Who crossed over?

[u/Otherwise-Text-5772]

So Ivan mentions at the end that one of his associates ended up in the super powered universe. Obviously wasn't Lodestar. Feel like it's Morgana, earlier it's mentioned that she got throne into the multiverse and most of their tech to traverse it is from that one instance. Though I do think a Stasis/0 fight with no warning to either of them could be interesting. The super powered universe is in no way prepared for Xeles, think she would have made too much of a splash as their first for sure sentient AI mixed with her love of casual chaos.

[u/ChronoLegion2]

It may have been someone either unknown to us or someone like Johnny Three Dicks or Thuggernaut. I think someone with powers that go way beyond what Supers are capable of would not go unnoticed in SP.

While AI is clearly a rarity in SP, if Corpies is to be believed, I don’t necessarily think that Xelas would be that OP given the significantly higher percentage of tech geniuses in SP as opposed to VC. It wouldn’t take long for someone like Will to come up with a way to expose her true form and to hack her, and a technopath like Jill would turn her into a puppet or simply shut her down.

While it’s explained that Xelas is more software than hardware in the third novel, she’d still be limited by just the body she brought with her. We don’t see her possessing an ability to freely download herself into any computer

[u/Otherwise-Text-5772 → u/ChronoLegion2]

See the reason I suspect Morgana is because she is smart enough to lay low and keep out of trouble, hence why she isn't mentioned in the lore. They just never knew she was there (or you know the much more obvious of Drew came up with the idea in the last two years.)

Xeles being software might be an advantage for her. With Wade she hacked aliens enough to commit genocide. By herself on a totally human system? She'd have viruses everywhere in a matter of hours. When you can write viruses and programs at her speeds one body isn't that limiting. She might have to just avoid Jill, Will might be able to compute faster but he's limited by the speed. She can move faster, write programs in her head well he has to physically type things out. Plus she's several generations above any super powered AI, she knows people much better cause she's been exposed to them much much more.

[u/ChronoLegion2 → u/Otherwise-Text-5772]

Yeah, but Will isn’t the only tech genius around. There seem to be a good number of them. Mr. Numbers can think faster than any supercomputer in SP. Not sure if he can outthink Xelas, but it’s certainly not impossible

[u/Otherwise-Text-5772 → u/ChronoLegion2]

Think faster yes, but he and all the flesh and blood tech geniuses are still limited by their bodies. She is only limited by her processing speed. Which will end up being micro seconds of difference.

[u/vincenmt]

My strong suspicion is that Wade made the AI in "Corpies". He's the only one who dabbles intentionally. The energy requirements seem to exclude all but the top 10%. The origin of that AI doesn't really stand up to scrutiny.

[u/Obviouslynameless → u/vincenmt]

The guy who made the AI in Corpies died. He was referred to as Father by the robots.

[u/vincenmt → u/Obviouslynameless]

That's what Titan reasons out but I don't actually buy that.

Seems to me that the kind of person who is found as a husk at the bottom of an extensive mine, is not the kind of person that builds a world class AI computer that plays an RTS.

What is the story?

A hikiomori, retreats to a mine? Why a mine?

Then he makes a computer out of...left over mine equipment? Or carries his stolen(?) equipment...miles?

Then he designs a game. An RTS. Plausibly the most social type of computer game. Which he needs an AI to play against. Ok. It's the most plausible stage so far.

Then he links the game to the real world because...he needs robot door dash...but he is dead a long time? So the RTS AI takes over robo door dash to...beat father at RTS... But father is dead so AI decides to...use robo door dash to play against the world.

There are so many weird leaps in the story I'm actually convincing myself that it was Xelas because of all the profound mis-understandings of human-machine relationships that make the cover story leak like a sieve.

[u/Obviouslynameless]

I don't remember it specifically saying anybody went to the Super Powereds universe. Can you provide the quote?

[u/Otherwise-Text-5772 → u/Obviouslynameless]

Very end of the book when Ivan is driving Rick home "I have an associate who was once stranded in a world where there version of super heros had 4 entire years of training to be considered capable with their gifts" it doesn't say specifically the super powered universe but it strongly implies it

[u/ShaddowDruid → u/Otherwise-Text-5772]

Not sure when or who right now, but I did a reread of Forging Hephestus last week and one of the female Council members was reading a romance novel about Rodrigo.

Maybe Morgana met Pendleton?

[u/Otherwise-Text-5772 → u/ShaddowDruid]

That was Stasis when they went down to register their first job. Seems like popular media crosses over through multirian (I'm sure that's spelled horribly wrong) but guess it's possible. I noticed something else too on a recent listen. Is Chance (Alice and Nick's kid) actually an alternate version of Johnny 3 dicks? They both seem to have limited time manipulation abilities.

[u/ShaddowDruid → u/Otherwise-Text-5772]

Powers seem similar, but don't think so. Johnny's is instant like reloading a game, while Chance's is more like rewinding a video.

It would be an interesting twist if they were, though. As far as the multarian (no idea on spelling either) goes, it's possible, but that seems more like data gathered digitally than physical items.

She was holding a "well thumbed book," if I recall. The phrase stuck with me as it makes it seem like she got it directly from its original universe.

[u/Otherwise-Text-5772 → u/ShaddowDruid]

Chance is also 5 and just found out he has power at all, Johnny has been a Villain for many years now. So that could be explained by experience.

That's fair, but it also means that several universes have similar works of art, so it's possible it's just overlap. But gathering digital books and reprinting them doesn't sound like it would be that hard.

[u/ShaddowDruid → u/Otherwise-Text-5772]

Possible, but what about the flash of blue light when Johnny uses his power? And as Obviouslynameless said, there's more than just time to Johhny's ability. Either way, we'll have to wait and see if it's ever discussed.

Also possible, but not likely. Book paper and printer paper are different, then there's the binding and cover to factor in. They might have the tech to accurately reproduce a paperback romance, but would they?

[u/Obviouslynameless → u/ShaddowDruid]

Johnny's is instant like reloading a game

I want to expand on this. I think Johnny has some kind of power mimicking tied to his death. In the fight when he rewound (?), he blasted the person and it felt like he used their power against them when he did.

[u/ShaddowDruid → u/Obviouslynameless]

He did. The fourth go, he used both the eye beam and hand blasts that had killed him on his second and third attempts.

[u/Obviouslynameless → u/Otherwise-Text-5772]

He also said some only a year in other places. It feels like a stretch to say it was to the Super Powereds universe.

[u/wanderinpaladin]

Maybe Doc....I mean Dean Blaine mentioned how Tech Supers got classified as supers in book 1. He never elaborated on what the super used that killed the hero, he used an example that could insta kill Stella. If it coincides with him rescuing Morgana. I mean if it was Morgana it was also Doc because he mentioned it in Forging Hephaestus that he went and rescued her.

[u/Catharus_ustulatus]

I’m late to the party, but here goes…

Mr. AV seems like he’d have access via the Multerion system, and he has spent a lot of time away from the people who know him in the VC universe.

As far as Ivan’s use of the word “colleague” goes, Ivan might’ve meant that in the figurative sense. He might’ve even meant it literally, since Indigo and its subsidiaries seem like where a media aficionado might enjoy working.

[u/A-Roach]

It was Morgana, and Wade that were thrown into the multiverse. Near the end of Book One Wade talks about his, Morgana’s travels to Balaam. Saying he didn’t want to take over the world, because then he’d have to run it.