarty in the previous episode. Both John and Molly worry that they’re too boring for Sherlock.

Sherlock’s look while John details his ludicrously circumventional plan for getting the phone is priceless.

1058 = 2 * 23 * 23 if that means anything.

John’s look just before “Hamish!” is amazing.

Speaking of, his outburst is retroactively so much funnier after Sign of Three. Sherlock having to get ahold of his birth certificate to learn what the H is for, and John just gives it up when he thinks Irene and Sherlock are about to make babies.

Sherlock’s eyebrow. “I had to owe Mycroft a favor John. Do you understand the pain of that? John, I asked you directly so many times. You don’t even like her! Jooohn!”

The focus on John’s mug. Is she directing John’s attention at Sherlock by directing her attention to Sherlock? Is that the play she’s been building up for? (Note that if this was about Sherlock falling for her there would be no reason to involve John as much as she has at this point.)

Confirmed by how his deduction is followed by looking at John first. Since that cab ride he has lived for impressing John with his deductions.

Sherlock’s struggle with placing 007. He didn’t learn it for casework so it isn’t in his mind palace, but he learned about it because of John so it is still lingering at the edges of his memories. Also, been there. When you know there’s something but you can’t place it, probably a rare feeling for him.

Moriarty blowing away the letters with a fart noise. Another classic!

Totally forgot how much drama they put into Mycroft here. It’s more than a failed operation.

Sherlock: “WWII story”

Irene: “Have you had sex? Like, ever?”

She’s hungry, he isn’t. No means no, Irene, no means no.

Is it just me or is it kind of convenient that John isn’t there for the climax? Did Irene chase him away somehow?

Driver’s like “look man, our job is to get you to the airport. We don’t care whatever it is you’re rambling about.”

Wonder what the time lapse here is, seeing as the American intelligence officer (did I forget his name or did we never get it) is up and about.

Best way to let your younger sibling know they messed up, give them a ticket to a haunted house style airplane of dead people.

Well whaddya know? Scenes believed to be completely played for laughs were part of the main plot all along. How very interesting. It’s almost like there’s some thought behind the writing. Like things being played for laughs have something more going on.

This scene is where the parallels to The Private Life become glaring. Mycroft telling Sherlock off for halting an operation by getting compromised by a woman.

“Don’t be absurd.” Again, Sherlock deduced to impress John, so he doesn’t feel described by Mycroft here. Because Irene’s play was too subtle for the Holmes brothers to understand.

Mycroft “didn’t know”. He thought Sherlock would be safe from Irene because he knows Sherlock’s gay, but now he doubts. He doesn’t know that Irene acted through John.

Ahh, six months. That makes sense. Still, the guy should probably still have some breathing irregularity from that punctured lung.

Mycroft’s eyebrow raise at Irene’s demands. That high of a figure, huh?

Moriarty’s name is what turns Sherlock’s cogs. Mycroft helpfully supplies that Jim’s been trying to get his attention. Moriarty was dissuaded from killing him and John by a phone call from someone who had something he desperately wanted, and he was necessary for Irene to use what she had to get to Mycroft. She made the call.

People have mentioned this before but it bears repeating: why are you bringing up John? Also, why are you calling him Watson?

When he says “I know” does that mean he knows that she only made that the code as part of the role she played as being in love with him? He does say “got caught up in the game”.

Which I guess means he’s telling her “don’t method act, you silly”

“Okay, I’m meeting you at a cafe like you wanted.” “Wtf, Mycroft, that wasn’t even your underling I said it to!”

Ffs Mycroft! John was finally starting to realize Sherlock didn’t feel that way about her.

Que the piratelock AUs.

The things going on here. The last minute decision on what to say, opting for the comfortable lie. Sherlock very aware of that in ways John can’t known. “Please.” John somehow still preoccupied with her texts.

I’ve seen at least one fanfic mention that Sherlock probably felt he owed her for the pool rescue. Also he isn’t really inclined towards people dying whatever people seem to think.

The woman. She did beat him. He may have gotten the upper hand in the last inning*, but she did get him to play into her hands. Keeping the phone, means keeping a reminder of his own vulnerabilities.

Because ASiB is spread out over so much time, and someone has pointed out that Hudson wears a dress that is brand new in THoB, this scene takes place after the fireside. (I really should have checked for the dress in ASiB, get a proper timeline.) Maybe he’s laughing because he feels that she taught him to master his emotions.

Next up: My personal favorite of this series. Coming whenever it does. Time is a construct.

*) I’m not even sure what sports has innings. Is it baseball? It’s probably baseball.

#rebecka’s sherlock rewatch #sherlock #johnlock #jealous john watson #john watson is a disaster #john watson is bi #mycroft holmes

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itsjame · 6 years

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Day 1: 1058 words

Suddenly, everything was loud. The boxes Loretta had hidden herself within jolted and began to slide to and fro. It wasn’t really the specific sounds or the specific motion that was ominous, but the intensity with which everything was happening. A little bit of swaying back and forth is to be expected when your ship is in the middle of the ocean, after all. But this went way beyond a gentle sway of waves. This was a movement that sent Loretta’s boxes crashing into what she could only imagine was a wall or another box. And It wasn’t really that it was suddenly loud, in fact Loretta hadn’t had a moment of peace since the moment she stowed away in the cargo hold. But now the loudness had a very different quality. She had gotten used to the men yelling orders at one another, had even gotten used to the occasional drunken revelry and fistfights. But now the men weren’t yelling so much as… screaming. And on top of it all was a sound that Loretta couldn’t quite place yet but that filled her with an instinctive sense of dread.

Before the ship left port, Mrs. Sarah made Loretta promise that she wouldn’t open the box, not for anything Loretta!, she had said sternly. She made Loretta promise that she would stay hidden until she heard someone use the secret knock. But something in Loretta’s gut told her that she needed to at least take a peek.

Ever so carefully, Loretta lifted the lid of her specially crafted box hideaway, just enough to peer out and see what was going on out there. Her boxes had definitely slid into the wall, and Loretta could now see that this was because the entire ship was listing at a pretty extreme angle to the left. Curiously, Loretta clambered clumsily out of the interconnected boxes that had served as her home for the past few weeks. Stretching and standing should have been a relief after so many days cramped into a space she could barely sit up in, but any relief was quickly overtaken by the calamitous realization that her feet were getting wet. Generally, water is meant to be on the outside of the boat, but now she was struggling to stand in at least foot of water. The gut wrenching sound Loretta had noted earlier was the sound of it sloshing about. The boat was sinking.

The first thing Loretta noticed when she woke up was that she did wake up. The dream had been so realistic that she could clearly remember the raw feeling in her throat as she choked on seawater. The second thing she noticed was that she was horribly seasick.

“Better seasick than dead, I guess.” Loretta thought as she sat up and stretched.

The third thing Loretta noticed was that she was actually able to stretch. That was unusual. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light, Loretta confirmed that she was definitely not in her cramped box den any more. She seemed to be inside some sort of large bird cage like structure. Had she been discovered by one of the sailors and moved to the brig while she slept? Loretta had never seen a brig per se, but a giant bird cage did fit very neatly into what she imagined. She tentatively walked to the edge of the cage(and it felt so good to be walking again!) and peered out. Loretta couldn’t make sense of what she was seeing at all. It seemed like her new prison was surrounded by… giant feathers? Was she still sleeping?

Before Loretta could consider the situation any further, her gaze was met by the largest eyeball she had ever seen. It had to be the size of Loretta’s own head. It was avian and stared at Loretta for an uncomfortably long moment before a booming voice finally said.

“You’re awake! Hello! My name is Mortimer. How are you doing down there?” As he spoke, the owner of the eye awkwardly craned his neck to be able to look at Loretta dead on. There was the reflection of some sort of strange blue light source in each of the giant pupils. From this angle she could now see a huge hooked beak.

“You’re… you’re huge! How did you get so big, Mr. Mortimer?” Loretta took a few steps back toward the center of the cage. “You’re not going to eat me, are you?”

The beak let out a rasping noise that might have been a laugh. “How do you know I’m huge? Did you ever consider that you might just be tiny? As for eating you, I suppose I could eat your corpse, but I would prefer to have your permission before digging in.”

It took Loretta a moment to parse everything this bird, mortimer, had just said. Really there was a lot to unpack here. Not only was there a giant bird, but he can apparently talk, and also would like permission to eat Loretta’s corpse. Wait. He had said corpse, hadn’t he? But Loretta wasn’t dead obviously. Dead people couldn’t feel seasick.

Mortimer watched her intently while she tried to make sense of what in the world was going on.

“I’m sorry Mr. Mortimer, sir. But I don’t think I can let you eat my corpse on account of the fact that I’m not dead.”

The beak rasped merrily again. “Not dead? My dear, when I found your body you were thoroughly and completely drowned. Have you not looked at yourself yet?” He cocked his head to the side.

Defiantly Loretta looked down at herself, and then she screamed.

Where her hands and legs and the rest of her body should have been, there was just an intense blue light. Sure, they were in a vaguely humanoid shape, but they certainly weren’t her usual limbs.

“Hush now, no need to scream. You drowned and it’s all very sad I’m sure, but now I’m here! And I’ll transport you safely to the next life, as is my duty. Free of charge.” Mortimer paused for a moment. “Although, If you wanted to tip me, I wouldn’t say no to the chance to ah… eat your corpse. What do you say?”

As he said this last bit, Loretta swore she could see his beak attempt to smile.

#writing #writers on tumblr #ocs #original fiction

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ciathyzareposts · 5 years

Text

Rex Nebular – To Boldly Go Where No Man Has Gone Before

Written by TBD.

Rex Nebular’s Log: Stardate – The Day The Music Died.3: I’d sometimes dreamed about what I’d do if I was a woman for a day. But in none of those dreams did I just wander around picking stuff up and solving puzzles. At least I feel a lot more welcome on this planet now. Now, let’s find out where these teleporters go…

When we’d last left our hero, she’d just come out of the gender bender with a brand new gender. I’d found the gender scanner to the south, but first I continue following the carnage my friend had made on his way to the teleporter.

I find another dead guard, and her arm half a screen away. I also find a tape player. Having gotten a tape from a dead body back in the hospital, I do the obvious.

My attempts to put my tape in the tape player showed me one of the quirks with the game’s interface.

Both of these are generic descriptions I get by clicking on random things.

Guessing that I could only put the tape in the player if I had both items in my inventory, I took the tape player, and then the game let me insert and play the tape.

Whoever put someone called ‘Professor Pyro’ in charge of something called ‘Project Kablooey’ was just asking for trouble.

I take the dead guard’s separated arm and use it on a hand/fingerprint scanner to open a cupboard and get all my confiscated inventory back.

I also find a lamp in the cupboard, but don’t seem to be able to take it or do anything with it. It might be important later.

Off another dead body I take a credit chip (a credit card, basically) so now I have money if I ever need it.

I entered the teleporter, and noticed that the number above the keypad was the number I used to get to this teleporter. So presumably I can teleport to any location if I know the number of the target teleporter. I test this theory by pressing the number that had been on the surface teleporter, and it works – I end up on the surface. I go back to the village where I’d previously been kicked in the man-region as soon as I went north. Seeing as I no longer have a man-region, I figure I’ll be safe.

Last post I wondered if the game gave me different descriptions depending on my current gender. I think I have my answer.

The next screen contains a woman (who didn’t kick me this time), some chickens and a stream which blocks the way west.

I take the roasting chicken and try to cross the stream.

I should have listened to Spengler – the thing in the water is me being ripped apart by piranhas.

This is the second game I’ve played in a row which had a school of piranhas in a stream by a small village. I’m feeling nostalgic already.

I try to give/put/throw my chicken at the piranhas, but the game won’t let me. After picking up a new twinkifruit, I also fail to feed that to the animals.

Out of ideas on the surface, but armed with a new roast chicken, I go back through the teleporter to the underground and do some more exploring.

The southern area of the base had been off limits to me before due to my gender, but now I can pass the scanner safely and find some more rooms. This section is in a U shape, with the gender scanners on each upper section. I start at the western section.

The first door is the entrance to a bar. It’s ladies night (every night is ladies night) in the bar so I enter and take a stool. The woman on the seat next to me is a repairwoman, and she starts complaining about the teleporters. I consider using the bar’s teleporter until I see what happens to the lady who appears there.

Maybe she entered the other teleporter while holding her pet wallaby.

I didn’t understand what the giant flashing arrows were at first. Yes, I’m an idiot.

I eventually worked out (after leaving the bar and coming back later because I’m extremely unobservant) that the repairwoman had a list of broken teleporters in her back pocket. For some reason I thought the arrows had something to do with the dance floor.

For now, I buy some alcohol with my stolen credit chip and continue my exploration lap.

In the south section, I find the armory which I can easily enter with my security card.

Glad to see the word ‘humbled’ used correctly, rather than when somebody wins something for being the best in their field.. You can’t be humbled by winning an award, people!

I find a TARGET MODULE, which, according to its description, should allow me to ‘hit anything hard and fast if I attach it to a ship’s fire control computer‘. I take it and assume I’ll get the opportunity to upgrade my weapons with it later.

The other thing in the room that looks like it can be used is a blimp’s loading ramp. The ramp is currently blocked by a tank which I’m not able to drive. Perhaps I’ll find some instructions somewhere – or perhaps it’s just there to give the game an opportunity to tell another joke.

I think I’ve found ACME’s warehouse!

There’s a few more doors in the southern section. There’s a teleporter room, a lab and a storage room.

Trying the lab first, I find it’s the recently exploded Professor Pyro’s lab – I can tell by the large scorch mark on the floor.

I take some chemicals and check my old screenshots for the instructions for the bomb Professor Pyro had been making. I could have just played the audio tape again I suppose, but who has time for that?

Following the instructions, I make some explosives. I try to take them.

I laughed out loud at this one.

The teleporter room has, surprise surprise, a teleporter in it. (Actually it probably is a surprise – it’s not actually called the teleporter room, that’s just what I called it after looking inside.) I take note that this teleporter (4229) is past the gender scanner so if I need to enter this area as a man this is likely how I’ll do it.

In the storage room I find some empty charge cases, which are used to pack explosives. Not a very subtle hint, seeing as I’ve already tried to take the explosives, but I’m not going to complain. I also find a tar bucket.

For some reason I thought tar-and-feathering would do something here. That was before I realised the chicken I had was featherless, dead and cooked.

To the east is a door I can’t enter for now, so I return to the lab.

I put my explosives in the charge cases and try to blow stuff up. First, I try it on the door I can’t open.

Then on the tank blocking the blimp’s loading ramp.

Then I try throwing them at the piranhas.

Don’t ask me why piranha have a shark fin – I don’t know either.

I even try making an explosive piranha meal.

With disappointment that I can’t think of anything to blow up with my new explosives, it was at this point that I went back to the bar and worked out what the giant arrows had been pointing to earlier. I snatched the repair list from the woman’s back pocket and I now have a lot of teleporter codes.

The codes are:

2644 – off-line pending repairs

9853 – off-line pending repairs

4580 – off-line pending repairs

2116 – off-line pending repairs

8384 – recently tuned (this is the teleporter on the surface)

9113 – recently tuned (this is the teleporter I arrived in at the base)

1058 – need minor adjustments

0576 – need minor adjustments

4229 – due for gender-security maintenance (this is the teleporter that is in the base past the gender scanner)

That last item makes me even more confident that I can use teleporter 4229 to get to the women-only area as a man.

Seeing as teleporter 1058 is in need of minor adjustments, and I haven’t been there yet. Let’s see what’s there.

Okay. Minor adjustments needed. Understood.

I try the other location that needs minor adjustments and cross my fingers.

I’m alive – and in an exciting new area!

I’m now in an abandoned city and find a car, a car complete with moldy sock, empty soda cans and a long-expired air freshener. In other words, a man’s car.

Actually, in my experience men’s cars are usually tidier than women’s cars. It’s houses that men keep messy.

The car won’t activate because I’m a woman, so you can guess what I’m going to do next.

Hm. 9 potential locations. The possibilities are… well, nine.

This seems like an appropriate time to stop, so I’ll explore the locations in man-town next time.

Session time: 1 hour 15 minutes Total time: 3 hours 45 minutes

Note Regarding Spoilers and Companion Assist Points: There’s a set of rules regarding spoilers and companion assist points. Please read it here before making any comments that could be considered a spoiler in any way. The short of it is that no points will be given for hints or spoilers given in advance of me requiring one. Please…try not to spoil any part of the game for me…unless I really obviously need the help…or I specifically request assistance. In this instance, I’ve not made any requests for assistance. Thanks!

source http://reposts.ciathyza.com/rex-nebular-to-boldly-go-where-no-man-has-gone-before/

#retro games #dos games #retro #crpg #adventure #amiga #oldcomputers #8bit #16bit #blog #repost

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