Lisa the Legend: Chapter 82 - Last Night on Earth now up! (24th June 2013)

[Master Kirby]

That was definitely a major chapter in the history of LTL! Up until now, Lisa was just traveling around trying to solve these mysteries, not knowing what role she played in them. Now that she has learned of the Guard, it changes everything. Her world has been turned upside down, and her view of her parents has been completely changed.

You did a great job showing everything Lisa was going through and how she reacted to it. The sections where you mentioned the things that Lisa had been doing up to this point were real helpful since it has been ages since those chapters were written.

I'm glad to hear that Gavin is still in the land of the living, though that was a surprise to hear Joseph Sterling say he killed Professor Oak. The only flaws I could find were minor grammatical errors such as what mr_pikachu mentioned. There also seemed to be more profanity than the average chapter, though compared with the massive length and quality of your writing, I have to say, this turned out pretty well. I bet you sure are glad that you finally finished this chapter, and don't have to hide all these mysteries anymore. Though ........... now that we know what Lisa's parents explained of the legend, that still leaves us with plenty other plot twists. We still don't know how Gavin's psychic abilities are linked to the family curse of an inevitable battle with a Psychic Pokemon. I also was wondering where Lunanine fits into the legend with the other 3 dogs. And why was Entei working with the Union and killing people (a girl in a tree if I remember correctly)? I guess over the 20 years since they were awakened there must have been some falling out between Entei and other two?

You definitely have plenty of writing material and possible directions to take us, so keep up the good work. While it is never "fun" waiting months for a new chapter, when it turns out this well done, I'm glad you didn't sacrifice quality by rushing it. I'm looking forward to Chapter 59 (almost to 60!).

[Gavin Luper]

Replies!

Brian: I'm stoked that you found this chapter so good. In regards to the grammar stuff, I fixed most of it but left the "k's" thing - that was one of the things I was referring to in the intro to the chapter, it feels better left like that. With the people telling Lisa where to go, it was like that - "Go to hell", and so on in that same vein. Frankly, I thought I might have overdone the emotion in this a little bit - at least from a rational, me-as-the-writer point of view. But when I looked at it as Lisa would, it felt right that she would be going through these feelings, so I knew I had to leave it in, and I'm glad I did. There was a feeling upon finishing this chapter that everything had come to a satisfactory close - not that all of it has been resolved, but it's reached an intermediate resolution of sorts in the storyline of the fic. I wouldn't call the end a cliffhanger in a conventional sense, but I do see what you mean by the broader sense of the term; and I tentatively assure you I won't be murdering anyone in the first sentence of Chapter 59.

MTR: Hey, good to see you back again. Thanks muchly for the reply, I'm really glad you felt it was worth the long wait, though I don't intend to spend so long on a chapter next time. (I've probably cursed it now. Yay.) Anyhow - thanks for the awe.

Oz: You know what, I quite seriously thought of Dr Blight (sp?) from Captain Planet when I wrote that too. It's quite bizarre actually. Moving on from our clearly very 1990s childhoods, good to hear your feedback, as always. As you said, it's setting the stage for a new scenario, aka, the rest of the fic. Darius and Marina are indeed part of it, and the full-on warfare wasn't a joke, either, as you'll see later in the next book. I felt quite Rowling-ish tying in that old floaties-drowning-flashback to this, but it was enjoyable, and it had been a long time coming. I left Gavin's story out intentionally: partly because I would have had some kind of breakdown if I tried to fit every aspect of the plot into one chapter; but mostly because he was still unconscious. There's so much more to come for Gavin, and it'll happen in the natural course of events, but right now it's about Lisa and the other two. Finally, don't ruin the last Ellie book for me! I'm convinced someone's finally going to get killed off or something. And it might even be Ellie, who knows? Anyway, I only just struggled through the mundaneness of that second one (skimmed it briefly), and I have yet to even buy the last one. *holds breath*

Ada: ^_^ Thank you. It's good to hear you could empathise with Lisa from a reader's viewpoint, I've always felt that I had trouble connecting her and you guys in the fic. Glad it all fitted together nicely, too. I see exactly where you're coming from with the whole Lance summing-up thing - truth be told, if there had only been a few months between these last few chapters instead of years, I might not have bothered with it. But, looking back, it seems right that he elaborated to the rest - it's not just about the continuity aspect, but about the realism of the story: some of the other people in that room had no idea what had taken place, and they deserved to be filled in. Lastly, your observation of the Guard's behaviour and motives is very interesting. I'm not going to give anything away, but I think you've pondered the politics more critically than Lisa has yet.

Master Kirby: You're spot on: that was kind of the pivotal chapter of LTL, the major turning point in the fic. Up until now, Lisa was essentially in the dark, and despite events, she could retain vestiges of (dare I say it?) nescience. But not anymore. Now, she knows the truth, she knows who she is, she knows the Legend, she knows who her enemies are and why they seek her: everything is set to change now. As you mentioned, there was a lot more swearing in this chapter, and it was wholly intentional; it would seem artificial to me to have people going through these strains, these emotions, and stay completely in control of themselves, to stay civil. That's not what I've noticed from my observation of life: people swear, they get angry and irrational when they are put under stress or trauma. You're right: I'm extremely relieved and satisfied to have this chapter finished and posted; the mysteries are all out there now. However, there are many more things to cover and work on - including the matters involving the Legendaries, and Gavin's mystery. As for Professor Oak, you'll see about that next chapter. Everything in it's own time ...

Phew!

*wipes sweat from brow*

OK, now to everyone, I've been kicking back and lazing around, just thinking about the next chapter and sequencing it all in my head. I'm actually thinking about making a Fanart request for someone to draw a few characters and maybe a scene from the fic; but I can't make up my mind because I don't want my imagination of these things to be ruined. I'll let you know if I follow this up or not.

As for the writing of Chapter 59, I haven't made a concrete start yet but I'm not bothered by this: it's going to be a short chapter; there's not much happening other than some thoughts, some loose ends tied up and a bit of important dialogue. Ultimately, it's the ending of Book Two.

Hopefully it will grace your screens shortly!

Cheers!

[Gavin Luper]

Brian: Thanks for the quick read and reply, as always. You're right in seeing that this chapter didn't have much by the way of plot progression. As far as I could see, everyone would be completely bombarded by the sheer volume of information revealed in Chapter 58 - from every angle, it seemed a wise move not to keep throwing out the high-intensity revelations, especially seeing as this was the summing-up chapter of the book. The conflict and the climax have already passed: Chapter 59 was the resolution, the tying-up of things for the time being - and as you said, it serves to bridge the gap from the hospital awakening to the departure from Mt Fairfax. I couldn't end my entire book on Chapter 58 - it didn't feel right or complete enough - so this was essentially a closing chapter, a short bridging chapter to book III. I'm glad you liked seeing Gavin again - he and Lisa haven't been together for a few chapters now - and I'm pleased that the end sequence with Paddy and the helicopters was effective, as it initially seemed a little bumpy to me.

Everyone: Hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year's celebrations! The contents page and book titles I promised before Christmas are on hold - I've had a change of heart with the titles, and I've got to decide which ones suit best.

I've had my post-book II rest now and I'm back working away at Book III. It's a mixture of the older LTL style merged with the new direction that Behind the Glass and Burnt Sunset began to take, and I hope you all like it when the first chapter comes along. In the meantime, if there's any more feedback from Chapter 59 and Book II, please let me know! Only having heard one response from readers makes me unsure whether you found the conclusion good or terrible, whether you like what has happened to Lisa or not, or what criticisms and advice you have for the whole fic and my writing! I really love to hear it, and it's the only way I grow as a writer, so feedback is much appreciated.

Cheers!

- Gavin.