The beat down has begun. Please read the chapter before continuing.
The next few chapters have a strong language warning attached. Blame Nasty. She's a tad upset with her counterpart.
Eric gets to be the dude in distress. Natasha has plans for him, and Eric has stalled her as long as he can. He wasn't meant to be Natasha's victim when I first added him to /Crossover/. He was there to guide Nasty, help her get through the con. Natasha's crush on him came naturally, but wasn't planned. There's a bit of backstory in Natasha's universe that involved Eric, but it's left in the mirror universe. Again, readers can fill in their own details.
Hank Cheetas was a real restaurant in Cleveland. It existed when I wrote Crossover, but has closed since then. I chose it because of its location, close to the hotel and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Google Street View and Google Maps gave me the layout of the exterior, especially the parking lot. It's rare for me to use a real place, but I chose the danger back in 2008.
Nasty is jealous. She already has many reasons to hate her counterpart, from wardrobe to being kidnapped, but Natasha hitting on Eric turns the rematch into something far more personal. Nasty finally make the connection she's been missing in /Subject 13/, that she can allow herself to get closer to Eric. She's seeing what could be, with her evil twin usurping her role.
Gwen came with personality. She was never planned, though much of Crossover wasn't planned. The "favourite binoculars" line came out of nowhere but fit her. Gwen is a decent agent, but the Eagle Foundation is a non-profit; the Foundation can't pay as much as other agencies with government backing, so they get the odd ones from time to time.
The opening blow, though, was planned. Nasty kept it together just long enough to walk up to her counterpart. Then the dam broke. Natasha would regret the error of her ways if she wasn't getting pummeled. The fight is choreographed. After a night of writing, I'd head to bed and work out the visuals for the next few exchanges, starting from the general and then working out specifics from there. Each match-up needed to be worked out, with everyone's abilities taken into account. Even if the fight went into a direction I hadn't planned, I still needed to work out the hows and whys.
Tomorrow, Crossover Chapter 16.
Also tomorrow, over at Psycho Drive-In, it's a hiatus week.
Saturday, over at Seventh Sanctum, Star Wars: Rebels, for real this time. It's not becoming Ma & Pa Kettle.
Also Saturday, check out Comics Bulletin for comics-related reposts of Lost in Translation.
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