On Wed, 24 Oct 2001 08:18:07 +0000 "Sally Manton" smanton@hotmail.com writes:
Possibly, but this is where *I* might have have problems (speaking as someone, remember, who ain't keen on Avon&Cally anyway and might be biased). It's the timing. Possibly he would notice ... but right at *this* moment, possibly he might not notice or - if he did - much care. In fact, despite the fact that I really believe he is quite fond of Cally, his reaction just at *this particular minute* might be - "just get over it."
Maybe, but (sorry, about to get very long winded here)-
Part of where this idea began was when I made up an extremely alternative interrpretation for events in Power. Basically, assume that the Seska were once the dominant group in their society with unimplanted women at the bottom of the social heap. Nina rebelled against this status quo and worked to overthrow it.
All right, having taken that as a basis, I was musing on ways Kate might have survived (a naive telekinetic would be interesting). I'd played with some theories about why Nina might have been particularly hostile towards Avon & co. (Soolin wasn't hiding in the base, she had gone over to the Hommik camp and . . . never mind, long story. But assume Nina was not favorably impressed with Avon even before she met him). What if the situation was different? Soolin didn't know what Dorian was really like, I think. That is, she didn't know he was a sick puppy who, from my impression of his hints (and the fact that his inner self [as shown in the basement] seems to look like walking mucus), enjoyed the sort of things that would shock an FBI profiler. Given Soolin's own history, I don't think this would go over well with her.
So, assume Cally has been hurt physically as well as mentally. Nina seems to be the only qualified medical provider on the planet. Assume Soolin is feeling guilty enough that, instead of trying to get a bolt hole, she winds up trying to get Nina to help. Nina agrees (although I imagine a few Hommik warriors accompany her). Instead of seeing Avon as Dorian's successor, she sees him and his friends more as another set of victims.
Although this also led to a situation with a confrontation with Pella, Nina lets Kate go, partly because of Cally's intervention (after she's regained consciousness), partly because Kate's her daughter (and I think she's lost other children in this war), and partly because, by her own traditions, she can at least argue the sophistry that Kate, having joined these others, is part of another tribe and no longer a Seska (if they want to risk an implanted type wandering around, that's their problem). Oh, and they still get the bomb defused.
However, during part of that when Avon didn't know whether Cally was going to survive, he had a good, old fashioned guilt fest. In this time line, Dorian had used at least some of the time while the others were bathing and resting, to start to work on Cally, even if he had to hold off making her a full part of his cellar. Between one thing and another (I see Dorian as a good note taker, if nothing else), Avon gets what he thinks is a hideously complete picture of what was happening while he was only a few feet away taking a shower and then a nap (he hasn't slept for how long at this point?). He's suffering a fair amount of guilt because 1) he has a crystal clear picture of how his decisions caused this, and 2) I think Avon has control issues and the fact that this was going on while he was oblivious would bother him the most (I actually think he'd handle it better if he'd known one of the others was in trouble, realized there was nothing he could do, and _chosen_ to act as if he was ignoring it).
Whew.
OK, so this might have set up S4 so that they had better long term chances ("Kate, please, be ready to turn on the drive so we don't fry Dr. Plaxton"). It would also put what had happened to Cally front and center for Avon's attention.
Also, I think Cally is trying to 'get over it.' She's trying to deal with it without involving the others. It's just not working.
Still, I'm not sure what Avon can do about it. Even assuming he could get into Cally's mind (unlikely), I don't think he'd be better off fighting things than she is (although he _is_ a better insomniac). And what if these are more than just memories and trauma? What if some aspect of Dorian is still alive and lurking in Cally's brain? Is this leading up to some scenario where Avon might be forced to decide Cally was too great a threat to them? Or might Cally decide that herself? And shouldn't Kate (who thinks that Cally, as a woman who can do psionic things _without_ an implant, is higher up than a Seska) have something to do with how this works out since I went through the trouble of putting her in the story?
But, assuming I ever figure out an ending, I'd say that Avon would be up to at least one conversation with Cally in a place and time where he's sure he's not going to be interrupted before he finds out what's going on.
Ellynne ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.