Entry tags:
notes on AGL 23
It's up, which I assume you already know if you are reading this, but just in case. The following commentary contains spoilers for the chapter, and I strongly recommend reading that first.
Many of my plot twists are organic, revealing themselves to me as I go along. Not this one. I have been planning Kinoc's betrayal from the very beginning, pretty much in this exact form, and it's driven many of my other decisions. We don't learn much about Kinoc's relationship to Auron in the game, but we do get a few key facts. Namely, that Kinoc and Auron are friends when Auron leaves on Braska's pilgrimage, but by the time of Yuna's pilgrimage, Auron thinks very little of Kinoc, to the point where he plainly asserts that Kinoc would execute a friend. It always seemed to me that something really extreme must have happened between them to cause this change. I think this fits the bill.
From his very first appearance in Chapter 4, I felt like I was walking a tightrope with Kinoc's characterization. He had to be sympathetic at first, because we need to believe that Auron sees him as a true friend, but the backstab can't appear completely out of nowhere, either. So I took the tactic of portraying him as a basically decent person who genuinely thinks of Auron as a friend, but who also is willing to do whatever it takes to get ahead. For Auron, duty comes before all else; Kinoc's driving force is ambition. I hope this comes through in the story.
I've also been planning Kal's role as the messenger for some time. That's why I couldn't kill him off before. Everywhere else I've used Kal, I could have slotted in Jass pretty easily (except for the Sam connection, but I hadn't conceived of that character yet when I was writing "Shattered Calm", and I'm sure I could have found a different way to bring Jass into the present and connect him to Lissira). But Jass didn't know Kinoc. I just couldn't see any reason for Kinoc to spill his guts to Jass when his friendship with Auron was their only connection. Kal, on the other hand, had an independent relationship with Kinoc since they were all roommates together. It's maybe still a little far-fetched, but much more within the bounds of realism. So far, I'm really glad I went this direction, because I think Kal is a good character, and I enjoy writing him.
It's interesting that I've gotten conflicting feedback in reviews for pretty much the first time for this chapter, and that the topic is the one thing in the chapter I'm not completely happy with: the relationship between Auron and Jecht. I'm not completely convinced that it's in character for Auron to have spilled his whole story like that, especially when he's still not sure that Jecht is who and what he says he is. When I plotted that segment out, I had been thinking that this session would be a good way to bring the two men closer together -- Auron's carrying around a serious emotional burden that he doesn't feel he can share with Braska, so he gets the support from Jecht instead and they start to become friends. But maybe I'm thinking too much like a woman (which I am, in case you haven't figured that out by now, heh) and guys don't really relate to each other like that. Who knows. So anyway, it intrigues me that the scene works for some readers but not others.
As for Paine not wanting to tell Baralai about Kinoc's involvement in the Auron affair, I have a reason for that, too. If you've gotten Baralai's Sphere in FF X-2, you know that Baralai went to work for Seymour after the Den of Woe. It is strongly implied that Baralai makes this choice largely because Seymour and Kinoc were rivals, and Baralai wants to take down Kinoc for his role in the Crimson Squad massacre. He still bears a grudge toward Kinoc, and Paine is worried about his reaction if he learns about yet another treacherous action of the Maester. I haven't decided whether I will do more with this thread or not. It's likely, it won't be for awhile.
Chapter 24 is almost entirely unwritten. I think I know what it's going to be about, but except for the short section I wrote on the plane Sunday, none of it is set down. But 25 is pretty much done, and I'm really excited about getting there. So I have an incentive to finish 24. We'll see if it helps. If it does, they may be up by this weekend.
Many of my plot twists are organic, revealing themselves to me as I go along. Not this one. I have been planning Kinoc's betrayal from the very beginning, pretty much in this exact form, and it's driven many of my other decisions. We don't learn much about Kinoc's relationship to Auron in the game, but we do get a few key facts. Namely, that Kinoc and Auron are friends when Auron leaves on Braska's pilgrimage, but by the time of Yuna's pilgrimage, Auron thinks very little of Kinoc, to the point where he plainly asserts that Kinoc would execute a friend. It always seemed to me that something really extreme must have happened between them to cause this change. I think this fits the bill.
From his very first appearance in Chapter 4, I felt like I was walking a tightrope with Kinoc's characterization. He had to be sympathetic at first, because we need to believe that Auron sees him as a true friend, but the backstab can't appear completely out of nowhere, either. So I took the tactic of portraying him as a basically decent person who genuinely thinks of Auron as a friend, but who also is willing to do whatever it takes to get ahead. For Auron, duty comes before all else; Kinoc's driving force is ambition. I hope this comes through in the story.
I've also been planning Kal's role as the messenger for some time. That's why I couldn't kill him off before. Everywhere else I've used Kal, I could have slotted in Jass pretty easily (except for the Sam connection, but I hadn't conceived of that character yet when I was writing "Shattered Calm", and I'm sure I could have found a different way to bring Jass into the present and connect him to Lissira). But Jass didn't know Kinoc. I just couldn't see any reason for Kinoc to spill his guts to Jass when his friendship with Auron was their only connection. Kal, on the other hand, had an independent relationship with Kinoc since they were all roommates together. It's maybe still a little far-fetched, but much more within the bounds of realism. So far, I'm really glad I went this direction, because I think Kal is a good character, and I enjoy writing him.
It's interesting that I've gotten conflicting feedback in reviews for pretty much the first time for this chapter, and that the topic is the one thing in the chapter I'm not completely happy with: the relationship between Auron and Jecht. I'm not completely convinced that it's in character for Auron to have spilled his whole story like that, especially when he's still not sure that Jecht is who and what he says he is. When I plotted that segment out, I had been thinking that this session would be a good way to bring the two men closer together -- Auron's carrying around a serious emotional burden that he doesn't feel he can share with Braska, so he gets the support from Jecht instead and they start to become friends. But maybe I'm thinking too much like a woman (which I am, in case you haven't figured that out by now, heh) and guys don't really relate to each other like that. Who knows. So anyway, it intrigues me that the scene works for some readers but not others.
As for Paine not wanting to tell Baralai about Kinoc's involvement in the Auron affair, I have a reason for that, too. If you've gotten Baralai's Sphere in FF X-2, you know that Baralai went to work for Seymour after the Den of Woe. It is strongly implied that Baralai makes this choice largely because Seymour and Kinoc were rivals, and Baralai wants to take down Kinoc for his role in the Crimson Squad massacre. He still bears a grudge toward Kinoc, and Paine is worried about his reaction if he learns about yet another treacherous action of the Maester. I haven't decided whether I will do more with this thread or not. It's likely, it won't be for awhile.
Chapter 24 is almost entirely unwritten. I think I know what it's going to be about, but except for the short section I wrote on the plane Sunday, none of it is set down. But 25 is pretty much done, and I'm really excited about getting there. So I have an incentive to finish 24. We'll see if it helps. If it does, they may be up by this weekend.
Auron & Jecht
(Anonymous) 2005-06-29 11:53 am (UTC)(link)Regarding Jecht and Auron's relationship, I think that this is something really hard to understand, mainly because both men don't easily give voice to their feelings, and if they do, it's not the same way. Jecht, for example, isn't able to express plainly his emotions (e.g. his relation with is son), much probably because as Tidus, he is an emotional guy. Auron, on the other hand, isn't emotional, but passionate. He is the one who, in the end, makes Tidus understand his father.
To complicate things, there's an age difference between them that naturally tends to make Jecht as the stronger one/support/confident. I think that at the beginning of Braska's pilgrimage, Jecht wasn't much help, emotionally speaking, for Auron. But in the end, he was the one who quelled the fears and insecurities of young Auron. (Auron played the same role with Tidus, later in Zanarkand).
I always imagined that at first, their relationship would be a very agressive one: Auron being young, impatient and devoted doesn't take time to understand Jecht. The latter, with his cocky attitude only worsen things. I also think that it took Braska's pilgrimage for the two men to come to respect each other. Jecht finally understood the purpose of the pilgrimage and Auron understood how difficult it is for Jecht to give up his previous life and dream for a foreign world.
Auron explained all that to Tidus in the game. But I don't think that ten years ago, young Auron was able to understand it that way. He most probably felt it and truely came to like Jecht, but most of this friendship the two men was a silent one, where no to little personal matters were discussed.
There's something difficult about the Jecht's spheres and your story: all the spheres's content and backstory was made to highlight the relation between Tidus and his father. Auron is the bridge between them, but has no true story for himself. If your goal is to focus on Auron's story, then maybe that you should let Jecht and Auron's friendship aside.
Sorry for the rambling and English mistakes (I'm not a native speaker.)
Anyway, let me know what you think.
nidrig
Re: Auron & Jecht
I definitely see what you are saying about seeing Auron and Jecht's relationship as more... subtle, maybe, than I've been portraying it. I can't ignore it entirely, though, because the promise that Auron made to Jecht -- to go to Zanarkand and watch over Tidus -- is what keeps his story going after he dies. And I really do want to keep going forward into Yuna's pilgrimage. As much as anything, I'm telling the story of Auron and Kinoc, and I don't think that particular tale would be complete without Operation Mi'ihen and the assault on Bevelle.
You may have noticed that I've skipped most of the Jecht Spheres, only including those three at the beginning that are vital to explaining how the pilgrimage got underway (and Auron's Sphere of course), and I'm pretty much done with them. I agree with you that their purpose in the game is more about helping Tidus form a connection to Jecht than really telling the story of Braska and company. I do want to include one more, the one in Besaid, because it's more about Auron and Braska than it is about Jecht, and that particular relationship has always been fairly key to the story I'm writing. But we'll see -- I'll cut it if I can't make it work.
Re: Auron & Jecht
Re: Auron & Jecht
Gippal is with Nhadala (as established in "Chasing My Past" and then at Paine's party in Ch. 17). Rikku is wandering the world with Buddy, but they are not attached; she's a single girl and loving it.
Arelle will appear in the Liss thread, but I don't think that will happen until nearly the end. As for who she is going to meet again and when, I think I want to leave those details be for now. Suffice it to say that you will see her again, in both stories.
I've been wondering when someone would ask me point blank whether Nooj is dead. That question will be answered at the bottom of the post, so that it's easier to skip if someone reading this really doesn't want to know.
You're right, Nooj was the "great love" that Baralai refers to, both in the party scene and in "Can't Ask for More". I know what happened there, but since I'm thinking about writing that story some day I don't want to go into detail here. Suffice it to say that it was ugly, but it happened some time ago, and folks have moved on with their lives.
I have to say, it's weirdly gratifying that you are enough into my story that you're lying awake at night thinking about it! In some ways, I feel like that's a huge compliment. So thanks. I think. ;)
spoiler space!
the answer is yes.