2013/01/18 [DMFA #1370] - ...and then ram your head through the wall after it!

[ChaosMageX]

That's certainly what I'd do if I were as frustrated as Destania right now, especially since it's really the only way she can physically head-desk at this point.

EDIT: Also, I hope this is a date format readers on both sides of the Atlantic can agree on.  It's a new year so it's time for a new format, don't you think?

[Tapewolf]

Nicely vague.  We're still none the wiser as to who she was trying to hit - I'd say the comic was leading us to believe that she was trying to kill Abel and is mad that it failed.  But it's also possible that she means she's just organised a hit on the person who tried to kill Her/Dan/Abel.  Dark Pegasus and Pyroduck are also possible candidates.

[sanasawa]

Someone has probably already pointed it out, but Des has been waiting for an opportunity to get rid of Abel for Years.

http://www.missmab.com/Comics/Ab_102.php

[Tapewolf]

Someone has probably already pointed it out, but Des has been waiting for an opportunity to get rid of Abel for Years.

Hard to say.  After that happened he persuaded her to teach him the Furrae equivalent of judo, and she seems to have been grooming him to assassinate Aniz for her (see 713).  Also he has been assigned to protect her son by Fa'Lina, and Destania knows this from Alexsi.  I imagine Destania would not be in for a fun time if Fa'Lina finds out that she's had him murdered.

[MT Hazard]

Also, I hope this is a date format readers on both sides of the Atlantic can agree on.  It's a new year so it's time for a new format, don't you think?

I think we're fine using using the date system of the first posters country/region. 

Is it just me or does Biggs have rather pronounced muscles in this strip? I've started noticing it more because a significant number of artists draw characters with muscles that can only be developed with specific exercises, rather than the 'natural' muscle people build from living an active life. That said Biggs probably is vain enough to do those certain exercises.

[ChaosMageX]

Someone has probably already pointed it out, but Des has been waiting for an opportunity to get rid of Abel for Years.

http://www.missmab.com/Comics/Ab_102.php

Hard to say.  After that happened he persuaded her to teach him the Furrae equivalent of judo, and she seems to have been grooming him to assassinate Aniz for her (see 713).  Also he has been assigned to protect her son by Fa'Lina, and Destania knows this from Alexsi.  I imagine Destania would not be in for a fun time if Fa'Lina finds out that she's had him murdered.

Hmm, I'm actually not so sure if any of those reasons would prevent or dissuade Destania from killing Abel if the motive mentioned on page 102 is still there, when you consider the following...

For the first reason, the judo lessons might have been part of an official SAIA class that Abel officially signed up for.  In a university setting (or at least the one I'm familiar with), your relationship with the professor is only part of the factor for your performance in a course.  If you have a negative relationship with the professor, it isn't likely they'd let you audit their course, but if you're officially enrolled in it, and for some reason the administration won't allow the professor to drop/flunk you from the course without probable cause, there's little they can do except grade you more harshly than the rest of the class.  In combat classes, I think harsher grading would either break you or make you an exceptional fighter, and since Abel evidently wasn't broken by Destania's lessons, he was probably made better for it.

However, these judo lessons could have been more private, outside of an official classroom environment.  In that case, they would have been done mainly for the purpose of grooming Abel to eventually kill Aniz, and Destania would have put her desire to kill Abel aside for that purpose.  
I'm assuming that one reason is that Abel might make a great shield.  If he failed at killing Aniz, he'd be as good as dead anyway, and if he succeeded, he'd be the target for any backlash from killing Aniz, possibly including backlash from Taun clan or others.  Destania could avoid this backlash by feigning innocence and coming up with ulterior motives for giving Abel private combat lessons if they weren't part of some official combat class.  But now that Aniz is dead, that reason is no longer valid.

I doubt even her direct reason for not killing him on that page would hold up now.  Sure, as a tri-winged succubus, Fa'lina would definitely have the power to stop Destania from directly killing Abel in a heartbeat, especially within the confines of SAIA.  However, neither of them are at SAIA anymore, and on top of that, I think by now both of them have faded from Fa'lina's ability to predict them given the amount of time they've been away from SAIA.

And finally, let's not forget that Destania's ultimate plan is to eliminate the entire dragon race from the face of Furrae, and there are likely several members of that race who are just as powerful as Fa'lina or any other tri-winged cubi, if not more so.  If Destania is orchestrating that plan without fear of facing the wraith of those powerful dragons, do you think she would fear Fa'lina's wraith from killing Abel at this point?

Heck, given how she's using third party assassins, and on top of that posing as Biggs ordering those assassins, without her tri-wing foresight Fa'lina might not even find out it was Destania that killed Abel until it was too late.  That might be why Fa'lina was being so wistful about Destania, almost as if she knows there's almost nothing she can do to stop her or at least dissuade her, especially if she knows that Destania no longer fears her power.

This lack of fear of Fa'lina, or confidence or false bravado that Fa'lina wouldn't be able to do anything about her actions would also make Pyroduck a possible candidate for assassination as well.

All that aside, we at least know the target was male, so that narrows it down, albeit slightly.

And now, I am very tired, and I think I'll collapse into bed now, only to wake up and re-read what I wrote and see several problems with what I just wrote because I wrote it when I was so tired, and yeah... Z_Z

[Tapewolf]

Heck, given how she's using third party assassins, and on top of that posing as Biggs ordering those assassins, without her tri-wing foresight Fa'lina might not even find out it was Destania that killed Abel until it was too late.  That might be why Fa'lina was being so wistful about Destania, almost as if she knows there's almost nothing she can do to stop her or at least dissuade her, especially if she knows that Destania no longer fears her power.

I don't know - if Abel can figure out it was her, others would too.  In any case, it would mean that once her dragon plan is complete she'd have Taun's clan mad at her.

I think the biggest problem with the idea of her having called a hit on the inn is that it betrays her own location.  Alexsi knows where she is, and even Dan knows that Destania "was" working for Biggs and occasionally drops by at the Twink Territories.  The reason that Abel claimed he was the only 'Cubi at Lost Lake was apparently to deflect things away from Dan - Destania deliberately bringing the inn into focus would be almost suicidal and it threatens Dan too.  And if that happens, well... Cyra's not going to be very pleased.

[psilorder]

713 also makes clear she knows Abel is teaching her son.
Would Destania really put a hit on her sons teacher before making sure her son had learned as much as possible?
Unless there was some other reason beyond annoyance and if i remember correctly Destanias reason to be pissed at Able was because he didn't jump at the chance to help her take out Aniz.

[joshofspam]

I'm actually starting to wonder just how loyal Dess is to Biggs at this point?

With how she's using his identity and resources, I can't help but think she's only so agreeable with him because he allows her to advance whatever she's up to.

Hmmmmmm...I can think of someone else besides Abel that she would want to throw a desk about because of how they annoy other people with their personality.

[Jasae Bushae]

As a side note, what are twinks again? way back when they were introduced it seemed they were basically trolls but...
well the demonolegy page on them is still blank so im kinda curious XD

[Eboreg]

This story has all the makings of a Thirty-Xanatos pileup. Normally, I wouldn't get involved with a story like that but it's still so engaging.

[Sofox]

Chaos: Like the new date format, certainly makes sense to me. Programmers also like that format as arraging the dates in alphabetical order means it's also arranged in chronological order.

By the way, we do know that Destania's hit ended up killing Merlitz right? I thought this was obvious but don't see anyone mentioning it. It was blatantly implied in #1369 that Abel believes that Destania caused the adventurer's to jump to their conclusion, and since that the information that led to that conclusion was "Merlitz was killed by a Cubi from the Lost Lake", it seems reasonable to expect that Abel believes Destania killed Merlitz. The scene change seems to confirm that Destania was involved in someone's death, so it seems reasonable to conclude that it was the death of Merlitz.

Now clearly something went wrong, but what exactly went wrong and whether Merlitz was the original target are questions for another update.

Oh, and gotta love the Matilda climbing up on the comic frame. Nice way of running loose on the website.

[ChaosMageX]

As a side note, what are twinks again? way back when they were introduced it seemed they were basically trolls but...
well the demonolegy page on them is still blank so im kinda curious XD

Well, under normal circumstances I think a twink is not only a troll, but also someone who actively violates the rules of a roleplaying game, most notably through taking actions against other players without their consent, aka power playing.

There is a TV tropes article somewhere that states that in DMFA, the twinks did indeed start out as trolling power players because the world was originally based in Furcadia and the internet, but after it "grew the beard" so to speak, the Twinks became a crime syndicate.  I'm not sure if Amber has ever directly confirmed this in the forums or one of her long lost rants, so I also have my own theory.

I think that in the DMFA universe, twinking is actually a martial art dependent on the fact that Furrae is so saturated with magic.  I think it basically allows one to defy the laws of physics in combat within a localized area through intense mental concentration, which would explain why small people including Wildy and Biggs (Destania) can do things like beat down Dan, who is twice their size, with minimal effort.  As long as the other combatant doesn't have the same amount of mental focus (like whether or not players are able to detect and call twinks on their BS in actual roleplaying games), the technique is really rather effective and allows for an easy victory.

That would make the Twink Territories home to people who have banded together to train in and master this martial art.  Sure they might be an actual crime syndicate that uses the martial art for nefarious purposes (other than just playfully trolling people in neighboring lands), or they might just be a group of people with a mutual interest in twinking, the martial art of trolling.

[Dressari]

*Sigh* I don't normally get involved on forums these days. But what the hell.

A little food for thought but is anyone stopping to consider the idea that the HIT Destania is actually referring to is the one she sent her son on. Namely when she directed Dan to Dark Pegasus. Time between the comics doesn't pass very much so it would stand to reason Dee has only just received news of it tanking. Not to mention her son almost getting killed.

This Becka character, we have no idea who she is. An informant most likely, but her name rings strangely familiar to that of the character on the Demo 101 page as I believe someone else pointed out, but that is far fetched at most. Destania likely has informants among the undead keeping track of DP.

I really don't see the sense and logic of Destania wanting to off anyone at the Inn, as Tapewolf pointed out that would be bringing too much attention to the Lost Lake. I don't even think Destania is even aware of whats happened at the Inn right now, it's too soon. In fact I don't think she's even aware that Dan IS at the Academy now.

In regards to Abel his old man is dead and thus no longer a problem. He's been assigned by Fa'Lina to look after Dan. What possible reason could there be to have him killed off now, vengeance, vanity, to prove a point? In fact offing Abel would just reduce the defenses the Inn has and make it more likly Dan is going to get killed. There is also Fa'Lina as a factor, even if she did kill him off and pretend that the headmistress wasn't going to be a problem, there will always be the possibility that Fa'Lina will do something in the background to screw up Destania's plans subtly. She did it to Aniz I wouldn't be surprised if Fa'Lina would do it to Destania too.

And I say this about Fa'Lina as well as Abel but I really don't think these two know Destnaia all that well anymore, it's been over 25 years since the academy they're assuming she hasn't changed much. Abel claims it as a -her- and that's a very vague description in it own. Yet as we've seen before Abel is not very keen on Destania in the first place, so it would be easy for him to assume her to blame.

I don't believe in my opinion that a Cubi no matter how old couldn't change their view on some things in a few years. She got married, she had kids, those two events alone could change someone's personality drastically but not necessarily their goals in life. And in those 25 years she may not be too much like what Abel and Fa'Lina will recall her as she was at the Academy.

Another thing is, is if Destania was going to push through a hit, why would she use something unreliable as an Adventurer group. They've already proven unreliable at even getting the right target, and the fact they use their intuitions more than they do their brains and can easily be manipulated by almost anyone. The BoB believe it was a Cubi at the Lost Lake that killed Merlitz, and we already know that source is compromised and unreliable because of Pyroduck's investigation.

Actually aside from DP, Merlitz could be the other hit as someone else mentioned as well. But I don't really see the benefit to wasting resources on that, not to mention something went wrong means that if Merlitz is dead because of Destania, why would she be pissed.


I really don't want to look like and claim I know better than anyone and i'm not saying this is all true. But if there's one thing I've learnt about reading DMFA, is never take what some of the characters say at face value as being accurate. Even characters in a story can be wrong in their assessment. Maybe I'm biased because I really like Destania as a character, but we actually know little about her in the main comic and this is 400 years after Abel's story. That a big gap of time we don't know much about still.

Okay... enough rambling from me, that's my forum post of the year, I just wanted to get that out there. I need to get back to finishing up this gift for a certain "unnamed" artist I've been working on all last year. I probably won't post again in response to anyone else sadly, forums scare me these days.

[Sofox]

A little food for thought but is anyone stopping to consider the idea that the HIT Destania is actually referring to is the one she sent her son on. Namely when she directed Dan to Dark Pegasus. Time between the comics doesn't pass very much so it would stand to reason Dee has only just received news of it tanking. Not to mention her son almost getting killed.

Damn, that sounds like the most logical answer, should have thought of that myself. Guess I got too stuck up on my theory.

[Ignuus66]

Anyone smell tea on the horizon?

Anyhow back to topic:
If dee were to have heard the news about dan, then she probably would have a quite different reply to Biggs other than blatantly covering the truth.
(also Is it just me or are the doors a bit oversized considering the house/palace WAS built for biggs)

[Tapewolf]

If dee were to have heard the news about dan, then she probably would have a quite different reply to Biggs other than blatantly covering the truth.

Actually, the last time Destania did this - pretending to be Biggs - was when she sent Dan to kill DP.

[Angel]

What Fa'lina says here is what's giving me the most pause right now. Apparently, the Lost Lake gang would have died in less than a month had Abel NOT gone. While he is still the prime suspect for Destania's target, this bumps the likelihood down a bit. Otherwise, who would people have gone to kill? Probably Dan or Pyroduck, all things considered, which is what bumps Pyroduck a few smidges up. Both are equally likely to be the target, I guess. But I just don't know, and that's what's fun about this comic.

[Naldru]

I just realized that I posted on Monday's page instead of today's.

If you remember, Dark Pegasus told Regina that they were going to do something.  Arranging hits on cubi would seem reasonable.  If it was done through a third party, Dark Pegasus might consider that it wouldn't be breaking the truce he made with Dan.  I therefore find it easy to believe that DP is behind the attack on the inn.

Destania views Alexsis as her daughter, but she also views the inn as her property as well as that of Dan and Alexsis.  If Destania arranged an attack on the inn, it would be against her interests in many ways.

Destania arranging a hit on Dark Pegasus seems reasonable.  Dark Pegasus also seems like the kind of person who could provoke you into throwing a desk into a wall.  Even if she was angry at Abel, I can't see Abel making her mad enough to throw a desk.

[joshofspam]

Another thing that I thought of is that if we consider how these secret plans on taking out the Dragon race are any clue and can determine the size of it, then the list of people she could be talking about now might be bigger then the actual known cast.

It might be possible that we haven't even seen this person yet.

[KV1NN4]

Anyone smell tea on the horizon?

Anyhow back to topic:
If dee were to have heard the news about dan, then she probably would have a quite different reply to Biggs other than blatantly covering the truth.
(also Is it just me or are the doors a bit oversized considering the house/palace WAS built for biggs)

His secretary is a regular sized Creature (even tho she could've been smaller if she wished)... but given the diversity of shapes and sizes of the sentient inhabitants of Furrae it may just be convenient to just have the 'average' size of everything... espc. if he's having business meetings and doesn't want to inconvenience potential allies/lady-friends who're bigger than him..and having an excess of space is a defintie sign of power and status... and I have a feeling he has (or likes to project that he has) quite a lot of it.

Also, if I recall correctly, The Inn and the surrounding city is prodiminantly home to 5'-6' sized beings (hence why Jyrras was so tiny compared to most classmates and friends)... other cities exist for creatures larger or smaller.

So...Biggs can say he's Living Large...and mean it literally.: B

~K. *: )

ps: Heck, Jyrras himself lives in a house with many over-sized amenities...granted, given the size of his family, it would make it hard for them to visit, and Lorenda would be pretty boned.

[joshofspam]

Anyone smell tea on the horizon?

Anyhow back to topic:
If dee were to have heard the news about dan, then she probably would have a quite different reply to Biggs other than blatantly covering the truth.
(also Is it just me or are the doors a bit oversized considering the house/palace WAS built for biggs)

His secretary is a regular sized Creature (even tho she could've been smaller if she wished)... but given the diversity of shapes and sizes of the sentient inhabitants of Furrae it may just be convenient to just have the 'average' size of everything... espc. if he's having business meetings and doesn't want to inconvenience potential allies/lady-friends who're bigger than him..and having an excess of space is a defintie sign of power and status... and I have a feeling he has (or likes to project that he has) quite a lot of it.

Also, if I recall correctly, The Inn and the surrounding city is prodiminantly home to 5'-6' sized beings (hence why Jyrras was so tiny compared to most classmates and friends)... other cities exist for creatures larger or smaller.

So...Biggs can say he's Living Large...and mean it literally.: B

~K. *: )

ps: Heck, Jyrras himself lives in a house with many over-sized amenities...granted, given the size of his family, it would make it hard for them to visit, and Lorenda would be pretty boned.

Those are some very goods points. To live large and in charge, it fits so well with Biggs personality.

[Plotting]

Here is my personal theory:

Des knows that Abel is teaching Dan when he is not at SAIA part of the time. If Abel were to meet an unfortunate "accident" then Dan would be more inclined to stay at SAIA as it would be the only place he could get his Cubi education. At SAIA he would be safe while she destroys the Dragon race.

Side Notes:

From what I have seen, Des does not seem to care about anything other than herself, her own plans/interests, and her families interests. And she cares about them in that order.

She also seems like the sort of person who would sacrifice anything, including her family, to achieve her own goals. The whole "loving mother" thing may simply be lies. She would not be the first Cubi to have pretended to care about their family. Look at Aniz, whom she personally taught. Des may just be, or all intents and purposes, the female equivalent of Aniz. She is also likely not above lying to others. After all she invented the "special incantation" ploy.

Finally, she seems to hate Abel for not taking her side and killing his father for her. She likely still hates him, and reasons that if he is not on her side, then he is her enemy.

[Nino]

From what I have seen, Des does not seem to care about anything other than herself, her own plans/interests, and her families interests. And she cares about them in that order.

She also seems like the sort of person who would sacrifice anything, including her family, to achieve her own goals. The whole "loving mother" thing may simply be lies. She would not be the first Cubi to have pretended to care about their family. Look at Aniz, whom she personally taught. Des may just be, or all intents and purposes, the female equivalent of Aniz.

Finally, she seems to hate Abel for not taking her side and killing his father for her. She likely still hates him, and reasons that if he is not on her side, then he is her enemy.

This is exactly what I think is going on as well. She seems to be just a very self-centered creature.

[Plotting]

This is exactly what I think is going on as well. She seems to be just a very self-centered creature.

Indeed. And lets not forget she has organized a hit on Abel after she has had a family and supposedly mellowed out.

I say she has organized a hit on Abel as she implies she has met the intended victim before. I don't recall her ever meeting Pyroduck.

[Plotting]

I have not been here for a while so I would also like to say...

I love how Amber has gotten rid of Abels spots while working it into the story in a believable manner!

[Angel]

A few more things I'm noticing, looking back at the arc "Get Me to the Church".

Why Destania is interested in Abel, even now, after three centuries to mellow out.

Why she probably hasn't ordered a hit on her own son, and why she MIGHT have ordered a hit on Pyroduck.

All this in mind, her last line in today's strip says that Abel is the most likely candidate. I doubt she's ever met Pyroduck.

[Grey Wolf]

Actually, Destania probably has met Pyroduck. And seems to have given him her blessing, in a way.

[Plotting]

A few more things I'm noticing, looking back at the arc "Get Me to the Church".

Why Destania is interested in Abel, even now, after three centuries to mellow out.

That would really depend on what she meant by "vested interest". One way of defining "vested interest" is:a special concern or stake in maintaining or influencing a condition, arrangement, or action especially for selfish ends.

And she specifically says she once had a vested interest in Abel.

All this in mind, her last line in today's strip says that Abel is the most likely candidate. I doubt she's ever met Pyroduck.

But that would suggest she does not have an interest in Abel - unless she in interested in seeing him dead.

[Pvblivs]

Okay, I'm going to chime in.  I don't think she is sufficiently interested in Abel anymore to try to arrange his death (at least for it's own sake.)  But a certain kangaroo-rat's gadgets might cause problems for her plans.  And she might be concerned about the protection he has.  By sending some "kill first, ask questions later" adventurers to the vicinity, she may have hoped that he would be killed in what looked like "collateral damage."