Beasts Ascendant: The Chronicles of the Cause, Parts One and Two

by Randall Farmer

  The Juice Use affinities are Shamanistic juice use (which is symbolic and allegorical) and Directed juice use (which is overt and formulaic). Symbolic juice use is not magical, just unconscious in the nature of the details of its manipulation. Unconscious juice use is ubiquitous among all Major Transforms; developing an awareness of how to direct unconscious juice use lies behind true Shamanistic juice use.

  The Juice Target affinities are Object (the juice is placed upon and at times into an object, and self-stabilizes) and Personal (the juice is stabilized entirely by the Transform, normally on their person). This axis of difference is the most difficult to cross-train, as the opposite methodology appears to the Major Transform to be impossible, irrational and wrong.

  The Mental Gestalt affinities are Mystical (the world is an irrational place and the thoughts of the Transform are open to external influences) and Rationalist (the world is a clockwork). This is the most fluid of the axes of difference, and in some, the affinity will vary by one’s mood.

  The Social Gestalt affinities are Juice Link and Superorganism. What these two mean is very difficult to explain in a language not built for metasense imagery. As best as can be explained to those who do not have a metasense: in the Juice Link affinity the linkages between Transforms occurs between two individuals at a time, while in the Superorganism affinity the linkages between Transforms occurs between groups of Transforms. Although the terminology is more technically accurate, it is less intuitively descriptive for what is going on in the mind of the Transform. Because of this, the less technically accurate terms “Charisma” and “Metasense” can also be used to describe the Social Gestalt affinities. The reason for this is as follows: a Transform with the Juice Link affinity experiences the world primarily through their charisma ability and sense (thus the name ‘Charisma’), while a person with the Superorganism affinity experiences the world primarily through their metasense and metasense-derived abilities (thus the name ‘Metasense’). The reason why the terms ‘charisma’ and ‘metasense’ should not be used is that the actual strength of a Transform’s charisma or metasense has nothing to do with the affinities by that name, often causing great confusion. Because of this confusion, this axis is the most disputed, some refusing to believe in its existence.

  The standard Transform, of which approximately 75% are, has the following affinities: Directed, Personal, Rationalistic and Superorganism.

  What makes this a confusing mess is that the remaining 25% of the Transforms divide up into 15 combinations of these affinities, and many of the benefits, detriments and even differences of many of these combinations is not at all known. Worse, we suspect several identified as “Mystics”, “Alchemists” and “Shamans” have additional non-standard affinities than are known.

  The 16 Varieties are:

  Directed, Personal, Rationalistic and Superorganism. {“Standard” Transforms}

  Directed, Personal, Mystical and Superorganism {“Mystics”}

  Directed, Personal, Rationalistic and Link {few of these are known}

  Directed, Personal, Mystical and Link {none recognized}

  Directed, Object, Rationalistic and Superorganism {“Alchemists”}

  Directed, Object, Rationalistic and Link {none recognized}

  Directed, Object, Mystical and Superorganism {none recognized}

  Directed, Object, Mystical and Link {none recognized}

  Shamanistic, Personal, Rationalistic and Superorganism {“Shamans”}

  Shamanistic, Personal, Mystical and Superorganism {a few of these are known among the Crows}

  Shamanistic, Personal, Mystical and Link {none recognized}

  Shamanistic, Personal, Rationalistic and Link {none recognized}

  Shamanistic, Object, Rationalistic and Superorganism {one of these is suspected among the Focuses}

  Shamanistic, Object, Mystical and Superorganism {none recognized}

  Shamanistic, Object, Rationalistic and Link {none recognized}

  Shamanistic, Object, Mystical and Link {none recognized}

  There are a similar number of Major Transform ‘personality tendencies’, loosely matching the 16 varieties. However, they correspond in a very strange fashion that makes the author worry about the interplay of cause and effect – those 75% of all Transforms who possess only the standard affinities show no correlation between the affinities and the personality tendencies. However, those 25% who have one or more of the non-standard affinities correlate to the ‘matching’ personality tendencies about 80% of the time.

  At least one Focus has remarked that the 16 varieties (and the corresponding affinities) correspond to physical markers in the brain that allow this Focus to identify variety directly, using her metasense. While the ability to do this verification based on metasensing a brain has been confirmed to be true for this Focus, the correspondence has not been able to be verified by others.

  Of the many unanswered questions facing the Transform community, the Sixteen Varieties hold both the most promise for future development and the greatest resistance to acceptance among the community. It is my fear that we are years away from a full understanding of the benefits and detriments arising from the existence of the sixteen varieties.

  Arm Amy Haggerty (October 12, 1972)

  Time Bomb (1/2/73)

  “There,” Gail said. Her people had absconded with the eight foot long corkboard from Littleside’s Lab 1 and installed it in her Branton office. She convinced one of Inferno’s artistic types – Galena Abromowitz, a graphic artist – to paint the state boundaries of the continental United States on the corkboard. Along with the major cities and rivers, in different colors. Her desk, guest chairs and small work table now crowded themselves against the far wall, leaving a few feet of room in front of the corkboard for planners to congregate. Now Gail could keep track of all the reports coming in about Hunter harassment. Over a dozen notes were already tacked to the board with pins.

  “Gail, Arm Haggerty’s here to see you,” Sylvie said, after sticking her head around the corner of the door.

  Finally.

  Of all the insane responsibilities Carol dumped in her lap, leading the Arms was the worst. Leading any group of Major Transforms sounded impossible, but if Carol had told Gail to lead the Focuses, she would have at least understood where to start. Thankfully, Tonya covered that problem, one Gail considered would take about 40 hours a day to do.

  Eight in the morning, and Gail was already exhausted from doing paperwork. She shouldn’t complain too much; exactly one week after Patterson’s fall and the Crow change of leadership and direction, she already had her first success with the Crow matchmaking task, setting up Heron with Linda Cooley. Success, despite Van’s inability to deal with Linda for over five minutes without Linda rolling him.

  That little diplomacy issue had been typed up by Sylvie and sat on the top of her to-do pile. She didn’t understand why he was so vulnerable to Linda. Linda’s charisma was good, but not earthshaking. For one thing, Gail thought Van’s resistance to her charisma rather exceptional, and he was the only person in her household who could, besides Gail, regularly talk to Tonya without getting rolled. Tonya rolled Sylvie over the telephone every time they talked, for instance.

  “The problem has to do with personality types.”

  Gail glanced up to see the Arm, Amy Haggerty, sitting in her office’s guest chair, amused. The stack of manila folders that used to inhabit the chair now sat on the floor, where they mixed with a pile of old newspaper clippings from 1971. Today, Amy’s leathers were brown and scuffed looking, and she wore a narrow chain as a belt. With no makeup or other traditional female beautification, she still looked stunning, in a dangerous, biker sort of way. Long, lean, with dark brown hair cut short and opaque brown eyes. Even after months of interaction, Gail found such beauty in an Arm disconcerting.

  “You’re getting better at metasense masking from me,” Gail said. Six months ago, before Carol started teaching her, Gail would have had ten minutes of hysterics
at Amy’s stunt. Four months ago, before Arm Mary Sibrian trained her startle reflex into something useful, Gail would have leapt to her feet and yelped, likely knocking to the floor several folders and pieces of loose paper. Today, when Amy’s voice startled her, Gail brought up five defensive juice patterns from their dormant state, one of which was a ‘focus the metasense and do a friend or foe evaluation’. Far too many of Gail’s friends and allies had a bad habit of startling her this way. Gilgamesh was the worst, and he didn’t appreciate being pasted with one of her all body freeze juice patterns. “Personality types? One of your projects?”

  Amy stretched her long legs in front of her and flipped a knife between her fingers. “It’s one of Shadow’s ongoing projects, originally discovered by Crow Wire before either of us transformed.” As Gail metasensed, the Arms metapresence relaxed. Research topics always put Amy at ease. “Shadow assigned the project to Midgard after Sinclair got cast out and he decided to help push the Cause instead of just paying lip service to it. I’m helping, and it’s explained many things.”

  This wasn’t why Gail wanted to talk to Amy, though. She had a request in to talk with the de-facto boss Arm of the moment ever since Gail returned to Chicago from Pennsylvania. She didn’t push, curious. “Such as? Why Linda can roll Van so easily?” She put her elbows on the desk and rested her chin on her hands.

  “The same reason Tonya so easily rolls Sylvie. They’re different personality types. There are sixteen, roughly matching the sixteen varieties of each Major Transform, but they aren’t as well demarcated and they don’t appear to match the Major Transform varieties. For instance, you, Focus Biggioni and Arm Keaton share the same personality type, but you don’t match varieties.” Gail nodded. Arm Keaton was a mystic, while Gail and Tonya weren’t.

  “So the only thing keeping me from being a rug-chewing sadist is the fact I’m a Focus?” Gail said, thinking about Amy’s example.

  “More of a conscious choice on your part to restrain your rug-chewing and sadistic impulses,” Amy said. She flipped the knife into the air and made it disappear. “Or do you not admit you possess these impulses?”

  Arms. Especially Amy, who didn’t possess much in the way of tact. “Okay, you got me,” Gail said, leaning back. Becoming a rug-chewing sadist would be so easy, as well as disgusting. This was something she continually put work into stopping. “I need to think about this.” Would she need a household diplomatic corp to fill her current diplomacy needs? That sounded appalling. However, this might explain why Tonya kept going through Courtiers. “The reason I wanted to talk to you is about the Arm leadership job Carol dropped in my lap. I can’t see how I’m going to be able to do it. I’m not sure I even understand how to properly give orders to an Arm.” Without getting filleted, that is.

  “It wasn’t one of Carol’s brightest moves,” Amy said. “But not for the reason you gave. Sure, there would be a few disasters to start with, but you would learn how to lead the Arms fairly quickly. The real problem is that if Carol’s gone too long – which I suspect will happen, given how long the Eskimo Spear quest ended up taking – they’re going to end up being your Arms. That would be a big problem.”

  “I don’t understand. Won’t some Arm challenge me if I start to consider the Arms ‘mine’?” Gail’s gut feeling said that if she started to consider the Arms as hers, that would make her an Arm and thus open for challenge.

  “Not if they became yours out of love, not by being dominated.”

  Oh. “I can see you and Stacy and Rose having that problem. Perhaps. I don’t see the others. I sorta thought I drove Mary up a tree, for one.”

  “Her problem is that she’s in love with you at the personal level, unlike your strictly professional ties with the three you mentioned. She can’t be, because you only get one of those as a Focus and that’s Carol.”

  Gail fidgeted with her hair, nervous. “Well, crap, that isn’t the sort of problem I want to be causing.” Not too long ago Gail thought the Arms were disgusting and impossible. By the time she finished being Carol’s student, she was, well, part-Arm herself. “That’s going to be a problem for any Focus who gets tied to the Arms, isn’t it?”

  “Uh huh. If Lori was around and in your position, we would be having the same problem. Eventually, there will be enough Focus ties to the Arms for this not to be an issue.”

  “Tonya?”

  “Not until she gets her head problems fixed.” Amy made a sour face.

  Stacy and Tonya were together, now, with Shadow. Were they going to be the Transform community’s next big problem, after the Transforms dealt with the Hunters? Or was the problem going to be Chicago?

  “Okay, I guess, I can somewhat see Arm Whetstone and Arm Naylor falling into my orbit as well.” Christine Naylor had been waiting in Chicago for Gail when she returned from Pennsylvania. The Jersey Girl Arm started out all hostile ‘I’m claiming Chicago as a favor for the Commander and you aren’t going to give me any grief over it, are you’ and ended up essentially working for Gail as part of her extended household. They had chatted for hours. The impossible Arm reminded Gail of many of her leading household members. “I’ve never even met any of the others.”

  “Social pressure among the Arms will drive them into dealing with you and falling into your orbit, if you’re not careful,” Amy said. “Even ignoring the problems this will cause with Carol, consider what this would mean regarding the Hunter conflict.”

  Amy wanted Gail to focus her mind and do her own version of Amy’s analysis fugue trick. Gail did so, relaxing her defenses and trusting Amy would protect her while she put her mental effort into figuring out what the Arm meant by her comment.

  Crap. “We would end up preserving Chicago and likely nowhere else.”

  “Plus or minus Philadelphia, assuming Tonya’s relationship with Keaton progresses as I suspect it will,” Amy said. “It’s a viable strategy, though, if we can come up with anyone able to command an army.”

  Gail bit her lower lip. “So if I decide to go this route, I’d better start learning how to command armies, then, because we don’t have anyone else able to command more than a squad or two.”

  “Essentially correct.”

  “So, can you think up any way to better handle this?” Gail asked. Amy pulled something on her, but Gail didn’t know what. Getting Amy to volunteer her ideas would likely illuminate that problem.

  “Several.” Amy leaned forward and focused her attention on Gail. “If you wanted, you could delegate the Arm leadership to me. That, and with a little propaganda on my part, we could make sure the Arms don’t end up attached to you. It would be an easy sell to say ‘Chicago is off limits because it’s still the Commander’s territory.’” Such ‘delegation’ would give Amy a lot of Arm stature. Would this harm Carol, though? Not according to Gail’s gut. It would harm Gail’s own stature, but she suspected the reduced workload would more than compensate.

  “How does this solve the army leadership problem?”

  “If the Arms are dispersed, as they normally are, each Arm will defend her assigned territories as she normally does.”

  “Assigned territories?”

  “If I’m not claiming a city as a territory, and I’m the top Arm, it gives me the implied right to tell the other Arms to follow my example. That works if the Hunters do dispersed attacks. If the Hunters gather as a group, we’ll need an army to match them, which means Focus participation. Arranging for that would still be your job.”

  “Meaning I still need to find a substitute commander, but I probably have more time.”

  Amy nodded.

  “Where are you planning on going, then, if you’re not returning to New York?”

  “I’m going to go out west and stay mobile. We need to figure out what the Hunters are doing; the more warning we have for any large-scale armed movements among the Hunters the better.” Her Arm stone face didn’t show a thing, and Amy never fidgeted, but something in her emotional state changed. Something complex.


  “I overheard a rumor that you were going to probe the Hunters positions along with the Blue Ridge Barony.” Overheard from one of Beth and Crow Sinclair’s discussions, that is. “Along with Focus Hargrove.”

  “The Barony participation has fallen through for the moment,” Amy said. Ah, there it was. “Hoskins and I are discussing this, but some differences of opinion are keeping us from working together at the moment.” Meaning the Duke and Amy both wanted to be the boss. “If you don’t object, Beth will be joining me out west.”

  “I don’t object at all,” Gail said. Beth had followed Gail to Chicago out of fear of Focus Adkins’ retribution. The Arms had taken down Adkins, who was currently on her way to San Diego under Focus Webb’s care. Beth, though, didn’t want to move back to Detroit, and wasn’t interested in, in her terms, ‘guarding the Littleside parking lot’ any longer.

  “Thank you,” Amy said. “Consider it done.”

  It wasn’t until after Amy left that Gail realized Amy took Gail’s ‘no objections’ comment as permission to do everything Amy proposed. Gail stood and stalked after the Arm. She hadn’t decided whether to delegate the Arm leadership to Amy or not.

  “Hey, Gail, got a problem,” Sylvie said, sticking her head in Gail’s doorway again. Gail almost knocked Sylvie over.

  “Not now,” Gail said. She didn’t appreciate being played, especially by an Arm she thought of as a friend. She stopped cold. Boxes filled the hallway beyond her office, two high stacks nervously guarding the doorway out, still swaying from Sylvie’s passage. “What’s this?”

  “Arm Haggerty’s people delivered these while you were talking,” Sylvie said. “Apparently they’re copies of the Arm’s research.” Gail doubted that, but given the volume, it had to be most of Haggerty’s research materials. “Something about not wanting to deprive the Cause of her research if she should fall during her next mission.”