Comic for March 9th, 2019: Roselyn's Spider-Web

[Hulk10]

The way she described that 'thing' in the room. Seems like its not a part of her. But the idea that she had to think about whether or not she would kill Trace is unsettling. But she had been through a lot of unpleasant things in her life so its not surprising.


But I'm glad I'm not Trace.

[Panther]

Soooo... "Like a spider-web", eh?

I suppose Tom could still be stringing us along, intentionally tossing out a red herring here for us to misinterpret, but I don't really think so. I think this further reinforces the idea that some part of Rose is in that room, whether it's her physical body or whatever. And now we have confirmation that, whatever was done to her, it was indeed old Trace that did it. I think there's still a lot coming on this topic - of course, in the usual Twokinds fashion we probably won't find out until next year sometime, given the number of plot threads currently in progress!

I think it's interesting to note that this also confirms that old Trace definitely didn't trust her. Even now, even *without* her restrictions, she still is barred from attacking him directly (I would assume that means attacking him with the mansion's defenses, which I would presume are hardcoded to not go after him), but he didn't think that was enough. He felt he had to further bind her, and not only restricting her abilities and influence over the manor, but also restricting her *mind* so she's not even fully aware of everything he's locked away from her. In other words, he didn't trust her to not stab him in the back. She may have been Saria's loyal friend, but that's not enough.

And, of course, old Trace may have been paranoid, but that doesn't mean he didn't actually have enemies. Obviously we can't say for sure, but it seems likely to me that he probably was smart to not give Rose free reign. We've already seen that Rose and old Trace apparently didn't have the most cordial relationship. She was at least partially (even if not *fully*) aware of what he'd done to her, and she was also apparently at least peripherally aware of his other activities (i.e. the general 'literally hitler' stuff), and it doesn't seem she particularly approved of him. If she hadn't been magically prevented from doing so, she may well *have* tried to do something about it.

That last line may well have been partly to mess with him, but I actually wouldn't be surprised if she actually *had* had to think about it a bit. Look at it from her perspective. This is the man who took the memory of her best friend and used it as an excuse to launch a genocidal crusade against her kind. This is the man who'd usurped power in a bloody coup and instituted a brutal regime, setting policy and issuing repressive laws as if he were a king. This is the man who has personally murdered hundreds, if not thousands, of people and has brought about the deaths of likely thousands more through his purges and intrigues and massacres and reprisals - not to mention the war he provoked! This is the man who'd taken the previously fairly good relations between humans and keidran and driven them to a fever pitch of mistrust and hatred and the brink of open war. And this is the man who'd bound her, body and soul, to be his servant such that she couldn't even *try* to stop him - or even truly be aware of what he'd taken from her!

And now, after years of being helpless, unable to do anything about it, suddenly she's unbound. Suddenly, sensations and feelings she'd almost forgotten come rushing back, her own mind and will restored to her - along with awareness of what had been done to her. And here, in front of her, is the man responsible for all of that. The tyrant, the man who'd taken the world and shoved it in the express elevator to hell, the one who'd betrayed the memory of her best friend and turned her into little more than a slave. Right here. Vulnerable. And she *can* strike at him now. He's metaphorically standing with his back turned and she has a knife in her hand and the freedom to swing it. She finally has a chance to *do* something, strike back in some way. In that rush, that moment of awareness after so long, who *wouldn't* be tempted to drive the blade home, at least for a moment?

And yet... and yet... it's not actually him. Trace the tyrant wouldn't have cared about the safety of others to begin with if they weren't important to his plans, wouldn't have unshackled her for their sake. Trace the tyrant wouldn't have been concerned for *her* wellbeing, wouldn't have asked if *she* was alright. Trace the tyrant would have responded to her statement of his vulnerability with violence (or, at least, an attempt to regain control), not nervousness. The entire *reason* he's vulnerable, that she *could* strike at him, is that it's not him. And I think she knows it. She may be tempted - and I certainly wouldn't blame her if she were a bit unstable after so long under such pressure! - but I think she understands now.

e: Also, note - fully normal eyes now. Even when the facade was cracked, her eyes still didn't have quite the same shading as everyone else's. Everyone else has the tops of their eyes with a black shadow - the colored iris doesn't go all the way up to the top. Rose, even when we saw behind the mask, didn't have that. She had a darker shading at the top, but not the black - but now she does. Somehow I can't think that's a coincidence.

Nice study ............ I'm one of the "fathers" of the theory about Rose being the creature in the room , but i have to admit i'm afraid to see her real form or the remains of

[Blue]

I made this account simply because I feel an undeterrable need to say that Roselyn now terrifies me.

[Neutral Smith]

Toms talent for expressions is astonishing.

Although I am in doubt, is Rose amused, or contemplating about what she could do in the last panel?

[Rafe]

One thing that seems to be coming through, on multiple levels, is that Rose is VERY good at hiding her true feelings. She's been used and betrayed for most of her life, to the point where one wonders if she could ever trust anyone again. Yes, she's relaxed lately in some small ways, but she always seems to default back to being a very reserved, insular, apologetic servant. Now that she's acquired some significant power, she's probably going to be even more cautious about letting people know what she's thinking.

Something else that seems to be happening - While Rose isn't an emotionless robot, she doesn't seem to (and maybe even avoids) seriously caring about anyone. Sure, she is sensitive to the need of others in a good-servant kind of way, but we've yet to see her be seriously empathetic or worried about how someone is feeling. On the opposite side - she has no problem letting Natani know that she is suspicious of her and she's being watched, or that she has no intention of ever forgiving Euchre. It could be that Rose is afraid to be close to anyone because she's lost, through death or betrayal, everyone she's ever trusted. I've heard veterans of WWII admit to the same thing - after losing close friends in combat, they were afraid to become close to their replacements and stayed emotionally distant. We've known that Rose suffered a lot of emotional damage, a big question to be resolved is whether she'll be able to recover from it. At some point, I assume she and Raine will have an opportunity to talk about their common past. That might prove to be an opening for Rose to recover to some degree, then again, it could be so painful that Rose won't be able to let anyone know her inner thoughts and feelings.

[Technic[Bot]]

I knew Roselyn was many things but until today i was not aware she could be so damn scary. Specially considering she is basically a 40-50 year old woman, in human years of course. Now i can help but imagine Trace trapped on some SAW like game made by Rose. Well it is not like i wanted to sleep anyway...

Hopefully Rose won't turn in this chapter antagonist, I was personally hoping to see dark Trace in that role for a change and besides i like her.

I suppose Tom could still be stringing us along, intentionally tossing out a red herring here for us to misinterpret, but I don't really think so. I think this further reinforces the idea that some part of Rose is in that room, whether it's her physical body or whatever. And now we have confirmation that, whatever was done to her, it was indeed old Trace that did it. I think there's still a lot coming on this topic - of course, in the usual Twokinds fashion we probably won't find out until next year sometime, given the number of plot threads currently in progress!

...

And yet... and yet... it's not actually him. Trace the tyrant wouldn't have cared about the safety of others to begin with if they weren't important to his plans, wouldn't have unshackled her for their sake. Trace the tyrant wouldn't have been concerned for *her* wellbeing, wouldn't have asked if *she* was alright. Trace the tyrant would have responded to her statement of his vulnerability with violence (or, at least, an attempt to regain control), not nervousness. The entire *reason* he's vulnerable, that she *could* strike at him, is that it's not him. And I think she knows it. She may be tempted - and I certainly wouldn't blame her if she were a bit unstable after so long under such pressure! - but I think she understands now.

Personally i hope Rose is not what it is on the room. Simply because I think there are more interesting scenarios if that is the case. Alas thigns are not mutually exclusive, Rose might be well bound in body and soul to the State and the thing in the room be another of Trace experiments. Perhaps and unfinished/failed vessel for Saria.

Also Trace the Tyrant, or Tyrant Trace. Really rolls off the tongue. I like it!

[steelabjur]

Toms talent for expressions is astonishing.

Although I am in doubt, is Rose amused, or contemplating about what she could do in the last panel?

I think she's trying to hide a smile from having teased Trace.

"That Thing" might be specifically what Euchre warned her to keep from Trace.

[Warrl]

Toms talent for expressions is astonishing.

Although I am in doubt, is Rose amused, or contemplating about what she could do in the last panel?

Yes, except it's "and".

[SpottedKitty]

e: Also, note - fully normal eyes now.

<headdesk> That's what I was seeing without realising quite what it was! Her eyes are back to normal (and I remember the difference in the eyes of Mike and Evals when Eric put their collars back on) — what we're seeing now is, finally, the real Roselyn.

[Xian]

I am very worried now...

I guess this is a way of getting the crew out of the manse (and hence, moving the plot ahead) without having them suffer a massive Templar attack...

[Hulk10]

Yeah this is a dark plot twist...….. I hope that "thing" isn't really a part of Roselyn...…..

[RowanEx]

Crack but crazy theory: the thing in Trace's room is Trace himself. I looked at the shadow of the hair from when the door was opened and noticed it was the same as his hair. Maybe this form he was currently in is basically a dark magic copy which is slowly breaking into a dark mess of flesh as he uses more magic?

I dunno.

[Neutral Smith]

Crack but crazy theory: the thing in Trace's room is Trace himself. I looked at the shadow of the hair from when the door was opened and noticed it was the same as his hair. Maybe this form he was currently in is basically a dark magic copy which is slowly breaking into a dark mess of flesh as he uses more magic?

I dunno.

My guess that thing is/was Master Spy Brahn (or whatever his name was), the 'hair' part of the shadow is more like his. And Trace has his 'antenna' in his hair.

I remember Rose saying that Euchre 'is worse than Brahns pets', and I haven't seen that cat he used again.

But I'm on my mobile phone, not possible (time) to take a better look at it.

[whiskeyfur]

I'm guessing that the thing in the room.. was her. Wired up to the house and basically left floating there in the room as the heart of the mansion itself.

The rose we had been seeing could be a projection instead.

The old Trace was not above doing a lot of things to Keideran... so turning one into a the master control for his mansion is quite likely.

Her projection is probably the most normal she's ever going to look or feel like but even then there will always be that disconnect because that body isn't truly her.

[CrRAR]

Yeah this is a dark plot twist...….. I hope that "thing" isn't really a part of Roselyn...…..

...and yet... perhaps more than she, even now, knows.

Muah ha...
ha ha hahahahahahaaaaaaaa


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*next panel* "Juuust ribbing ya again, heeheee, I'm gonna go tidy up all the living quarters, ta-tah~" *turns back to Trace*

"...or AM I?"

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