Morgan Micro Fiction

[Dina]

That happens me often but with Harry I took some books to actually caring for him. I kept reading because I liked...well, all the things Harry does not any more. The P.I thing, the potions, the magic gadgets. Also, because I had seen the show and I actually cared for those Harry, Morgan, and Bob.

[morriswalters]

You're... just wore out with vague hints, speculations, possible/probable/improbable/nothing's-impossiblities ??!?   


Dude.   

You're hanging out on the wrong forum.

 

This is a nice, quite, drama free place.  Something I place a high value on. The rest is a rant, you've been warned.

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And when I say wore out I'm thinking of things like the plot of Proven Guilty. Nine books later we don't have any real clue and neither does anyone else.  Can you tell me something as simple as, who was the antagonist?  Jim has multiple people killed. He shows us the gun and never says who pulled the trigger. Mab? Maeve? Sandra Marling?  The Black Council?  Bozo the Clown?(He's part of my latest crackpot guess)

[Mira]

That happens me often but with Harry I took some books to actually caring for him. I kept reading because I liked...well, all the things Harry does not any more. The P.I thing, the potions, the magic gadgets. Also, because I had seen the show and I actually cared for those Harry, Morgan, and Bob.

Yes, especially Bob, that is the one thing the television show did a better job of than the books, but a lot of that is due to the actor who played him.

[Dina]

Yes, he was incredible. All the actors were quite good, to be honest but I simply liked Harry and Morgan.

[123Chikadee]

@Bad Alias: I dunno, I end up reading quite a few things where I ended up liking it for the supporting cast more than I did the main character.

[segaily]

Interesting that your interpretation is so different of mine, specially about her last movements. I see them as calculated and very rational, nothing of desperation (and she could feel fear and regret but that was not what fueled her actions).

I too see her actions as calculated and rational.  I have often wondered if she might have had visions of the future so that everything she did was with a purpose to save the end of the world.   

[Bad Alias]

This is a nice, quite, drama free place.  Something I place a high value on. The rest is a rant, you've been warned.

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And when I say wore out I'm thinking of things like the plot of Proven Guilty. Nine books later we don't have any real clue and neither does anyone else.  Can you tell me something as simple as, who was the antagonist?  Jim has multiple people killed. He shows us the gun and never says who pulled the trigger. Mab? Maeve? Sandra Marling?  The Black Council?  Bozo the Clown?(He's part of my latest crackpot guess)

You've just blown the case wide open! 

I can barely finish a 90 minute movie when I don't care about (or dislike when I'm supposed to like) the main character.

@123Chikadee: That's why I hedged a bit with "main characters" instead of just "main character."

[g33k]

... I'm thinking of things like the plot of Proven Guilty. Nine books later we don't have any real clue and neither does anyone else.  Can you tell me something as simple as, who was the antagonist? ...

Define "antagonist."

If you mean, who kidnapped Molly -- that was Mab.  Pretty sure WoJ says so.  The hands may have been Captain Kudzu's, but the will behind the snatch was Mab's.  That was Harry's "antagonist."

But this topic wanders far afield from the Morgan Micro Fiction topic, so I spoilerblock a revisit of that old PG topic... 

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If you mean, who started that plot, and who began assaulting & killing the mortals at the Con?  No, we don't "know" that explicitly from WoJ (n.b. Harry seems to miss the Big Picture so often that I don't think "what Harry figured out" can be regarded as reliable canon, except insofar as it documents what Harry thinks he knows), but...

I think we can be pretty sure.  IIRC we also have WoJ that all of the novels are part of one big Evil Villain Plot, so:

It was Maeve/Nemesis and (I think probably) the Black Council (noting that Maeve may have been (likely was, IMHO) ON the Black Council).

Trying to assault Mab when she's "undefended" is right up Maeve's alley.  Mab was working on "curing" Lea, so Lea had already infected Maeve; so, Nemesis.

But most of the assault forces don't seem to have been Maeve's, per se.  We think it was wizard-heavy, with a Denarian wizard (presumably Thorned Namshiel) at the fore; I don't think we know who the infantry were, though:  the piles and piles of fallen attackers outside the walls...?

I suppose I could be mistaken, and those rank-and-file WERE Meave's fae, but I doubt it.  I cannot believe so many winterfae would willingly assault Arctis Tor itself, particularly alongside a Hellfire-wielding Denarian!  They'd would balk hard at that.  While they might have followed their immediate loyalty to the Winter Lady if she said to attack MommyDearest (despite fear of Mab and the dubiousness of attacking Winter's heart & Wellspring)... they're still Winterfae, that's who/what they are; and as soon as a f--king Denarian starts spraying Hellfire at winterheart, they are gonna Nope that so, so hard.

Having the BC assault on Arctis Tor at the same time (or should I scarequote that as "same time," given faerie time dilations?) as SplatterCon!!! is outside the bounds of credulity.

Because of the Mortal deaths at the Con, that cannot have been Mab's work:  she cannot dispatch her faerie servitors to do straight-up murder.  But nemfected Maeve absolutely can, and the BC (we suspect Mortal black-magic involved at SplatterCon!!!; although maybe not).

My WAG about all of this is that Mab spotted the outlines of the plot, and drew Harry Dresden in.  Mab was behind the assault on Pell, which got Boyfriend Nelson arrested and got Molly to spot the Spooky & call in Harry (and going forward, got Molly apprenticed to Harry).  I'm not sure what the EvilPlot^(tm) HAD BEEN before Mab involved herself and turned it to her own ends; I'm not even certain there WAS any "bad guy" plot, per se (at least, no more than "Darby Crane" (and a few other mortal-world savvy phobophages?) planning to enjoy the ambient fear).  But I think there was some larger plot... possibly one aimed at turning Molly full-Warlock and into Maeve's circle and/or the Black Council's ... ?  A mind-mage warlock as Michael Carpenter's eldest would be very yummy to the Denarian's, too...

[morriswalters]

The connection to Journal is in the mechanism used to find Molly by the antagonist. Like I said, 9 books later all we got are WAGS. Nobody can speak definitively about why it worked the way it did. And the most interesting question in PG is not who fixed LC, but why did Jim break it in the first place.

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You know more than you think you know.  Harry tells you a lot at the end.  But given that he is so unreliable you don't believe him.

“Rashid,” I said in a firm voice. “Tell the Gatekeeper.”
Ebenezar frowned, though it looked more weary than anything else. “Likely he knows already. Knew already. Maybe even pointed you in a direction that would show you more. Assuming he wasn’t simply using you to poke a hornet’s nest and see what flew up.”
Which was somewhat creepy to think about. If Ebenezar was right, I could count myself among the pawns in play, courtesy of the Gatekeeper.

Both are true if you consider it.  You pick up another data point in Cold Days when you find out what Rashid does and who he is allied with. Given that and looking back you should be able to guess what Mab accomplished.  Mab quits speaking in the next book.  Small Favor.  And in Cold Days Jim tells you why. Connect the dots.  But this is just my WAG.

[forumghost]

Random thought I just had, but what if Mab wasn't the target of the attack on Arctus Tor? What if Mab's reasons for having Molly abducted was because the 'hornets nest' that Harry had kicked up had decided to cut their losses in the face of Hurricane Dresden and take her themselves, and Mab just decided to rob them of their prize by 'kidnapping' her away to her Stronghold.

Not that I can think of a reason why Molly would be so valuable back then as to be worth that much effort of course, but hey, I'm half asleep, this is probably a stupid idea.

[morriswalters]

Why would Margaret contact Morgan?  The only thing that makes any sense to me comes from how Jim has positioned Morgan.  As absolutely uncorruptable.  What would that imply?

Not that I can think of a reason why Molly would be so valuable back then as to be worth that much effort of course, but hey, I'm half asleep, this is probably a stupid idea.

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Someone who was suspicious might say that Molly's role at Arctis Tor was similar to a fisherman's worm.  Wiggle wiggle.  Father Carpenter offers up one explanation that has a certain amount of sense attached to it, but no one seems to care for it.

“Only that it is entirely possible, Harry Dresden, that this entire affair, beginning to end, is meant to protect you. That when I went to the aid of Luccio and her trainees, I did so not to free Molly, but to prevent you from coming to blows with the Council. That her position as your new apprentice had less to do with protecting her than it did protecting you?”

  The Donner has something pithy to say about time traveling Harry and The Basement Mystery.

If one wishes to alter the course of history, it's a far simpler matter to attempt to shape the future.

Which really doesn't make sense unless you can see possible outcomes before they become real outcomes.  Who was it who could do that?

Calculation and thought flickered through those green eyes, faster than I could follow. "Ah, yes.  I see," Mother Summer said, "So many new futures unwinding."

[Bad Alias]

The connection to Journal is in the mechanism used to find Molly by the antagonist. Like I said, 9 books later all we got are WAGS. Nobody can speak definitively about why it worked the way it did. And the most interesting question in PG is not who fixed LC, but why did Jim break it in the first place.

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You know more than you think you know.  Harry tells you a lot at the end.  But given that he is so unreliable you don't believe him.Both are true if you consider it.  You pick up another data point in Cold Days when you find out what Rashid does and who he is allied with. Given that and looking back you should be able to guess what Mab accomplished.  Mab quits speaking in the next book.  Small Favor.  And in Cold Days Jim tells you why. Connect the dots.  But this is just my WAG.

Based on Mab's "desert fox" comment in Summer Knight, I think she doesn't know what Rashid is up to all the time (maybe most of the time) but enjoys trying to figure it out.

Why would Margaret contact Morgan?  The only thing that makes any sense to me comes from how Jim has positioned Morgan.  As absolutely uncorruptable.  What would that imply?

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Someone who was suspicious might say that Molly's role at Arctis Tor was similar to a fisherman's worm.  Wiggle wiggle.  Father Carpenter offers up one explanation that has a certain amount of sense attached to it, but no one seems to care for it.  The Donner has something pithy to say about time traveling Harry and The Basement Mystery. Which really doesn't make sense unless you can see possible outcomes before they become real outcomes.  Who was it who could do that?

Rashid also has some ability to see possible futures.

[morriswalters]

Based on Mab's "desert fox" comment in Summer Knight, I think she doesn't know what Rashid is up to all the time (maybe most of the time) but enjoys trying to figure it out.
Rashid also has some ability to see possible futures.

Mab does what Anduriel does, with the addition of video.  Rashid is only a step behind her.  It's a wonder Harry doesn't feel breathing on his neck when he takes a leak. However in terms of Time, at least in this case, it's a probabilistic look at time. Possible futures rather than absolute ones.  Things that might be. What that Desert Fox tells you more than anything else, is that Mab knows him well enough to give him an affectionate  nickname.

Random thought I just had, but what if Mab wasn't the target of the attack on Arctus Tor? What if Mab's reasons for having Molly abducted was because the 'hornets nest' that Harry had kicked up had decided to cut their losses in the face of Hurricane Dresden and take her themselves, and Mab just decided to rob them of their prize by 'kidnapping' her away to her Stronghold.

Not that I can think of a reason why Molly would be so valuable back then as to be worth that much effort of course, but hey, I'm half asleep, this is probably a stupid idea.

The attack at Arctis Tor was designed to do precisely what it did, keep Mab bottled up while events were occurring in Dead Beat. It was a feint.  She beat it off and then tried to figure out how and why.

I spoilered this because I'm sure that people are tired of me banging this particular drum.

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What I don't understand is why people don't see Uriel moving in the background.  Molly's story is about Uriel balancing the scales. Mab's story is about sussing out the traitor in Winter. But the overall plot is about keeping Harry from dying in a fight with the Council if Molly is discovered to be a warlock.  That's pretty much it in a nutshell. And you're told so in the conclusion by the three wise men. Michael, Harry and Eb.

And just for the hard heads Jim opens book by having a kid with the same skill set as Molly, beheaded for being a Warlock.  Molly was set up to get Harry killed trying to keep her from meeting the same  fate.

[Avernite]

@morris:
Was it just that?

I know Uriel fights one soul at a time too, but what would it have done to the Council? Harry murdered as he stood up for what was right - and even Morgan seems to know it. Morgan who swore to protect Harry. Would even Morgan be able to stand straight when his duties conflict and justice argues against his greater duty? Or would he crack and shatter, before or after Harry's death?

Harry wasn't yet the hero of the young Wardens of Turn Coat/Changes, but he was no doubt close.
And then Ebenezar and his gang are dead if Uriel/TWG doesn't send Michael.

In other words - the deadliest Warden is internally shattered, two more of the scariest wizards in a fight (Eb and Harry) lie dead, and the Wardens who need Morgan's clarity to prevent them doing anything foolish want to avenge Harry. That is 'The White Council is gone' levels of bad.

Saving Harry's soul was the point - but saving the soul of the White Council was, too, even if it was a less roaring success.

[Mira]

Harry wasn't yet the hero of the young Wardens of Turn Coat/Changes, but he was no doubt close.
And then Ebenezar and his gang are dead if Uriel/TWG doesn't send Michael.

Are you sure?  Have to go back but I believe the consensus was that Harry was the hero of the young wardens and the apprentices.  I believe you are thinking of Proven Guilty when Michael tells him that it was Harry that was being saved, not Molly.