Well, I associate one with Disney princesses more than the other.

Just out of curiosity, is there a name for Worm fans? Has the readership gotten that big yet?

 

My favorite chapters seem to be the ones where Skitter interacts with the heroes.

 

I remember much earlier in the story there was an incident where she had to keep a bunch of bugs up against her skin, and she was freaked out enough that she desperately needed a mega-shower after. Now, the bugs ARE the shower.

 

It's the little things that makes this whole transition into being a super villian so satisfying.

 

The Undersiders go 3 for 3! One loss for crushing victory. I'm just worried for the inevitable pear-shaped chapter.

 

Pity about Codex. Somehow, I think Accord isn't going to be happy about that.

 

Wow. Didn't expect that method of getting rid of Butcher, but in hindsight it's the perfect solution. Though this brings up a few more questions about how well S9 designed Cherish's cage. Maybe she'll just go insane and that's it. One can hope.

Anyone know if there'll be an update on Thursday? Because...last line of this chapter makes Saturday seem too far away.

 

Wildbow said in comments that given Mannequin & Bonesaw's skill, without outside influence, Cherish was gonna be around for 22,000 years, give or take.

 

How did Cherish influence butcher though? I wasn't clear on that part.

 

At some point it was mentioned that the area around Cherish's prison has an aura of despair going on constantly. I think what happened here is that the Undersider drew her within range and took advantage of that induced despair to affect Butcher's multiple personalities and drive them to suicide.

 

Ooooh. Gotcha. Yeah, that makes complete sense.

The next question is, I guess, is Cherish's prison strong enough to hold her with all of her new powers.

 

Considering that I don't think Cherish would be a compelling character to have return to the series, I'm leaning towards the likelihood that what Bonesaw did to her prevents her from accessing her powers intentionally (like the powder she used on Skitter and Co.) or the new abilities she got will a.) Allow her to finish herself off or b.) Allow her to regenerate to the point that she won't be compatible with the tinkers' gear any more, and perish.

Sort of hoping she just kicks it. I'm starting to feel sorry for her.

 

I think Skitter is in "plan for every possible contingency" mode this arc. It's hard to imagine she would dare give all those powers to Cherish if she wasn't absolutely sure the prison would hold her.

 

More like it's the best of the few options available to her. Using Cherish was the option that was least likely to immediately bite her in the ass.

I take it that prison is immune to teleportation, yes?

 

I feel like I missed something really important. I was totally confused as to why Butcher killed herself when reading the chapter. Was there an explanation there that I missed, or is it just something that was inferred through our prior knowledge of Skitter's plan?

I know now. But I guess I just must have missed a line somewhere.

 

Alright, as long as it wasn't explicitly stated anywhere in this chapter I'm good. Thanks Oz.

 

Posted these conceptual drawings of Skitter's suit in 21.6 comments and several of the replies had me wondering what you imagined her costume to be like. I based the design off of wildbow's note:

http://i.imgur.com/x4XTaCM.jpg

One person mentioned an armored spine extending above and below the "backpack," but I've always imagined the back-panel to be sufficient. I'm blaming lack of elbow pads on perspective. Design-wise, they'd also make the arms look a bit too blocky, so I'll just leave that part as is. With the skirt thing...I do remember her adding it to the costume, since it added extra space for her bugs, but then this latest chapter had her criticizing Codex for her battle-inappropriate dress...